ViCe AnD VirTue 59 and mercy of God (cf. the additions of et misertus est paenitentibus in 12,3; et gloriaberis in miserationibus illius in 17,28 [17,27] [so also D], and ut tibi remittitur in 21,1 [D: ut tibi demittantur]) 74. The vice of sloth appears in the additions to the Latin version just once. in 18,27 the Greek observes that the wise person is cautious and guards against wrongdoing (plhmmelei,aj). The Latin translates the word “wrongdoing” with inertia, “sloth”. not only is this a peculiar translation, but it is also the only instance of inertia in the entire Vul- gate. This makes it difficult to speculate on its appearance in this verse, but perhaps the fact that the context emphasizes the swiftness with which circumstances can change and God’s judgment can arrive impressed upon the translator a concern for diligence and the avoid- ance of sloth. Vi. Synthesis: Vice and Virtue in the Latin Version The vices that are addressed in the expansions and alterations in the Latin version of Sirach are of an uneven character. Some of this can be attributed to the relative extent of their treatment in the book of Sirach itself. The topics of pride and humility, sexuality, and the use of wealth are all extensively discussed in Ben Sira’s work, and many, but not all, of the expansions on these topics appear as integrated within the discussion of each topic within the book. Other topics such as cowardice, envy, and sloth are much more neglected by Ben Sira, and this corresponds to their scarce treatment in the expansions. Conversely, however, the vice of anger receives substantial treatment by Ben Sira but plays a minor role in the Latin expansions. in addition, the topic of speech ethics is one of the most prominent topics in both the Greek and Latin expansions, though it is only tangentially connect- ed to classic discussions of vice and virtue (i.e. through the motif of self-control in speaking). These considerations suggest that there was not a conscious sys- tematic attempt to impress a paradigm of “capital vices” upon the book or even an attempt consciously to revise the book in the direction of virtue/vice ethics; rather, the increased emphasis on certain vices within various portions of the book, appearing rather unevenly and in many cases without obvious rationale for their placement, likely reflects the organic process in which a book dealing with manifold ethical topics was mediated through translation and transmission in an 74 THieLe, Sirach, 404, 506, 582.