Sirach 27:1-16: a reflection

1Many have sinned for profit. He who seeks to multiply wealth will turn his eye away. 2As a nail will stick fast between the joinings of stones, so sin will thrust itself in between buying and selling. 3Unless a person holds on diligently to the fear of the Lord, his house will be overthrown quickly. 4In the shaking of a sieve, the refuse remains, so does the filth of man in his thoughts. 5The furnace tests the potter’s vessels; so the test of a person is in his thoughts. 6The fruit of a tree discloses its cultivation, so is the utterance of the thought of a person’s heart. 7Praise no man before you hear his thoughts, for this is how people are tested. 8If you follow righteousness, you will obtain it, and put it on like a long robe of glory. 9Birds will return to their own kind, so truth will return to those who practice it. 10The lion lies in wait for prey. So does sin for those who do evil. 11The discourse of a godly man is always wise, but the fool changes like the moon. 12Limit your time among people void of understanding, but persevere among the thoughtful. 13The talk of fools is offensive. Their laughter is wantonly sinful. 14Their talk with much swearing makes hair stand upright. Their strife makes others plug their ears. 15The strife of the proud leads to bloodshed. Their abuse of each other is a grievous thing to hear. 16He who reveals secrets destroys trust, and will not find a close friend.

Among Sirach's sayings is a plain word about the damage done by betraying a confidence: He who reveals secrets destroys trust, and will not find a close friend. To betray a secret entrusted to us, to reveal what was told in confidence, breaks the trust that friendship depends on; and the one who does it will not find, or keep, a close friend, for no one confides in the one who cannot be trusted. Trust is the foundation of friendship, and revealing secrets destroys it. The one who keeps confidences can be trusted, and friendship can grow; the one who betrays them cannot be trusted, and friendship withers. To keep a confidence is to guard the trust that friendship is built on; to betray it is to destroy that trust and drive away close friends. Keeping confidences guards friendship; betraying them destroys it.

Notice the damage Sirach names: revealing secrets destroys trust and drives away close friends. Friendship rests on trust, and trust rests in part on the confidence that what we share will be kept, not spread abroad. The one who reveals secrets breaks that trust; and once broken, it is hard to restore, for who will confide in the one who cannot keep a confidence? Such a one will not find a close friend, because closeness depends on trust, and trust has been destroyed. To keep confidences, on the other hand, is to guard the trust that lets friendship grow, to be the kind of person others can safely confide in. The trustworthy keep what is told them in confidence; and their trustworthiness draws and holds close friends. Keeping a confidence is not a small thing; it guards the very foundation of friendship. To be trustworthy with what others share is to be a friend worth having. Betrayed confidences leave a trail of broken trust; kept confidences build friendships that last.

That is worth taking to heart, for keeping confidences guards trust and friendship, while betraying them destroys both. We can be careless with what others share with us in confidence, revealing what was meant to be kept; but Sirach warns that revealing secrets destroys trust and drives away close friends. Trust is the foundation of friendship, and keeping confidences guards it. To be trustworthy with what others tell us is to be a friend worth having and to keep the friends we have. Do not betray the confidences others share with you; keep them, guarding the trust that friendship depends on, as Sirach warns that revealing secrets destroys trust. Keep the confidences others entrust to you rather than betraying them, guarding the trust that friendship is built on, as Sirach warns that he who reveals secrets destroys trust and will not find a close friend; for trust is the foundation of friendship, and revealing what was told in confidence breaks that trust and drives away close friends, while keeping confidences guards the trust that lets friendship grow, so that to be trustworthy with what others share is to be a friend worth having and to keep the friends we have.

Lord, among Sirach's sayings is a plain word about the damage done by betraying a confidence: he who reveals secrets destroys trust, and will not find a close friend. To betray a secret entrusted to us, to reveal what was told in confidence, breaks the trust that friendship depends on; and the one who does it will not find, or keep, a close friend, for no one confides in the one who cannot be trusted. Trust is the foundation of friendship, and revealing secrets destroys it. Keeping confidences guards friendship; betraying them destroys it. Show me the damage Sirach names: revealing secrets destroys trust and drives away close friends. Friendship rests on trust, and trust rests in part on the confidence that what we share will be kept, not spread abroad. The one who reveals secrets breaks that trust; and once broken, it is hard to restore, for who will confide in the one who cannot keep a confidence? To keep confidences, on the other hand, is to guard the trust that lets friendship grow. The trustworthy keep what is told them in confidence; and their trustworthiness draws and holds close friends. Keeping a confidence guards the very foundation of friendship. Take that to my heart, for keeping confidences guards trust and friendship, while betraying them destroys both. I can be careless with what others share with me in confidence, revealing what was meant to be kept; but Sirach warns that revealing secrets destroys trust and drives away close friends. To be trustworthy with what others tell me is to be a friend worth having. Keep me from betraying the confidences others share with me; help me keep them, Lord, guarding the trust that friendship depends on, as Sirach warns that he who reveals secrets destroys trust and will not find a close friend.