Ecclesiastes 7

The Value of Wisdom

1#Pr 22:1; Ecc 4:2 A good name is better than precious ointment,

and the day of death than the day of birth.

2#Ps 90:12 It is better to go to a house of mourning

than to go to a house of feasting,

for this is the end of all mankind;

and the living will lay it to heart.

3Grief is better than laughter,

for with a downcast face the heart considers the good.

4The heart of those who are wise is in the house of mourning,

but the heart of those who are foolish in the house of feasting.

5#Ps 141:5; Pr 15:31–32 It is better to hear the rebuke from a wise man

than a man listen to the song of fools.

6#Ps 58:9; 118:12 For like the crackling sound of thorns under a pot,

so is the mocking laughter of fools.

And this is also vanity.

7#Dt 16:19; Ex 23:8 For oppression brings confusion to the wise man,

and a bribe destroys a man’s heart.

8#Pr 14:29; 16:32 The end of a matter is better than the beginning of it,

and the patient in spirit than the haughty in spirit.

9#Pr 14:17; Jas 1:19; Pr 16:32 Do not be quick in your spirit to be angry,

for irritation settles in the bosom of fools.

10Do not say, “Why were the earlier days better than these days?”

For it is not from wisdom that you inquire this.

11#Ecc 11:7 Wisdom is good with an inheritance,

and an advantage to those who see the sun.

12#Pr 3:18; 8:35 For the protection of wisdom

is like the protection of money,

and the advantage of knowledge is

that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.

13#Ecc 1:15; Job 12:14Consider the work of God:

Who is able to make straight

what He has made crooked?

14#Ecc 3:22; Dt 28:47 In the day of prosperity be joyful,

but in the day of distress consider:

God has made the one

as well as the other.

For this reason man will not be able to understand

anything that comes after him.

15#Ecc 8:12–14; 6:12I have seen everything in my days of vanity:

There is the righteous man who dies in his righteousness,

and there is the wicked man who extends his life of evil.

16#Ro 12:3; Pr 25:16 Do not be excessively righteous,

and do not be extremely wise;

why should you destroy yourself?

17#Ps 55:23; Pr 10:27 Do not be overly wicked,

and do not be a fool;

why should you die before your time?

18#Ecc 8:12; 11:6 It is good that you should take hold of this,

and from the other not withhold your hand;

for he who fears God will come out from them all.

19#Pr 21:22; 24:5 Wisdom strengthens the wise man

more than ten rulers who are in the city.

20#1Ki 8:46; 2Ch 6:36; Pr 20:9 For there is not a righteous man on earth

who only does good and refrains from sin.

21#Pr 30:10 Do not give heed to everything people say,

lest you hear your servant cursing you.

22Your heart knows

that many times you have spoken a curse against others.

23#Ro 1:22All this I have tested by wisdom. I said,

“I will be wise,”

but it was far from me.

24#Ro 11:33; 1Ti 6:16 That which is, is far off,

and exceedingly deep.

Who can find it out?

25#Ecc 10:13 And I turned my heart to know,

and seek and search out wisdom in how things are

and to experience wicked folly,

even foolishness and madness.

26#Pr 22:14; 2:18–19 I find more bitter than death

the woman whose heart is snares

and nets,

and whose hands are fetters.

He who pleases God escapes her,

but the sinner is taken by her.

27“See, this is what I found,” says the Preacher,

“adding one thing to another to find the sum,

28#Job 33:23 which my soul still seeks

but I do not find:

One man among a thousand I have found,

but a woman among all these I have not found.

29#Ge 3:6–7 See, this only have I found:

that God made man upright,

but they have sought out many schemes.”

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Ecclesiastes 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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