Ecclesiastes 7
1 A good name is better than fine perfume; and the day of death better than the day of one's birth.
[Having] a good reputation [MTY] is better than fine perfume, and the day that we die is better than the day that we are born.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men, and the living should take this to heart.
It is better to go to a house where people are mourning [about someone who has died] than to go to a house where people are feasting, because everyone will die some day, and people who are alive should think seriously [IDM] about that.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made good.
It is better to be sad than to be [always] laughing, because being sad can cause us to think more about how we should conduct our lives [IDM].
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
Wise [people] who go to where others are mourning think about [the fact that some day they also will] die, but foolish people [PRS] [do not think about that]; they are always [MTY] laughing.
5 It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools.
It is better to pay attention to [someone who is wise] you than to listen to the songs of a foolish person.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.
By [listening to] foolish people laughing we will not [learn any more than by listening to] the crackling of thorns [being burned] under a pot. Listening to fools is senseless.
7 Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
When wise people say to others, “You must pay me a lot of money for me to protect you,” that causes those wise people to become foolish, and [accepting] bribes causes people to become unable to do what is fair/just.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning. The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
Finishing something is better than starting something, and being patient is better than being proud.
9 Do not be hasty in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools.
Do not quickly (lose your temper/react to things angrily), because it is foolish people [SYN] who become very angry.
10 Do not say, "Why were the former days better than these?" For you do not ask wisely about this.
Do not say, “Things were a lot better [RHQ] previously,” because it is people who are not wise who say that.
11 Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
Being wise is better than inheriting [valuable things]; being wise provides lasting benefits for every person on the earth [MTY].
12 For wisdom is a defense, even as money is a defense; but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
We are [sometimes] protected by being wise like we are [sometimes] protected by having a lot of money, but being wise is better [than having a lot of money], [because] being wise prevents us from [doing foolish things that would] cause us to die.
13 Consider the work of God, for who can make that straight, which he has made crooked?
Think [carefully about] what God has done. Certainly no one can [RHQ] cause to become straight the things that God has caused to be crooked.
14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider; yes, God has made the one side by side with the other, to the end that man should not find out anything after him.
When things are going well for you, be happy, and when things are not going well for you, remember that God is the one who causes good things to happen and who also causes disasters.
15 All this have I seen in my days of vanity: there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who lives long in his evildoing.
During all the time that I have been alive I have seen a lot of [HYP] things that seem senseless. I have seen righteous people die [while they are still young], and I have seen wicked people remain alive for a very long time in [spite of] their continuing to be wicked.
16 Do not be overly righteous, neither make yourself overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself?
[So] do not think that you are very righteous and do not think that you are very wise, [because if you think those things], you will destroy yourself.
17 Do not be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?
If you do what is evil or do what is foolish, you might die while you are still young.
18 It is good that you should take hold of this. Yes, also from that do not withdraw your hand; for he who fears God will come forth from them all.
Continue to avoid doing what is evil and doing what is foolish; avoid doing both of those things by continually revering God.
19 Wisdom is a strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
If you are wise, you will be more powerful/influential than the ten most powerful/influential men in your city.
20 Surely there is not a righteous man on earth, who does good and doesn't sin.
There is no one in this world who [always] does what is right and who never sins.
21 Also do not take heed to all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you;
Do not pay attention [IDM] to everything that people say, because if you do that, you might hear your servant cursing you.
22 for often your own heart knows that you yourself have likewise cursed others.
You know that you have also cursed other people.
23 All this have I proved in wisdom. I said, "I will be wise;" but it was far from me.
I said [to myself] that I would use my wisdom to study all the things [that I have written about], but I was not able to do it successfully.
24 That which is, is far off and exceedingly deep. Who can find it out?
Wisdom seems to be far from me; there is no one [RHQ] who can truly understand everything.
25 I turned around, and my heart sought to know and to search out, and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity, and that foolishness is madness.
But I decided to investigate things and by my wisdom try to understand the reason for everything. I also wanted to understand why people act wickedly and why they act very foolishly.
26 I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and traps, whose hands are chains. Whoever pleases God shall escape from her; but the sinner will be ensnared by her.
[One thing I learned was that] (allowing a woman to seduce you/having sex with a woman to whom you are not married) is worse than dying. A woman who tries to seduce men is [as dangerous as] a trap [MET]. [If you allow her to put] her arms [around you, it will be as though she will be fastening you with] chains. Women like that will capture sinful men, but men who please God will escape from such women.
27 Look, this have I found, says the Preacher, one to another, to find out the scheme;
This is what I have learned: I tried to learn more and more about things to try to find out the reason for everything,
28 which my soul still seeks; but I have not found: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found.
and I continued to try to learn more, but I could not find [all that I was searching for]. [But] one thing that I found out was that among 1,000 [people] I found one righteous man, but I did not find even one righteous woman.
29 Look, this only have I found, that God made humankind upright, but they search for many schemes.
[But] I did learn one thing: When God created people, they were righteous, but they have found many ways to do many evil things.
