Sirach 40:16-18

Revised Standard Version

¹⁶ The reeds by any water or river bank
    will be plucked up before any grass.
¹⁷ Kindness is like a garden of blessings,
    and almsgiving endures for ever.

¹⁸ Life is sweet for the self-reliant and the worker,^[a]
    but he who finds treasure is better off than both.