Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 29

₁Be kind enough to lend to your neighbour when he needs help. You are keeping the Lord's commands if you help him. ₂If he needs something, lend it to him. And when you are in debt, pay it back as soon as you can. ₃If you meet your obligations, you will always be able to borrow what you need. ₄Many people treat a loan as something they found and can keep, causing embarrassment to those who helped them. ₅Some people will speak politely, bow, and scrape until they get the loan they want, but when the time comes to pay it back, they'll put it off, say that it's inconvenient, and make a lot of worthless excuses. ₆If the lender insists on being paid, he can count himself lucky to get back half. If he doesn't insist, the borrower has robbed him and made an unnecessary enemy. All the lender will get from him are curses, insults, and disrespect, but never any gratitude.

₇Many people refuse to lend at all, not because they are stingy, but because they don't want to be cheated if they can avoid it.

₈Nevertheless, be understanding with those who are poor. Don't keep them waiting for your generosity. ₉The Lord has commanded us to help the poor; don't refuse them the help they need. ₁₀It is better to lose your money by helping a relative or a friend than to lose it by letting it rust away under a rock somewhere. ₁₁Use your wealth as the Most High has commanded; this will do you more good than keeping your money for yourself. ₁₂Count among your treasures the fact that you give to the poor. It will save you from all kinds of trouble ₁₃and will be a better defence against your enemies than the strongest shield or stoutest spear.

₁₄A good man is willing to guarantee his neighbour's debts. Only someone who has lost all sense of decency would refuse to do so. ₁₅If someone does this favour for you, don't forget it; he has risked his good name for you. ₁₆There are some ungrateful sinners who abandon those who stand behind them, and they cause them loss of property. ₁₇Guaranteeing loans has ruined many prosperous people and caused them unsettling storms of trouble. ₁₈Influential people have lost their homes over it and have had to go wandering in foreign countries. ₁₉A sinner who hopes to make a profit by guaranteeing a loan is going to find himself involved in lawsuits. ₂₀So help your neighbour as much as you can, but protect yourself against the dangers involved.

₂₁The necessities of life are water, food, clothing, and a home where you can have privacy. ₂₂It is better to be poor and live under your own crude roof than to enjoy lavish banquets in other people's homes. ₂₃Be happy with what you have, even if it isn't very much, and don't listen to anyone who would insult your home and family. ₂₄Going from house to house is a miserable way to live. Anywhere you go, you don't dare to speak. ₂₅You welcome the guests and pour the drinks, and nobody thanks you. Instead, people humiliate you by saying things like: ₂₆“Stranger! Come here and lay the table! I want to eat what you've got there! Give it here! ₂₇Go away, stranger! I've got an important guest! My brother is coming to visit, and I need the room!”

₂₈Being denied hospitality or having a moneylender hound you — these are hard things for any sensitive person to endure.