Ecclesiastes 7
1 A good name is better than precious ointments: and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
A good reputation is better than expensive perfume, and the day you die is better than the day you were born.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to the house of feasting: for in that we are put in mind of the end of all, and the living thinketh what is to come.
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.
3 Anger is better than laughter: because by the sadness of the countenance the mind of the offender is corrected.
Sorrow is better than laughter, for tragedy helps us by making us think.
4 The heart of the wise is where there is mourning, and the heart of fools where there is mirth.
Wise people think about the impact of death, while those who are fools only think about having a good time.
5 It is better to be rebuked by a wise man, than to be deceived by the flattery of fools.
It's better to listen to criticism from a wise person than to hear the song of fools.
6 For as the crackling of thorns burning under a pot, so is the laughter of a fool: now this also is vanity.
The laughter of fools is like the crackling of thorn twigs burning under a pot—without sense and quickly over.
7 Oppression troubleth the wise, and shall destroy the strength of his heart.
Extorting money from others makes wise people into fools, and accepting bribes corrupts the mind.
8 Better is the end of a speech than the beginning. Better is the patient man than the presumptuous.
Completing something is better than starting it. Being patient is better than being proud.
9 Be not quickly angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of a fool.
Don't be quick to get angry, for anger controls the minds of fools.
10 Say not: What thinkest thou is the cause that former times were better than they are now? for this manner of question is foolish.
Don't ask, “Why were the good old days better than now?” Asking such questions shows you are not wise.
11 Wisdom with riches is more profitable, and bringeth more advantage to them that see the sun.
Wisdom is good—it's like receiving an inheritance. It benefits everyone in life.
12 For as wisdom is a defence, so money is a defence: but learning and wisdom excel in this, that they give life to him that possesseth them.
For wisdom provides security, as does money, but the advantage for those who have wisdom is that they are kept safe and sound!
13 Consider the works of God, that no man can correct whom he hath despised.
Think about what God does. If he makes something bent, you can't straighten it!
14 In the good day enjoy good things, and beware beforehand of the evil day: for God hath made both the one and the other, that man may not find against him any just complaint.
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.
15 These things also I saw in the days of my vanity: A just man perisheth in his justice, and a wicked man liveth a long time in his wickedness.
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.
16 Be not over just: and be not more wise than is necessary, lest thou become stupid.
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?
17 Be not overmuch wicked: and be not foolish, lest thou die before thy time.
On the other hand, don't decide to live an evil life—don't be a fool! Why die before your time?
18 It is good that thou shouldst hold up the just, yea and from him withdraw not thy hand: for he that feareth God, neglecteth nothing.
You ought to keep in mind these warnings. Those who follow God will be sure to avoid both.
19 Wisdom hath strengthened the wise more than ten princes of the city.
Wisdom gives a wise person greater power than ten town councilors.
20 For there is no just man upon earth, that doth good, and sinneth not.
There's not one good person in all the world who always does what is right and never sins.
21 But do not apply thy heart to all words that are spoken: lest perhaps thou hear thy servant reviling thee.
Don't take to heart everything that people say, otherwise you may hear your servant talking badly about you,
22 For thy conscience knoweth that thou also hast often spoken evil of others.
for you know how many times you yourself have talked badly about others!
23 I have tried all things in wisdom. I have said: I will be wise: and it departed farther from me,
I have examined all this using the principles of wisdom. I told myself, “I will think wisely.” But wisdom eluded me.
24 Much more than it was: it is a great depth, who shall find it out?
Everything that exists is beyond our grasp—too deep for our understanding. Who can comprehend it?
25 I have surveyed all things with my mind, to know, and consider, and seek out wisdom and reason: and to know the wickedness of the fool, and the error of the imprudent:
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.
26 And I have found a woman more bitter than death, who is the hunter’s snare, and her heart is a net, and her hands are bands. He that pleaseth God shall escape from her: but he that is a sinner, shall be caught by her.
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.
27 Lo this have I found, said Ecclesiastes, weighing one thing after another, that I might find out the account,
This is what I discovered after putting two and two together to try and find out what it all meant, says the Teacher.
28 Which yet my soul seeketh, and I have not found it. One man among a thousand I have found, a woman among them all I have not found.
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.”
29 Only this I have found, that God made man right, and he hath entangled himself with an infinity of questions. Who is as the wise man? and who hath known the resolution of the word?
But I did find this one thing: God made people to do what's right, but they have followed their own ideas.
