Ecclesiastes 7
7
1A good reputation is better than expensive perfume, and the day you die is better than the day you were born. 2It's better to go to a funeral than to a party.#7:2. Literally, “It is better to go to the house of mourning than the house of feasting.” In the end, everyone dies, and those who are still alive should think about it. 3Sorrow is better than laughter, for tragedy helps us by making us think.#7:3. Literally, “by sadness of countenance the heart is good.” In Hebrew thought, the heart was where thinking occurred. 4Wise people think about the impact of death, while those who are fools only think about having a good time. 5It's better to listen to criticism from a wise person than to hear the song of fools. 6The laughter of fools is like the crackling of thorn twigs burning under a pot—without sense and quickly over.#7:6. Thorn twigs used for fuel are of limited value, for they while they burn hot, the flames die quickly.
7Extorting money from others makes wise people into fools, and accepting bribes corrupts the mind.
8Completing something is better than starting it. Being patient is better than being proud. 9Don't be quick to get angry, for anger controls the minds of fools.#7:9. “Anger controls the minds of fools”: literally, “anger lodges in the bosom of fools.” 10Don't ask, “Why were the good old days better than now?” Asking such questions shows you are not wise. 11Wisdom is good—it's like receiving an inheritance. It benefits everyone in life.#7:11. “It benefits everyone in life”: literally, “It is an advantage to those seeing the sun.” 12For wisdom provides security, as does money, but the advantage for those who have wisdom is that they are kept safe and sound!
13Think about what God does. If he makes something bent, you can't straighten it! 14On a good day, be happy. When a bad day comes, stop and think. God made each day, so you don't know what will happen to you next.
15Throughout my life I've seen so much that is hard to understand. Good people who die young despite doing what is right,#7:15. Here the emphasis seems to be on doing right as defined by the Law. and wicked people who live long evil lives. 16Don't think you can make yourself right by a lot of religious observance, and don't pretend to be so wise.#7:16. Literally, “You must not be righteous excessively, and you must not act wisely excessively.” The word “excessively” here refers to self-reliance rather than quantity. Do you want to destroy yourself?#7:16. In the sense of trying to make yourself right, and wise, by your own efforts. 17On the other hand,#7:17. Implied. don't decide to live an evil life—don't be a fool! Why die before your time? 18You ought to keep in mind these warnings. Those who follow God will be sure to avoid both.
19Wisdom gives a wise person greater power than ten town councilors.
20There's not one good person in all the world who always does what is right and never sins.
21Don't take to heart everything that people say, otherwise you may hear your servant talking badly#7:21. “Talking badly”—this in the sense of speaking disparagingly rather than cursing, as some translations suggest. about you, 22for you know how many times you yourself have talked badly about others!
23I have examined all this using the principles of wisdom. I told myself, “I will think wisely.” But wisdom eluded me. 24Everything that exists is beyond our grasp—too deep for our understanding. Who can comprehend it? 25I turned my thoughts to discover, investigate, and to find out more about wisdom and what makes sense. I wanted to know more about how stupid evil really is, and how ridiculous it is to be a fool. 26I discovered something more horrible#7:26. Literally, “bitter.” than death: foolishness like a woman#7:26. “Woman”: symbolic of Folly, see Proverbs 5 and Proverbs 7. who tries to entrap you, who wants to use her mind and hands to catch you and tie you up. Those who follow God will not be caught, but sinners will fall into her trap.
27This is what I discovered after putting two and two#7:27. Hebrew: “one and one.” together to try and find out what it all meant, says the Teacher. 28Although I really searched, I didn't find what I was looking for. People say, “I found one man among a thousand, but not one woman.”#7:28. This appears to have been some kind of proverb. It's exact meaning is uncertain. 29But I did find this one thing: God made people to do what's right, but they have followed their own ideas.#7:29. Literally, “but they have sought out many devices.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Ecclesiastes 7
7
Wise Sayings
1A good name is better than fine perfume, # Pr 22:1; Ezk 36:21
and the day of one’s death than the day of one’s birth. # Ec 4:2
2It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
since that is the end of all mankind,
and the living should take it to heart. # Ps 90:12
3Grief is better than laughter,
for when a face is sad, a heart may be glad. # Pr 14:13
4The heart of the wise is in a house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in a house of pleasure.
5It is better to listen to rebuke from a wise person
than to listen to the song of fools, # Pr 13:1
6for like the crackling of burning thorns under the pot, # Ps 58:9; 118:12
so is the laughter of the fool.
This too is futile.
7Surely, the practice of extortion turns a wise person into a fool, # Ec 4:1
and a bribe destroys the mind. # Dt 16:19; Pr 17:8
8The end of a matter is better than its beginning;
a patient spirit is better than a proud spirit. # Pr 14:29
9Don’t let your spirit rush to be angry,
for anger abides in the heart of fools. # Pr 14:17; Jms 1:19
10Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these? ” # Jdg 6:13
since it is not wise of you to ask this.
11Wisdom is as good as an inheritance
and an advantage to those who see the sun,
12because wisdom is protection as money is protection,
and the advantage of knowledge
is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner. # Pr 3:18
13Consider the work of God, # Ec 3:11
for who can straighten out
what He has made crooked? # Ec 1:15
14In the day of prosperity be joyful, # Ec 3:22 but in the day of adversity, consider: God has made the one as well as the other, # Lm 3:38 so that man cannot discover anything that will come after him.
Avoiding Extremes
15In my futile life # Lit days I have seen everything: # Ec 6:12; 9:9 there is a righteous man who perishes in spite of his righteousness, # Ec 8:14 and there is a wicked man who lives long in spite of his evil. # Ec 8:12-13 16Don’t be excessively righteous, and don’t be overly wise. # Ec 2:15; Rm 12:3 Why should you destroy yourself? 17Don’t be excessively wicked, and don’t be foolish. Why should you die before your time? # Jb 22:16; Ps 55:23; Pr 10:27 18It is good that you grasp the one and do not let the other slip from your hand. For the one who fears God will end up with both of them.
19Wisdom makes the wise man stronger
than ten rulers of a city. # Ec 9:13-18
20There is certainly no righteous man on the earth
who does good and never sins. # 1Kg 8:46; Rm 3:23
21Don’t pay attention # Lit Don’t give your heart to everything people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you, # Pr 30:10 22for you know that many times you yourself have cursed others.
What the Teacher Found
23I have tested all this by wisdom. I resolved, “I will be wise,” but it was beyond me. 24What exists is beyond reach and very deep. # Rm 11:33 Who can discover it? 25I turned my thoughts to know, explore, and seek wisdom # Ec 1:15,17 and an explanation for things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity and folly is madness. 26And I find more bitter than death # Pr 5:4 the woman who is a trap, # Pr 6:25 her heart a net, and her hands chains. The one who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner will be captured by her. 27“Look,” says the Teacher, “I have discovered this by adding one thing to another to find out the explanation, 28which my soul continually searches for but does not find: among a thousand people I have found one true man, but among all these I have not found a true woman. # 1Kg 11:3 29Only see this: I have discovered that God made people upright, # Gn 1:27 but they pursued many schemes.”
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