Sirach
Old Testament · Wisdom · 15 chapter studies + Overview · 16 narrated · Total audio: 5 hrs 5 min
Read Sirach in canonical sequence.
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- Intro Sirach - Overview A Coptic Orthodox overview of Sirach, explaining its Orthodox canonical place, why common NKJV editions omit it, its Greek Septuagint transmission from a Hebrew original, its...
- 1-2 Sirach 1-2 - Wisdom, Fear, and the Furnace Sirach 1-2 introduces Ben Sira's translated wisdom as life from the Lord, forming the soul in reverent fear, patient endurance, and trust in God's mercy through temptation.
- 3-4 Sirach 3-4 - Honor, Humility, and the Poor Sirach 3-4 teaches wisdom as honor at home, humility before God, meek mercy to the poor, justice for the afflicted, and courage to speak truth without surrendering the soul.
- 5-7 Sirach 5-7 - Presumption, Speech, and Repentance Sirach 5-7 warns against presuming on mercy, delaying repentance, corrupting speech, choosing friends carelessly, and treating worship or daily duty as secondary to self-will.
- 8-11 Sirach 8-11 - Discernment Under Power Sirach 8-11 trains discernment around rulers, pride, appearances, speech, women and men, public honor, and the danger of judging a life before its end.
- 12-14 Sirach 12-14 - Friendship, Enemies, and Wealth Sirach 12-14 teaches discernment in friendship and enmity, the spiritual danger of unequal power, the instability of wealth, and the urgency of generous joy before death.
- 15-18 Sirach 15-18 - Freedom, Sin, Mercy, and Return Sirach 15-18 teaches that wisdom receives those who fear God, human beings remain responsible for sin, mercy calls the soul to return, and creation reveals the Lord before...
- 19-23 Sirach 19-23 - The Mouth and the Passions Sirach 19-23 teaches the discipline of speech, secrecy, correction, shame, lust, oaths, and desire, showing that the mouth and passions reveal the heart's formation.
- 24 Sirach 24 - Wisdom in the Congregation Sirach 24 presents Wisdom praising herself in the congregation, dwelling among God's people, serving in the holy tabernacle, and opening a careful Christological horizon toward...
- 25-26 Sirach 25-26 - Household Wisdom and Marriage Sirach 25-26 treats household wisdom, marriage, warnings about destructive relationships, and praise of a faithful wife with pastoral guardrails against misogyny and weaponized...
- 27-31 Sirach 27-31 - Anger, Forgiveness, Money, and Feasting Sirach 27-31 teaches integrity in business and speech, the danger of betrayal, forgiveness before prayer, responsible lending, child formation, wealth, moderation, and feasting...
- 32-35 Sirach 32-35 - Worship, Sacrifice, and Justice Sirach 32-35 teaches reverent listening, disciplined counsel, worship offered with justice, and prayer that God hears from the humble, the widow, the fatherless, and the oppressed.
- 36-39 Sirach 36-39 - Counsel, Medicine, Grief, Work, and the Scribe Sirach 36-39 moves from prayer for God's people into counsel, friendship, physicians, grief, skilled work, the vocation of the scribe, and praise of the Lord's works.
- 40-43 Sirach 40-43 - Death, Shame, and Creation's Praise Sirach 40-43 contemplates mortality, true shame and honor, the limits of human life, and creation as a mirror of the Creator's glory and a summons to unceasing praise.
- 44-49 Sirach 44-49 - Let Us Now Praise Famous Men Sirach 44-49 praises the righteous fathers, forming holy memory through patriarchs, Moses, Aaron, Joshua, David, Elijah, the prophets, and those whose righteousness is not...
- 50-51 Sirach 50-51 - Worship and the Pursuit of Wisdom Sirach 50-51 crowns the book with temple worship, blessing, the people bowing, thanksgiving for deliverance, and the lifelong pursuit of wisdom.