Ecclesiastes 10
1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the perfumer to send forth a stinking odour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.
[A few] dead flies in [a bottle of] perfume cause [all] the perfume to stink. Similarly [SIM], a small amount of acting foolishly can have a greater effect than acting wisely.
2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand; but a fool’s heart is at his left.
If people think sensibly, it will lead them to do what is right; if they think foolishly, it causes them to do what is wrong.
3 Also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool.
Even while foolish people walk along the road, they show that they do not have good sense; they show everyone that they are not wise.
4 If the spirit of the ruler riseth against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.
Do not quit working for a ruler when he is angry with you; if you remain calm, he will [probably] stop being angry.
5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
There is something [else] that I have seen here on this earth, something that rulers sometimes do that is wrong/inappropriate:
6 Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in low place.
They appoint foolish people to have important positions, while they appoint rich [people] to have unimportant positions.
7 I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.
They allow slaves [to ride] on horses [like rich people usually do], [but] they force officials to walk [like slaves usually do].
8 He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoever breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him.
[It is possible that] those who dig pits will fall into one of those pits. [It is possible that] someone who tears down a wall will be bitten by a snake [that is in that wall].
9 Whoever removeth stones shall be hurt by them; and he that cutteth wood shall be endangered by it.
If you work in a quarry, [it is possible that] a stone [will fall on you and] injure you. [It is possible that] men who split logs will be injured by one of those logs.
10 If the iron is blunt, and he doth not whet the edge, then must he use more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.
If your axe is not sharp [DOU], you will need to work harder [to cut down a tree], but by being wise, you will succeed.
11 Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better.
If a snake bites a man before he charms/tames it, his ability to charm snakes will not benefit him.
12 The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself.
Wise people say [MTY] what is sensible, and because of that, people honor them; but foolish people are destroyed by what they say [MTY].
13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of his talk is mischievous madness.
When foolish people start to talk, they say things that are foolish, and they end by saying things that are both wicked and foolish.
14 A fool also is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him?
They talk (too much/without ceasing). None of us knows what will happen in the future, or what will happen after we die.
15 The labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city.
Foolish people become [so] exhausted by the work that they do that they are unable to find the road to their town/homes.
16 Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning!
Terrible things will happen to the people of a nation whose ruler is a foolish young man, and whose [other] leaders continually eat, all day long, every day.
17 Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!
[But] a nation will prosper if its ruler is from a (noble/well-educated) family, and if its [other] leaders feast [only] at the proper times, and [if they eat and drink only] to be strong, not to become drunk.
18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.
Some men are very lazy [and do not repair the rafters], with the result that the rafters sag [and collapse]; and if they do not repair the roof, water will leak into the house [when it rains].
19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.
Eating food and drinking wine causes us to laugh and be happy, [but] we are able to enjoy those things only if we have money [to buy them].
20 Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.
Do not even think about cursing the king, or cursing rich [people, even] when you are [alone] in your bedroom, because [it is possible that] a little bird will hear [what you are saying], [and] tell those people what you said [about them].
