Context No. 3247 of 4322 · Sirach

Sirach 37:17-31: in context

17As a token of the changing of the heart, 18four kinds of things rise up: good and evil, life and death. That which rules over them continually is the tongue. 19There is one who is clever and the instructor of many, and yet is unprofitable to his own soul. 20There is one who is subtle in words, and is hated. He will be destitute of all food. 21For grace was not given to him from the Lord, because he is deprived of all wisdom. 22There is one who is wise to his own soul; and the fruits of his understanding are trustworthy in the mouth. 23A wise man will instruct his own people. The fruits of his understanding are trustworthy. 24A wise man will be filled with blessing. All those who see him will call him happy. 25The life of a man is counted by days. The days of Israel are innumerable. 26The wise man will inherit confidence among his people. His name will live forever. 27My son, test your soul in your life. See what is evil for it, and don’t give in to it. 28For not all things are profitable for all men. Not every soul has pleasure in everything. 29Don’t be insatiable in any luxury. Don’t be greedy in the things that you eat. 30For overeating brings disease, and gluttony causes nausea. 31Because of gluttony, many have perished, but he who takes heed shall prolong his life.

Sirach moves from the heart to the tongue to the table, and one theme runs through all of it: self-mastery. The tongue rules over good and evil, life and death; it can build up or destroy. A man may be clever, an instructor of many, and yet be unprofitable to his own soul, wise for everyone but himself. And then, plainly, on appetite: do not be greedy, for overeating brings disease, but the one who takes heed prolongs his life.

The wisdom here is unglamorous but real: mastering my own tongue and my own appetites, being wise for myself and not only for others. It is possible to counsel many people well and still fail to govern oneself, to know what is good and yet not live by it. Sirach presses the point home: test your soul, see what is harmful to it, and do not give in. Knowing the good is not enough; I must actually rule myself by it, in what I say and in what I consume.

Am I wise for myself as well as for others, governing my own tongue and appetites, or do I counsel others while failing to master myself?

Sources

Sirach 37:18: "Good and evil, life and death... that which rules over them continually is the tongue."
Sirach 37:19: "There is one who is clever and the instructor of many, and yet is unprofitable to his own soul."
Sirach 37:27: "My son, test your soul in your life. See what is evil for it, and don't give in to it."