Ecclesiastes 10
10
1 Dying flies ruin the sweetness of the ointment. Wisdom and glory is more precious than a brief and limited foolishness.
2 The heart of a wise man is in his right hand, and the heart of a foolish man is in his left hand.
3 Moreover, as a foolish man is walking along the way, even though he himself is unwise, he considers everyone to be foolish.
4 If the spirit of one who holds authority rises over you, do not leave your place, because attentiveness will cause the greatest sins to cease.
5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, proceeding from the presence of a prince, as if by mistake:
6 a foolish man appointed to a high dignity, and the rich sitting beneath him.
7 I have seen servants on horses, and princes walking on the ground like servants.
8 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it. And whoever tears apart a hedge, a snake will bite him.
9 Whoever carries away stones will be harmed by them. And whoever cuts down trees will be wounded by them.
10 If the iron is dull, and if it was not that way before, but has been made dull by much labor, then it will be sharpened. And wisdom will follow after diligence.
11 Whoever slanders in secret is nothing less than a snake that bites silently.
12 Words from the mouth of a wise man are graceful, but the lips of a foolish man will throw him down with violence.
13 At the beginning of his words is foolishness, and at the end of his talk is a most grievous error.
14 The fool multiplies his words. A man does not know what has been before him, and who is able to reveal to him what will be in the future after him?
15 The hardship of the foolish will afflict those who do not know to go into the city.
16 Woe to you, the land whose king is a boy, and whose princes consume in the morning.
17 Blessed is the land whose king is noble, and whose princes eat at the proper time, for refreshment and not for self-indulgence.
18 By laziness, a framework shall be brought down, and by the weakness of hands, a house shall collapse through.
19 While laughing, they make bread and wine, so that the living may feast. And all things are obedient to money.
20 You should not slander the king, even in your thoughts, and you should not speak evil of a wealthy man, even in your private chamber. For even the birds of the air will carry your voice, and whatever has wings will announce your opinion.
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Ecclesiastes 10
10
1Dead flies will make even perfume smell bad.
In the same way, a little foolishness can ruin
a wise man’s fame for wisdom.
2A wise man’s heart leads him in the right way.
But the heart of a foolish person leads him in the wrong way.
3A foolish person is not wise.
It shows in everything he does.
Even as he walks along the road,
he shows everyone how stupid he is.
4Don’t leave your job
just because the ruler is angry with you.
Remain calm.
It will help correct your mistakes.
5Here is something else unfair that happens here on earth.
It is the kind of mistake rulers make:
6Foolish people are given important positions
while rich people are given less important ones.
7I have seen servants ride on horses
while princes walk beside them on foot.
8Anyone who digs a pit might fall into it.
Anyone who knocks down a wall might be bitten by a snake.
9Anyone who moves large stones might be hurt by them.
And anyone who cuts logs might get hurt while doing it.
10Cutting logs with a dull ax
makes you work harder.
A wise man will sharpen his ax.
In the same way, wisdom can make any job easier.
11Someone might know how to control snakes.
But what good is such wisdom if the snake has already bitten him?
12A wise man’s words bring him praise.
But a foolish person’s words will destroy him.
13A foolish person begins by saying something foolish.
In the end he is saying even crazier things.
14A foolish person talks too much about what he will do.
No one knows the future.
No one can tell him what will happen after he dies.
15A foolish person doesn’t know even the most obvious things.
He can’t even find his way back to town.
So he has to wear himself out working.
The Value of Work
16How terrible it will be for a country
if its king is a child.
How terrible it will be for that country
if its leaders have parties all the time.
17A country is well off
if its king comes from a good family.
It is good for a country
if its leaders control their eating and drinking.
They should eat and drink for strength,
not to get drunk.
18If a person is lazy and doesn’t repair the roof,
it will begin to fall.
If he refuses to fix it,
the house will leak.
19A party makes you feel good.
And wine makes you feel happy.
But both cost you a lot of money.
20Don’t say or think bad things about the king.
And don’t say bad things about rich people even alone in your bedroom.
A little bird might report it to others.
A bird might fly to them and tell all you said.
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.