Sirach 36

1Have mercy upon us, O Lord, God of all; 2and cast your fear upon all the nations. 3Lift up your hand against foreign nations, and let them see your power. 4As you have been sanctified in us before them, so be magnified among them before us. 5Let them know you, as we have known you, that there is no God but you, O Lord. 6Renew signs and perform other wonders; 7glorify your hand and your right arm. 8Arouse indignation and pour out wrath, 9remove the adversary and annihilate the enemy. 10Hasten the time and remember your covenant, so that they may recount your mighty deeds. 11Let the one who survives be consumed by the rage of fire, and may those who mistreat your people perish. 12Crush the heads of the rulers of the enemies, who say: "There is none other besides us." 13Gather all the tribes of Jacob together, 14and grant them their inheritance as from the beginning. 15Have mercy on the people who are called by your name, O Lord, and on Israel, whom you have likened to a firstborn son. 16Show compassion to the city of your sanctuary, to Jerusalem, the place of your rest. 17Fill Zion with your wondrous works and your temple with your glory. 18Give testimony to those you have created from the beginning, and fulfill the prophecies in your name. 19Reward those who wait for you, and let your prophets be proven faithful. 20Hear, O Lord, the prayer of your servants, according to the blessing of Aaron for your people, so that all who dwell on the earth may know that you are the Lord, the eternal God. 21The stomach will consume all kinds of food, yet one type of food is better than another. 22The palate tests the taste of game, so does an understanding heart discern false words. 23A deceitful heart causes grief, but an experienced man will repay him. 24Every woman will welcome a man, but one daughter is better than another. 25The beauty of a woman gladdens the face, and it surpasses all desire of man. 26If there is kindness and gentleness in her tongue, her husband is not like other men. 27He who acquires a wife begins a possession, a help like unto himself, and a pillar of rest. 28Where there is no hedge, the property is plundered, and he who has no wife will mourn and wander. 29Who will trust a well-armed thief who leaps from city to city? So it is with a man who has no home and lodges wherever night takes him.