Ecclesiastes 7
1 [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.
Ko te ingoa pai, pai atu i te hinu utu nui; ko te ra o te matenga, pai atu i te ra o to te tangata whanautanga.
2 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.
Ko te haere ki te whare tangihanga, pai atu i te haere ki te whare hakari; ko te mutunga hoki ia o nga tangata katoa; a ka rongoatia e te tangata ora ki roto ki tona ngakau.
3 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].
Ko te ngakau mamae, pai atu i te kata; ma te pouri hoki o te mata ka pai ai te ngakau.
4 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.
Kei te whare tangihanga te ngakau o te hunga whakaaro nui; kei te whare ia o te kata te ngakau o nga wairangi.
5 It is better to pay attention to [someone who is wise] you than to listen to the songs of a foolish person.
Ko te whakarongo, ina riria te he e te tangata whakaaro nui, pai atu i ta te tangata whakarongo ki te waiata a nga wairangi.
6 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.
Rite tonu hoki ki te papatanga o nga tataramoa i raro i te kohua te kata a te wairangi. He horihori ano tenei.
7 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.
He pono ma te pahua ka wairangi ai te tangata whakaaro nui, ma te mea homai noa hoki ka kore ai te ngakau mahara.
8 Finishing something is better than starting something, and being patient is better than being proud.
Ko te mutunga o te mea, pai atu i tona timatanga: pai atu te wairua manawanui i te wairua whakakake.
9 Do not quickly (lose your temper/react to things angrily), because it is foolish people [SYN] who become very angry.
Kei hohoro tou wairua ki te riri: kei te uma hoki o nga wairangi te riri e noho ana.
10 Do not say, “Things were a lot better [RHQ] previously,” because it is people who are not wise who say that.
Kaua e mea, He aha nga rangi o mua i pai ake ai i enei? Kahore hoki he whakaaro nui ou i ui ai koe ki tena.
11 Being wise is better than inheriting [valuable things]; being wise provides lasting benefits for every person on the earth [MTY].
He pai tonu te whakaaro nui, ano he taonga tuku iho: ae ra, he pai rawa ake ki te hunga e kite ana i te ra.
12 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.
Hei whakamarumaru iho te whakaaro nui, hei pera hoki i te moni te whakamarumaru: ko te pai ia o te matauranga koia tenei, ka ora i te whakaaro nui nga tangata nana.
13 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.
Whakaaroa ta te Atua mahi: ko wai hoki hei mea kia tika tana i mea ai kia hape?
14 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.
I te ra pai kia koa, a i te ra kino whakaaro: kua mahia nei hoki e te Atua tetahi kia takoto tahi me tetahi, he mea kia kaua ai e kitea e te tangata tetahi mea i muri i a ia.
15 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.
Kua kite ahau i tenei katoa i nga ra oku i te horihori; he tangata tika tetahi, ngaro iho ia i runga i tona tika; he tangata kino tetahi, roa noa iho ia i te ao i runga i tona kino.
16 [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.
Kaua e whakanuia rawatia tou tika; kaua hoki e whakanuia rawatia ou whakaaro: he aha koe i whakangaro ai i a koe?
17 If you do what is evil or do what is foolish, you might die while you are still young.
Kaua e whakanuia rawatia tou kino, kaua ano hoki e wairangi: kia mate koe hei aha, i te mea kahore ano tou wa kia rite noa?
18 Continue to avoid doing what is evil and doing what is foolish; avoid doing both of those things by continually revering God.
He pai ki te puritia tenei kupu e koe; kaua hoki tou ringa e unuhia mai i tera; ko te tangata hoki e wehi ana i te Atua ka puta mai i roto i era katoa.
19 If you are wise, you will be more powerful/influential than the ten most powerful/influential men in your city.
Ko te whakaaro nui rahi ake tona kaha mo te tangata whakaaro i to nga rangatira kotahi tekau i roto i te pa.
20 There is no one in this world who [always] does what is right and who never sins.
Kahore hoki he tangata tika i te whenua e mahi ana i te pai, a kahore ona hara.
21 Do not pay attention [IDM] to everything that people say, because if you do that, you might hear your servant cursing you.
Kaua ano e whakarongo ki nga mea katoa e korerotia ana; kei rongo koe ki tau pononga e kanga ana i a koe;
22 You know that you have also cursed other people.
He maha hoki nga wa, e mohio ana tou ngakau, i kanga ai koe ano i etahi.
23 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.
I whakamatauria e ahau tenei katoa, he mea whakaaro marie; i mea ahau, ka whakaaro nui ahau; otiia i matara noa atu tenei i ahau.
24 Wisdom seems to be far from me; there is no one [RHQ] who can truly understand everything.
Ko te mea onaianei he tawhiti rawa, he hohonu rawa hoki; ko wai hei kite?
25 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.
I anga toku ngakau, i mea kia mohio, kia kimihia, kia rapua nga whakaaro nui me nga tikanga, kia mohio ano hoki he wairangi te kino, he porangi te wairangi:
26 [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.
A ka kite ahau i te mea kawa atu i te mate, ara i te wahine, he rore nei, he kupenga tona ngakau, he rahiri hoki ona ringa: ko te tangata e paingia ana e te Atua ka mawhiti i a ia; ko te tangata hara ia ka mau i a ia.
27 This is what I have learned: I tried to learn more and more about things to try to find out the reason for everything,
Nana, kua kitea tenei e ahau, e ai ta te Kaikauwhau, he mea whakarite tetahi mea ki tetahi, kia kitea ai te tikanga:
28 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.
He mea e rapua nei ano e toku wairua, a kahore ano i kitea: kotahi te tangata i kitea e ahau i roto i te mano; na i roto i enei katoa kahore ahau i kite i tetahi wahine.
29 [But] I did learn one thing: When God created people, they were righteous, but they have found many ways to do many evil things.
Nana, ko tenei anake i kitea e ahau, ara i tika te tangata i ta te Atua hanganga; engari he maha nga tikanga i rapua e ratou.
