Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) — Chapter 13
Chapter 13 warns against the dangerous company of the powerful and wealthy (vv. 1-18), showing through multiple antitheses how inequality of condition makes genuine friendship impossible between the rich and the poor. The second part (vv. 19-32) generalizes this to the natural law of \"like attracts like\" and concludes with observations on the heart's effect on appearance. Lapide treats this as a sociological and moral analysis of wealth and power.
Verse 1
He that toucheth pitch shall be defiled with it; and he that hath fellowship with the proud shall put on pride. Association with the proud inevitably transmits pride, just as touching pitch defiles. Lapide uses five similes to illustrate how the company of the great corrupts: pitch, excess burden, potsherd against bronze pot, the rich man's injustice, and the potentate's mockery.
Verse 4
The rich man did wrong, and yet he trembleth; but when the poor is wronged, he must hold his peace. The scandalous asymmetry of power: the powerful wrong with impunity while the poor must suffer in silence. Lapide condemns this inversion of justice and predicts divine reversal at the Last Judgment.
Verse 9
Humble thyself to God, and wait for His hand. In dealing with the powerful, the prudent man humbles himself before God and trusts in divine protection rather than attempting to compete with the mighty. Lapide notes this as the practical wisdom underlying all prudent submission.
Verse 14
Live not a life of begging; it is better to die than to want. The dignity of self-sufficiency: poverty of the most destitute kind (begging) degrades human dignity. Lapide argues that prudent industry and acceptance of one's station are more honorable than dependence on the charity of the powerful and contemptuous.
Verse 19
Every beast loveth its like; so also every man him that is nearest to himself. The natural law of social affinity: like gravitates to like in every species, including human society. Lapide uses this as the natural-law basis for the sociological observations that follow.
Verse 21
If a wolf and a lamb ever agree, so the sinner may agree with the just. The impossibility of genuine communion between the wicked and the just is as absolute as that between wolf and lamb. Lapide draws the application to Christian social life: authentic friendship requires moral compatibility.
Verse 28
A rich man spoke and all held their peace, and what he said they extol even to the clouds. The social pathology of deference to wealth: the rich man's word is treated as wisdom regardless of content, while the poor man's wisdom is ignored. Lapide condemns this inversion of true values as a symptom of spiritual blindness.