Ecclesiastes 10
10
1A few dead flies in perfume
make all of it stink,
and a little foolishness
outweighs a lot of wisdom.
2Sensible thoughts lead you
to do right;
foolish thoughts lead you
to do wrong.
3Fools show their stupidity
by the way they live;
it's easy to see
they have no sense.
4Don't give up your job
when your boss gets angry.
If you stay calm,
you'll be forgiven.
5Rulers do some things that are terribly unfair: 6They honor fools, but dishonor the rich; 7they let slaves ride on horses, but force slave owners to walk.
8 #
Ps 7.15; Pr 26.27; Si 27.26,27. If you dig a pit,
you might fall in;
if you break down a wall,
a snake might bite you.#10.8 a snake might bite you: Walls of houses were often made of stones with mud to fill in the cracks between them. If some of the mud washed out, a snake could be living inside the wall.
9You could even get hurt
by chiseling a stone
or chopping a log.
10If you don't sharpen your ax,
it will be harder to use;
if you are wise,
you'll know what to do.#10.10 do: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 10.
11The power to charm a snake
does you no good
if it bites you anyway.
12If you talk sensibly,
you will have friends;
if you talk foolishly,
you will destroy yourself.
13Fools begin with nonsense,
and their stupid chatter
ends with disaster.
14They never tire of talking,
but none of us really know
what the future will bring.
15Fools wear themselves out—
they don't know enough
to find their way home.#10.15 home: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 15.
16A country is in for trouble
when its ruler is childish,
and its leaders
party all day long.
17But a nation will prosper
when its ruler is mature,
and its leaders
don't party too much.
18Some people are too lazy
to fix a leaky roof—
then the house collapses.
19Eating and drinking
make you feel happy,
and money can buy
everything you need.
20Don't let yourself think about
cursing the king;
don't curse the rich,
not even in secret.
A little bird might hear
and tell everything.
Currently Selected:
Ecclesiastes 10: CEV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Ecclesiastes 10
10
1Dead flies can make a whole bottle of perfume stink, and a little stupidity can cancel out the greatest wisdom.
2It is natural for the wise to do the right thing and for fools to do the wrong thing. 3Their stupidity will be evident even to strangers they meet along the way; they let everyone know that they are fools.
4If your ruler becomes angry with you, do not hand in your resignation; serious wrongs may be pardoned if you keep calm.#10.4 keep calm; or submit to him.
5Here is an injustice I have seen in the world — an injustice caused by rulers. 6Stupid people are given positions of authority while the rich are ignored. 7I have seen slaves on horseback while noblemen go on foot like slaves.
8 #
Ps 7.15; Prov 26.27 If you dig a pit, you fall in it; if you break through a wall, a snake bites you. 9If you work in a stone quarry, you get hurt by stones. If you split wood, you get hurt doing it. 10If your axe is blunt and you don't sharpen it, you have to work harder to use it. It is more sensible to plan ahead. 11Knowing how to charm a snake is of no use if you let the snake bite first. 12What the wise say brings them honour, but fools are destroyed by their own words. 13They start out with silly talk and end up with pure madness. 14A fool talks on and on.
No one knows what is going to happen next, and no one can tell us what will happen after we die.
15Only someone too stupid to find his way home would wear himself out with work.
16A country is in trouble when its king is a youth and its leaders feast all night long. 17But a country is fortunate to have a king who makes his own decisions and leaders who eat at the proper time, who control themselves and don't get drunk.
18When someone is too lazy to repair his roof, it will leak, and the house will fall in.
19Feasting makes you happy and wine cheers you up, but you can't have either without money.
20Don't criticize the king, even silently, and don't criticize the rich, even in the privacy of your bedroom. A bird might carry the message and tell them what you said.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.