Ecclesiastes 7

1 A good reputation is better than expensive perfume, and the day you die is better than the day you were born.

A good name is better than precious ointments, and a day of death is better than a day of birth.

2 It's better to go to a funeral than to a party. In the end, everyone dies, and those who are still alive should think about it.

It is better to go to a house of mourning, than to a house of feasting. For in the former, we are admonished about the end of all things, so that the living consider what may be in the future.

3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for tragedy helps us by making us think.

Anger is better than laughter. For through the sadness of the countenance, the soul of one who offends may be corrected.

4 Wise people think about the impact of death, while those who are fools only think about having a good time.

The heart of the wise is a place of mourning, and the heart of the foolish is a place of rejoicing.

5 It's better to listen to criticism from a wise person than to hear the song of fools.

It is better to be corrected by a wise man, than to be deceived by the false praise of the foolish.

6 The laughter of fools is like the crackling of thorn twigs burning under a pot—without sense and quickly over.

For, like the crackling of thorns burning under a pot, so is the laughter of the foolish. But this, too, is emptiness.

7 Extorting money from others makes wise people into fools, and accepting bribes corrupts the mind.

A false accusation troubles the wise man and saps the strength of his heart.

8 Completing something is better than starting it. Being patient is better than being proud.

The end of a speech is better than the beginning. Patience is better than arrogance.

9 Don't be quick to get angry, for anger controls the minds of fools.

Do not be quickly moved to anger. For anger resides in the sinews of the foolish.

10 Don't ask, “Why were the good old days better than now?” Asking such questions shows you are not wise.

You should not say: “What do you think is the reason that the former times were better than they are now?” For this type of question is foolish.

11 Wisdom is good—it's like receiving an inheritance. It benefits everyone in life.

Wisdom with riches is more useful and more advantageous, for those who see the sun.

12 For wisdom provides security, as does money, but the advantage for those who have wisdom is that they are kept safe and sound!

For as wisdom protects, so also does money protect. But learning and wisdom have this much more: that they grant life to one who possesses them.

13 Think about what God does. If he makes something bent, you can't straighten it!

Consider the works of God, that no one is able to correct whomever he has despised.

14 On 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.

In good times, enjoy good things, but beware of an evil time. For just as God has established the one, so also the other, in order that man may not find any just complaint against him.

15 Throughout my life I've seen so much that is hard to understand. Good people who die young despite doing what is right, and wicked people who live long evil lives.

I also saw this, in the days of my vanity: a just man perishing in his justice, and an impious man living a long time in his malice.

16 Don't think you can make yourself right by a lot of religious observance, and don't pretend to be so wise. Do you want to destroy yourself?

Do not try to be overly just, and do not try to be more wise than is necessary, lest you become stupid.

17 On the other hand, don't decide to live an evil life—don't be a fool! Why die before your time?

Do not act with great impiety, and do not choose to be foolish, lest you die before your time.

18 You ought to keep in mind these warnings. Those who follow God will be sure to avoid both.

It is good for you to support a just man. Furthermore, you should not withdraw your hand from him, for whoever fears God, neglects nothing.

19 Wisdom gives a wise person greater power than ten town councilors.

Wisdom has strengthened the wise more than ten princes of a city.

20 There's not one good person in all the world who always does what is right and never sins.

But there is no just man on earth, who does good and does not sin.

21 Don't take to heart everything that people say, otherwise you may hear your servant talking badly about you,

So then, do not attach your heart to every word that is spoken, lest perhaps you may hear your servant speaking ill of you.

22 for you know how many times you yourself have talked badly about others!

For your conscience knows that you, too, have repeatedly spoken evil of others.

23 I have examined all this using the principles of wisdom. I told myself, “I will think wisely.” But wisdom eluded me.

I have tested everything in wisdom. I have said: “I will be wise.” And wisdom withdrew farther from me,

24 Everything that exists is beyond our grasp—too deep for our understanding. Who can comprehend it?

so much more than it was before. Wisdom is very profound, so who shall reveal her?

25 I 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.

I have examined all things in my soul, so that I may know, and consider, and seek out wisdom and reason, and so that I may recognize the impiety of the foolish, and the error of the imprudent.

26 I discovered something more horrible than death: foolishness like a woman 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.

And I have discovered a woman more bitter than death: she who is like the snare of a hunter, and whose heart is like a net, and whose hands are like chains. Whoever pleases God shall flee from her. But whoever is a sinner shall be seized by her.

27 This is what I discovered after putting two and two together to try and find out what it all meant, says the Teacher.

Behold, Ecclesiastes said, I have discovered these things, one after another, in order that I might discover the explanation

28 Although 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.”

which my soul still seeks and has not found. One man among a thousand, I have found; a woman among them all, I have not found.

29 But I did find this one thing: God made people to do what's right, but they have followed their own ideas.

This alone have I discovered: that God made man righteous, and yet he has adulterated himself with innumerable questions. Who is so great as the wise? And who has understood the meaning of the word?