Go to Related Reading
About this book

Sirach

Ben Sira, Ecclesiasticus

About this book
Chapter 35

1 He who keeps the law multiplies offerings. 2 He who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering. 3 He who returns a kindness offers fine flour. 4 He who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering. 5 To depart from wickedness pleases the Lord. To depart from unrighteousness is an atoning sacrifice. 6 See that you don’t appear in the presence of the Lord empty. 7 For all these things are done because of the commandment. 8 The offering of the righteous enriches the altar. The sweet fragrance of it is before the Most High. 9 The sacrifice of a righteous man is acceptable. It won’t be forgotten. 10 Glorify the Lord with generosity. Don’t reduce the first fruits of your hands. 11 In every gift show a cheerful face, and dedicate your tithe with gladness.⁠ 12 Give to the Most High according as he has given. As your hand has found, give generously. 13 For the Lord repays, and he will repay you sevenfold. 14 Don’t plan to bribe him with gifts, for he will not receive them. 15 Don’t set your mind on an unrighteous sacrifice, For the Lord is the judge, and with him is no respect of persons.⁠ 16 He won’t accept any person against a poor man. He will listen to the prayer of him who is wronged. 17 He will in no way despise the supplication of the fatherless or the widow, when she pours out her tale.⁠ 18 Don’t the tears of the widow run down her cheek? 19 Isn’t her cry against him who has caused them to fall? 20 He who serves God according to his good pleasure will be accepted. His supplication will reach to the clouds. 21 The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds. until it comes near, he will not be comforted. He won’t depart until the Most High visits and he judges righteously and executes judgment.⁠ 22 And the Lord will not be slack, neither will he be patient toward them, until he has crushed the loins of the unmerciful.⁠ 23 He will repay vengeance to the nations until he has taken away the multitude of the arrogant and broken in pieces the sceptres of the unrighteous, 24 until he has rendered to every man according to his deeds, and repaid the works of men according to their plans, 25 until he has judged the cause of his people, and he will make them rejoice in his mercy. 26 Mercy is as welcome in the time of his affliction, as clouds of rain in the time of drought.

Texts in conversation

Compare Sirach 35:22 and Matthew 16:27

Deuterocanon · New Testament

Share:

Summary

Matthew 16 depicts a scene of judgment where each person is repaid according to their deeds, echoing Jewish traditions such as in Sirach 35. In Sirach, divine justice answers the prayers of the humble, bringing reward or punishment based on behavior.

Passages

Sirach 35:22

Deuterocanon · Ben Sira, Ecclesiasticus
21 The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds. until it comes near, he will not be comforted. He won’t depart until the Most High visits and he judges righteously and executes judgment. 22 And the Lord will not be slack, neither will he be patient toward them, until he has crushed the loins of the unmerciful. 23 He will repay vengeance to the nations until he has taken away the multitude of the arrogant and broken in pieces the sceptres of the unrighteous, 24 until he has rendered to every man according to his deeds, and repaid the works of men according to their plans, 25 until he has judged the cause of his people, and he will make them rejoice in his mercy. 26 Mercy is as welcome in the time of his affliction, as clouds of rain in the time of drought.
195–180 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Sirach

Matthew 16:27

New Testament
21 From that time on Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed and on the third day be raised. 22 So Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him: “God forbid, Lord! This must not happen to you!” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me because you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but on man’s.” 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. 26 For what does it benefit a person if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what can a person give in exchange for his life? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. 28 I tell you the truth, there are some standing here who will not experience death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Matthew

References

"... There are some intriguing features about Matthew’s use of Sirach: Most of these parallels are unique to Matthew among the gospels. Included here are the structuring of the beatitudes (5:3–12), the makarism concerning those who mourn (5:4), the antithesis against adultery (5:27–28), the warning against prayers that use empty phrases (6:7), warnings against laying up treasure on earth (6:19–24), advice about judging good from bad fruit (7:16), the allusions to Elijah (11:14) and (17:11), Jesus’ teaching concerning the heavy yoke (11:28–30), the parable of the treasure hidden in the field (13:44), the warning that the son of man will repay grievances (16:27), and the separation of the sheep and goats (25:34–40). In other words, these texts and themes are singular to the Matthean mindset and thus are not typical of the remaining evangelists. (2) The vast majority of these usages are related to the topic of wisdom and instruction, a theme naturally derived from Sirach that clearly adds to Matthew’s standing as a gospel focused on teachings and contemplative sayings. But these lessons are not simply sapiential in orientation. In many cases they are associated with eschatological concerns, as with those parallels that appear (6:14), (6:20), (11:14), (16:27), (17:11), and (25:34–40). Thus, regardless of whether Jesus of Nazareth was actually concerned for a futuristic eschatology, Matthew finds within the materials of Sirach a working source by which to portray his teachings as such ..."
Clayton N. Jefford, “The Wisdom of Sirach and the Glue of the Matthew–Didache Tradition,” in Intertextuality in the Second Century, ed. D. Jeffrey Bingham and Clayton N. Jefford, BAC 11 (Leiden: Brill, 2016), 8–23.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Your feedback

Sirach 35:22 and Matthew 16:27

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library