Ecclesiastes 7
7
Wisdom
1A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone;
the living should take this to heart.
3Frustration is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart.
4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
5It is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person
than to listen to the song of fools.
6Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of fools.
This too is meaningless.
7Extortion turns a wise person into a fool,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8The end of a matter is better than its beginning,
and patience is better than pride.
9Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
for anger resides in the lap of fools.
10Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”
For it is not wise to ask such questions.
11Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing
and benefits those who see the sun.
12Wisdom is a shelter
as money is a shelter,
but the advantage of knowledge is this:
Wisdom preserves those who have it.
13Consider what God has done:
Who can straighten
what he has made crooked?
14When times are good, be happy;
but when times are bad, consider this:
God has made the one
as well as the other.
Therefore, no one can discover
anything about their future.
15In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these:
the righteous perishing in their righteousness,
and the wicked living long in their wickedness.
16Do not be overrighteous,
neither be overwise—
why destroy yourself?
17Do not be overwicked,
and do not be a fool—
why die before your time?
18It is good to grasp the one
and not let go of the other.
Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.#7:18 Or will follow them both
19Wisdom makes one wise person more powerful
than ten rulers in a city.
20Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous,
no one who does what is right and never sins.
21Do not pay attention to every word people say,
or you may hear your servant cursing you—
22for you know in your heart
that many times you yourself have cursed others.
23All this I tested by wisdom and I said,
“I am determined to be wise”—
but this was beyond me.
24Whatever exists is far off and most profound—
who can discover it?
25So I turned my mind to understand,
to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things
and to understand the stupidity of wickedness
and the madness of folly.
26I find more bitter than death
the woman who is a snare,
whose heart is a trap
and whose hands are chains.
The man who pleases God will escape her,
but the sinner she will ensnare.
27“Look,” says the Teacher,#7:27 Or the leader of the assembly “this is what I have discovered:
“Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things—
28while I was still searching
but not finding—
I found one upright man among a thousand,
but not one upright woman among them all.
29This only have I found:
God created mankind upright,
but they have gone in search of many schemes.”
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Ecclesiastes 7: NIV
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The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
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Ecclesiastes 7
7
The Best in Life
1 #
Pr 22.1. A good reputation
at the time of death
is better than loving care
at the time of birth.#7.1 birth: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 1.
2It's better to go to a funeral
than to attend a feast;
funerals remind us
that we all must die.
3Choose sorrow over laughter
because a sad face
may hide a happy heart.
4A sensible person mourns,
but fools always laugh.
5Correction from someone wise
is better by far
than praise from fools.
6Foolish laughter is stupid.
It sounds like thorns
crackling in a fire.
7Corruption#7.7 Corruption: Or “Oppression.” makes fools
of sensible people,
and bribes can ruin you.
8Something completed is better
than something just begun;
patience is better
than too much pride.
9 #
Jas 1.19. Only fools get angry quickly
and hold a grudge.
10It isn't wise to ask,
“Why is everything worse
than it used to be?”
11Having wisdom is better
than an inheritance.
12Wisdom will protect you
just like money;
knowledge with good sense
will lead you to life.
13Think of what God has done!
If God makes something crooked,
can you make it straight?
14When times are good,
you should be cheerful;
when times are bad,
think about what it means.
God makes them both
to keep us from knowing
what will happen next.
Some of Life's Questions
15I have seen everything during this senseless life of mine. I have seen good citizens die for doing the right thing, while criminals live and prosper. 16So don't destroy yourself by being too good or acting too smart! 17Don't die before your time by being too evil or acting like a fool. 18Keep to the middle of the road. You can do this if you truly respect God.
19Wisdom will make you stronger than the ten most powerful leaders in your city.
20No one in this world always does right.
21Don't listen to everything that everyone says, or you might hear your servant cursing you. 22Haven't you cursed many others?
23I told myself that I would be smart and try to understand all this, but it was too much for me. 24The truth is beyond us. It's far too deep. 25So I decided to learn everything I could and become wise enough to discover what life is all about. At the same time, I wanted to understand why it's stupid and senseless to be an evil fool.
26Here is what I discovered: A bad woman is worse than death. She is a trap, reaching out with body and soul to catch you. But if you obey God, you can escape. If you don't obey, you are done for. 27With all my wisdom I have tried to find out how everything fits together, 28but so far I have not been able to. I do know there is one good man in a thousand, but never have I found a good woman. 29I did learn one thing: We were completely honest when God created us, but now we have twisted minds.
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