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 costly perfume, and the day of death is better than the 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 mourning comes to all people at the end of life, so living people must take this to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for tragedy helps us by making us think.
Grief is better than laughter, for after sadness of face comes gladness of heart.
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 in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of feasting.
5 It's better to listen to criticism from a wise person than to hear the song of fools.
It is better to listen to the rebuke of the wise than to listen to the song of fools.
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 also is the laughter of fools. This, too, is vapor.
7 Extorting money from others makes wise people into fools, and accepting bribes corrupts the mind.
Extortion certainly makes a wise man foolish, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Completing something is better than starting it. Being patient is better than being proud.
Better is the end of a matter than the beginning; and the people patient in spirit are better than the proud in spirit.
9 Don't be quick to get angry, for anger controls the minds of fools.
Do not be quick to anger in your spirit, for anger resides in the hearts of fools.
10 Don't ask, “Why were the good old days better than now?” Asking such questions shows you are not wise.
Do not say, “Why were the days of old better than these?” For it is not because of wisdom that you ask this question.
11 Wisdom is good—it's like receiving an inheritance. It benefits everyone in life.
Wisdom, like an inheritance, is good. It benefits 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 wisdom provides protection as money can provide protection, but the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to whoever has it.
13 Think about what God does. If he makes something bent, you can't straighten it!
Consider the deeds of God: Who can straighten out anything he has made crooked?
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.
When times are good, live happily in that good, but when times are bad, consider this: God has allowed both to exist side by side. For this reason, no one will find out anything that is coming after 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 have seen many things in my meaningless days. There are righteous people who perish in spite of their righteousness, and there are wicked people who live a long life in spite of their evil.
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 be self-righteous, wise in your own eyes. Why should you destroy yourself?
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 be too wicked or foolish. Why should 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 that you should take hold of this wisdom, and that you should not let go of righteousness. For the person who fears God will meet all his obligations.
19 Wisdom gives a wise person greater power than ten town councilors.
Wisdom is powerful in the wise man, more than ten rulers in a city.
20 There's not one good person in all the world who always does what is right and never sins.
There is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
21 Don't take to heart everything that people say, otherwise you may hear your servant talking badly about you,
Do not listen to every word that is spoken, because you might hear your servant curse you.
22 for you know how many times you yourself have talked badly about others!
Similarly, you know yourself that in your own heart you have often cursed others.
23 I have examined all this using the principles of wisdom. I told myself, “I will think wisely.” But wisdom eluded me.
All this have I proven by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was more than I could be.
24 Everything that exists is beyond our grasp—too deep for our understanding. Who can comprehend it?
Wisdom is far off and very deep. Who can find it?
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 turned my heart to learn and examine and seek wisdom and the explanations of reality, and to understand that evil is stupid and that folly is madness.
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.
I found that more bitter than death is any woman whose heart is full of snares and nets, and whose hands are chains. Whoever pleases God will escape from her, but the sinner will be taken 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.
“Consider what I have discovered,” says the Teacher. “I have been adding one discovery to another in order to find an explanation of reality.
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.”
This is what I am still looking for, but I have not found it. I did find one righteous man among a thousand, but a woman among all those I did not find.
29 But I did find this one thing: God made people to do what's right, but they have followed their own ideas.
I have discovered only this: That God created humanity upright, but they have gone away looking for many difficulties.”
