Ecclesiastes 7:1–29

¹ A good name is better than fine perfume, and one’s day of death is better than his day of birth. ² It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, since death is the end of every man, and the living should take this to heart. ³ Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart. ⁴ The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. ⁵ It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke than to listen to the song of fools. ⁶ For like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This too is futile. ⁷ Surely extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart. ⁸ The end of a matter is better than the beginning, and a patient spirit is better than a proud one. ⁹ Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger settles in the lap of a fool. ¹⁰ Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is unwise of you to ask about this. ¹¹ Wisdom, like an inheritance, is good, and it benefits those who see the sun. ¹² For wisdom, like money, is a shelter, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner. ¹³ Consider the work of God: Who can straighten what He has bent? ¹⁴ In the day of prosperity, be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider this: God has made one of these along with the other, so that a man cannot discover anything that will come after him. ¹⁵ In my futile life I have seen both of these: A righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness. ¹⁶ Do not be overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? ¹⁷ Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time? ¹⁸ It is good to grasp the one and not let the other slip from your hand. For he who fears God will follow both warnings. ¹⁹ Wisdom makes the wise man stronger than ten rulers in a city. ²⁰ Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. ²¹ Do not pay attention to every word that is spoken, or you may hear your servant cursing you. ²² For you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others. ²³ All this I tested by wisdom, saying, “I resolve to be wise.” But it was beyond me. ²⁴ What exists is out of reach and very deep. Who can fathom it? ²⁵ I directed my mind to understand, to explore, to search out wisdom and explanations, and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the folly of madness. ²⁶ And I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a net, and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner… ²⁷ …