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← (Ecclesiastes 6) | (Ecclesiastes 8) →

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  • The Value of Practical Wisdom

    A good name is better than precious ointment,
    And the day of death than the day of one’s birth;
  • Wisdom for Life

    A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume.
    And the day you die is better than the day you are born.
  • Better to go to the house of mourning
    Than to go to the house of feasting,
    For that is the end of all men;
    And the living will take it to heart.
  • Better to spend your time at funerals than at parties.
    After all, everyone dies —
    so the living should take this to heart.
  • [a]Sorrow is better than laughter,
    For by a sad countenance the heart is made [b]better.
  • Sorrow is better than laughter,
    for sadness has a refining influence on us.
  • The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
    But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
  • A wise person thinks a lot about death,
    while a fool thinks only about having a good time.
  • It is better to [c]hear the rebuke of the wise
    Than for a man to hear the song of fools.
  • Better to be criticized by a wise person
    than to be praised by a fool.
  • For like the [d]crackling of thorns under a pot,
    So is the laughter of the fool.
    This also is vanity.
  • A fool’s laughter is quickly gone,
    like thorns crackling in a fire.
    This also is meaningless.
  • Surely oppression destroys a wise man’s reason,
    And a bribe [e]debases the heart.
  • Extortion turns wise people into fools,
    and bribes corrupt the heart.
  • The end of a thing is better than its beginning;
    The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
  • Finishing is better than starting.
    Patience is better than pride.
  • Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry,
    For anger rests in the bosom of fools.
  • Control your temper,
    for anger labels you a fool.
  • Do not say,
    “Why were the former days better than these?”
    For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.
  • Don’t long for “the good old days.”
    This is not wise.
  • Wisdom is good with an inheritance,
    And profitable to those who see the sun.
  • Wisdom is even better when you have money.
    Both are a benefit as you go through life.
  • For wisdom is [f]a defense as money is a defense,
    But the [g]excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.
  • Wisdom and money can get you almost anything,
    but only wisdom can save your life.
  • Consider the work of God;
    For who can make straight what He has made crooked?
  • Accept the way God does things,
    for who can straighten what he has made crooked?
  • In the day of prosperity be joyful,
    But in the day of adversity consider:
    Surely God has appointed the one [h]as well as the other,
    So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.
  • Enjoy prosperity while you can,
    but when hard times strike, realize that both come from God.
    Remember that nothing is certain in this life.
  • I have seen everything in my days of vanity:
    There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness,
    And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness.

  • The Limits of Human Wisdom

    I have seen everything in this meaningless life, including the death of good young people and the long life of wicked people.
  • Do not be overly righteous,
    Nor be overly wise:
    Why should you destroy yourself?
  • So don’t be too good or too wise! Why destroy yourself?
  • Do not be overly wicked,
    Nor be foolish:
    Why should you die before your time?
  • On the other hand, don’t be too wicked either. Don’t be a fool! Why die before your time?
  • It is good that you grasp this,
    And also not remove your hand from the other;
    For he who fears God will [i]escape them all.
  • Pay attention to these instructions, for anyone who fears God will avoid both extremes.a
  • Wisdom strengthens the wise
    More than ten rulers of the city.
  • One wise person is stronger than ten leading citizens of a town!
  • For there is not a just man on earth who does good
    And does not sin.
  • Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins.
  • Also do not take to heart everything people say,
    Lest you hear your servant cursing you.
  • Don’t eavesdrop on others — you may hear your servant curse you.
  • For many times, also, your own heart has known
    That even you have cursed others.
  • For you know how often you yourself have cursed others.
  • All this I have [j]proved by wisdom.
    I said, “I will be wise”;
    But it was far from me.
  • I have always tried my best to let wisdom guide my thoughts and actions. I said to myself, “I am determined to be wise.” But it didn’t work.
  • As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep,
    Who can find it out?
  • Wisdom is always distant and difficult to find.
  • I applied my heart to know,
    To search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things,
    To know the wickedness of folly,
    Even of foolishness and madness.
  • I searched everywhere, determined to find wisdom and to understand the reason for things. I was determined to prove to myself that wickedness is stupid and that foolishness is madness.
  • And I find more bitter than death
    The woman whose heart is snares and nets,
    Whose hands are fetters.
    [k]He who pleases God shall escape from her,
    But the sinner shall be trapped by her.
  • I discovered that a seductive womanb is a trap more bitter than death. Her passion is a snare, and her soft hands are chains. Those who are pleasing to God will escape her, but sinners will be caught in her snare.
  • “Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher,
    Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,
  • “This is my conclusion,” says the Teacher. “I discovered this after looking at the matter from every possible angle.
  • Which my soul still seeks but I cannot find:
    One man among a thousand I have found,
    But a woman among all these I have not found.
  • Though I have searched repeatedly, I have not found what I was looking for. Only one out of a thousand men is virtuous, but not one woman!
  • Truly, this only I have found:
    That God made man upright,
    But they have sought out many schemes.”
  • But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path.”

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