Sirach 28:1-16: a reflection

1He who takes vengeance will find vengeance from the Lord, and he will surely make his sins firm. 2Forgive your neighbor the hurt that he has done, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray. 3Does anyone harbor anger against another and expect healing from the Lord? 4Upon a man like himself he has no mercy, and does he make supplication for his own sins? 5He himself, being flesh, nourishes wrath. Who will make atonement for his sins? 6Remember your last end, and stop enmity. Remember corruption and death, and be true to the commandments. 7Remember the commandments, and don’t be angry with your neighbor. Remember the covenant of the Highest, and overlook ignorance. 8Abstain from strife, and you will diminish your sins, for a passionate man will kindle strife. 9A man who is a sinner will trouble friends and sow discord among those who are at peace. 10As is the fuel of the fire, so it will burn; and as the stoutness of the strife is, so it will burn. As is the strength of the man, so will be his wrath; and as is his wealth, so he will exalt his anger. 11A contention begun in haste kindles a fire; and hasty fighting sheds blood. 12If you blow on a spark, it will burn; and if you spit upon it, it will be quenched. Both of these come out of your mouth. 13Curse the whisperer and double-tongued, for he has destroyed many who were at peace. 14A slanderer has shaken many, and dispersed them from nation to nation. It has pulled down strong cities and overthrown the houses of great men. 15A slanderer has cast out brave women and deprived them of their labors. 16He who listens to it will not find rest, nor will he live quietly.

Sirach speaks pointedly about revenge and forgiveness. The one who takes vengeance, he warns, will face the Lord's vengeance; but forgive your neighbor the wrong he has done, and then your own sins will be pardoned when you pray. He asks a piercing question: can a person nurse anger against another and still expect healing from the Lord? Can someone who shows no mercy to a fellow human being ask God for mercy on their own sins? The logic is inescapable.

The passage recognizes how consuming and destructive nursed anger is. It kindles strife like a spark blown into flame, troubles friendships, and sows discord among those who were at peace. Sirach counsels us to remember our own mortality and stop the enmity, to remember God's commandments and overlook the offense. Holding onto anger and revenge, he sees clearly, harms the one who holds it as much as anyone, robbing them of rest and peace.

Jesus taught the same truth even more directly: forgive, and you will be forgiven; the measure you use will be measured to you. Nursing a grudge and expecting God's mercy on your own sins is a contradiction. If you are harboring anger against someone, holding onto a wrong done to you, this passage calls you to release it. Forgive your neighbor the hurt they have caused, as you hope to be forgiven, and be freed from the consuming fire of a grudge. Mercy given opens the way to mercy received.

Lord, you have shown me that I cannot nurse anger against another and still expect your mercy on my own sins. Free me from the grudges I hold, the wrongs I keep replaying. Give me the grace to forgive my neighbor the hurt they have caused, as I long to be forgiven. Release me from the consuming fire of resentment, and let mercy given open the way to mercy received. Amen.