Sirach 47:17-25: a reflection

17For your songs, proverbs, parables, and interpretations, the countries marveled at you. 18By the name of the Lord God, who is called the God of Israel, you gathered gold like tin, and multiplied silver like lead. 19You bowed your loins to women, and in your body you were brought into subjection. 20You blemished your honor, and defiled your offspring, to bring wrath upon your children. I was grieved for your folly, 21because the sovereignty was divided, and a disobedient kingdom ruled out of Ephraim. 22But the Lord will never forsake his mercy. He won’t destroy any of his works, nor blot out the posterity of his elect. He won’t take away the offspring of him who loved him. He gave a remnant to Jacob, and to David a root from his own family. 23So Solomon rested with his fathers. Of his offspring, he left behind him Rehoboam, the foolishness of the people, and one who lacked understanding, who made the people revolt by his counsel. Also Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, and gave a way of sin to Ephraim. 24Their sins were multiplied exceedingly, until they were removed from their land. 25For they sought out all manner of wickedness, until vengeance came upon them.

In recounting the reign of Solomon, Sirach tells a sobering story: the wisest of men, whose wisdom made the nations marvel, nevertheless fell into folly. For all his God-given wisdom, Solomon in his later years turned aside, gave himself to what led his heart astray, and blemished his honor, so that the kingdom was divided after him. Sirach grieves over this folly: I was grieved for your folly, he says. Here is a warning worth pondering: that even great wisdom, even wisdom given by God, does not by itself guarantee against folly if the heart turns away. Solomon had wisdom in abundance; but wisdom possessed is not the same as wisdom kept, and his heart's turning led even the wisest of men into folly. To have wisdom is not enough; the heart must be kept, for even great wisdom can be undone by a heart that turns from God. Even the wisest can fall to folly when the heart turns. Wisdom possessed does not guarantee wisdom kept. Even great gifts do not secure us if the heart turns from God.

Notice the warning in Solomon's story: even great wisdom did not keep him from folly. Solomon was renowned for his wisdom, given by God, admired by the nations; and yet he fell into folly, turned aside, blemished his honor. His wisdom did not, by itself, keep his heart from turning. This is sobering, for we might assume that great gifts, great wisdom, great knowledge of God, would secure us against falling; but Solomon's story shows that they do not. What matters is not only the gift possessed but the heart kept. Even the wisest of men fell, because his heart turned away. This warns us not to rest complacently on our gifts, our knowledge, our past wisdom, as though they made us secure; the heart must be watched and kept, for even great wisdom can be undone by a heart that turns from God. No gift, however great, secures us if the heart is not kept. The falling of the wisest man is a warning to guard our hearts, whatever our gifts. Wisdom is not self-keeping; the heart must be guarded. Our gifts do not keep us; a kept heart does.

That is worth taking to heart, for even great wisdom or gifts do not guarantee against folly if the heart turns from God, and we must keep our hearts. We can rest complacently on our gifts, our wisdom, our knowledge of God, as though they secured us against falling; but even Solomon, the wisest of men, fell into folly when his heart turned aside. Wisdom possessed is not the same as wisdom kept; no gift secures us if the heart is not guarded. The heart must be watched and kept, whatever our gifts. Do not rest complacently on your gifts or wisdom as though they made you secure; guard your heart, for even great wisdom can be undone by a heart that turns from God, as Solomon's was. Guard your heart rather than resting complacently on your gifts or wisdom, since even great wisdom does not guarantee against folly if the heart turns from God, as Solomon, the wisest of men whose wisdom made the nations marvel, nevertheless fell into folly when his heart turned aside; for wisdom possessed is not the same as wisdom kept, and no gift, however great, secures us if the heart is not guarded, so that the falling of the wisest man warns us not to trust in our gifts to keep us but to watch and keep our hearts, whatever we have been given, for it is a kept heart, not our gifts alone, that keeps us from folly.

Lord, in recounting the reign of Solomon, Sirach tells a sobering story: the wisest of men, whose wisdom made the nations marvel, nevertheless fell into folly. For all his God-given wisdom, Solomon in his later years turned aside, gave himself to what led his heart astray, and blemished his honor, so that the kingdom was divided after him. Sirach grieves over this folly: I was grieved for your folly, he says. Here is a warning worth pondering: that even great wisdom, even wisdom given by you, does not by itself guarantee against folly if the heart turns away. Solomon had wisdom in abundance; but wisdom possessed is not the same as wisdom kept. Show me the warning in Solomon's story: even great wisdom did not keep him from folly. Solomon was renowned for his wisdom, given by you, admired by the nations; and yet he fell into folly, turned aside. His wisdom did not, by itself, keep his heart from turning. This is sobering, for I might assume that great gifts, great wisdom, great knowledge of you, would secure me against falling; but Solomon's story shows that they do not. What matters is not only the gift possessed but the heart kept. This warns me not to rest complacently on my gifts, my knowledge, my past wisdom, as though they made me secure; the heart must be watched and kept. Take that to my heart, for even great wisdom or gifts do not guarantee against folly if the heart turns from you, and I must keep my heart. I can rest complacently on my gifts, my wisdom, my knowledge of you, as though they secured me against falling; but even Solomon fell when his heart turned aside. Keep me from resting complacently on my gifts or wisdom as though they made me secure; help me guard my heart, Lord, for even great wisdom can be undone by a heart that turns from you, as Solomon's was.