Ecclesiastes 7
7
1Better [is] a name than good perfume, And the day of death than the day of birth.
2Better to go unto a house of mourning, Than to go unto a house of banqueting, For that is the end of all men, And the living layeth [it] unto his heart.
3Better [is] sorrow than laughter, For by the sadness of the face the heart becometh better.
4The heart of the wise [is] in a house of mourning, And the heart of fools in a house of mirth.
5Better to hear a rebuke of a wise man, Than [for] a man to hear a song of fools,
6For as the noise of thorns under the pot, So [is] the laughter of a fool, even this [is] vanity.
7Surely oppression maketh the wise mad, And a gift destroyeth the heart.
8Better [is] the latter end of a thing than its beginning, Better [is] the patient of spirit, than the haughty of spirit.
9Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry, For anger in the bosom of fools resteth.
10Say not thou, ‘What was it, That the former days were better than these?’ For thou hast not asked wisely of this.
11Wisdom [is] good with an inheritance, And an advantage [it is] to those beholding the sun.
12For wisdom [is] a defense, money [is] a defence, And the advantage of the knowledge of wisdom [is], She reviveth her possessors.
13See the work of God, For who is able to make straight that which He made crooked?
14In a day of prosperity be in gladness, And in a day of evil consider. Also this over-against that hath God made, To the intent that man doth not find anything after him.
15The whole I have considered in the days of my vanity. There is a righteous one perishing in his righteousness, and there is a wrong-doer prolonging [himself] in his wrong.
16Be not over-righteous, nor show thyself too wise, why art thou desolate?
17Do not much wrong, neither be thou a fool, why dost thou die within thy time?
18[It is] good that thou dost lay hold on this, and also, from that withdrawest not thy hand, for whoso is fearing God goeth out with them all.
19The wisdom giveth strength to a wise man, more than wealth the rulers who have been in a city.
20Because there is not a righteous man on earth that doth good and sinneth not.
21Also to all the words that they speak give not thy heart, that thou hear not thy servant reviling thee.
22For many times also hath thy heart known that thou thyself also hast reviled others.
23All this I have tried by wisdom; I have said, ‘I am wise,’ and it [is] far from me.
24Far off [is] that which hath been, and deep, deep, who doth find it?
25I have turned round, also my heart, to know and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and reason, and to know the wrong of folly, and of foolishness the madness.
26And I am finding more bitter than death, the woman whose heart [is] nets and snares, her hands [are] bands; the good before God escapeth from her, but the sinner is captured by her.
27See, this I have found, said the Preacher, one to one, to find out the reason
28(that still my soul had sought, and I had not found), One man, a teacher, I have found, and a woman among all these I have not found.
29See, this alone I have found, that God made man upright, and they — they have sought out many devices.
Currently Selected:
Ecclesiastes 7: YLT98
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Ecclesiastes 7
7
Thoughts about Life
1 #
Prov 22.1
A good reputation is better than expensive perfume; and the day you die is better than the day you are born.
2It is better to go to a home where there is mourning than to one where there is a party, because the living should always remind themselves that death is waiting for us all.
3Sorrow is better than laughter; it may sadden your face, but it sharpens your understanding.
4Someone who is always thinking about happiness is a fool. A wise person thinks about death.
5It is better to have wise people reprimand you than to have stupid people sing your praises.
6When a fool laughs, it is like thorns crackling in a fire. It doesn't mean a thing.
7You may be wise, but if you cheat someone, you are acting like a fool. If you take a bribe, you ruin your character.
8The end of anything is better than its beginning.
Patience is better than pride.
9 #
Jas 1.19
Keep your temper under control; it is foolish to harbour a grudge.
10Never ask, “Oh, why were things so much better in the old days?” It's not an intelligent question.
11Everyone who lives ought to be wise; it is as good as receiving an inheritance 12and will give you as much security as money can. Wisdom keeps you safe — this is the advantage of knowledge.
13Think about what God has done. How can anyone straighten out what God has made crooked? 14When things are going well for you, be glad, and when trouble comes, just remember: God sends both happiness and trouble; you never know what is going to happen next.#7.14 you… next; or you cannot find fault with him.
15My life has been useless, but in it I have seen everything. Some good people may die while others live on, even though they are evil. 16So don't be too good or too wise — why kill yourself? 17But don't be too wicked or too foolish, either — why die before you have to? 18Avoid both extremes. If you have reverence for God, you will be successful anyway.
19Wisdom does more for a person than ten rulers can do for a city.
20There is no one on earth who does what is right all the time and never makes a mistake.
21Don't pay attention to everything people say — you may hear your servant insulting you, 22and you know yourself that you have insulted other people many times.
23I used my wisdom to test all of this. I was determined to be wise, but it was beyond me. 24How can anyone discover what life means? It is too deep for us, too hard to understand. 25But I devoted myself to knowledge and study; I was determined to find wisdom and the answers to my questions, and to learn how wicked and foolish stupidity is.
26I found something more bitter than death — the woman who is like a trap. The love she offers you will catch you like a net; and her arms round you will hold you like a chain. A man who pleases God can get away, but she will catch the sinner. 27Yes, said the Philosopher, I found this out little by little while I was looking for answers. 28I have looked for other answers but have found none. I found one man in a thousand that I could respect, but not one woman. 29This is all that I have learnt: God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. 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.