Ecclesiastes 7 NKJV ISV Parallel

◄ Ecclesiastes 7 ►

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1A good name is better than precious ointment, And the day of death than the day of one’s birth;

1A good name exceeds the value of fine perfume, and the day of someone's death exceeds the value of the day of his birth.

2Better 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.

2It's better to attend a funeral than to attend a banquet, for everyone dies eventually, and the living will take this to heart.

3Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.

3Sorrow is better than laughter, because the heart is made better through trouble.

4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

4For the wise person thinks carefully when in mourning, but fools focus their thoughts on pleasure.

5It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise Than for a man to hear the song of fools.

5It is better to listen to a wise person's rebuke than to listen to the praise of fools.

6For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.

6For as thorns burn to heat a pot, so also is the laughter of the fool— even this is pointless.

7Surely oppression destroys a wise man’s reason, And a bribe debases the heart.

7Unjust gain makes the wise foolish, and a bribe corrupts the heart.

8The end of a thing is better than its beginning; The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

8The conclusion of something is better than its beginning, and a patient attitude is more valuable than a proud one.

9Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools.

9Never be in a hurry to become internally angry, since anger settles down in the lap of fools.

10Do not say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

10Never ask "Why does the past seem so much better than now?" because this question does not come from wisdom.

11Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun.

11Wise use of possessions is good; it brings benefit to the living.

12For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

12Indeed, wisdom gives protection, just like money does, but it's better to know that wisdom gives life, to those who have mastered it.

13Consider the work of God; For who can make straight what He has made crooked?

13Consider the work of God: Who is able to straighten what he has bent?

14In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.

14When times are good, be joyful; when times are bad, consider this: God made the one as well as the other, so people won't seek anything outside of his best.

15I 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.

15I have seen it all during my pointless life: both a righteous person who dies while he is righteous, and a wicked person who lives to an old age, while remaining wicked.

16Do not be overly righteous, Nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself?

16Do not be overly righteous, nor be overly wise. Why be self-destructive?

17Do not be overly wicked, Nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time?

17Do not excel at wickedness, nor be a fool. Why die before your time?

18It is good that you grasp this, And also not remove your hand from the other; For he who fears God will escape them all.

18It is good for you to grab hold of this and not let go, because whoever fears God will escape all of these extremes.

19Wisdom strengthens the wise More than ten rulers of the city.

19Wisdom given as strength to a wise person is better than having ten powerful men in the city.

20For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.

20For there is not a single righteous man on earth who practices good and does not sin.

21Also do not take to heart everything people say, Lest you hear your servant cursing you.

21Don't listen to everything that is spoken— you may hear your servant cursing you,

22For many times, also, your own heart has known That even you have cursed others.

22since you also know how often you have cursed others.

23All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise”; But it was far from me.

23I used my wisdom to test all of this. I said, "I want to be wise," but it was beyond me.

24As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep, Who can find it out?

24Whatever it is, it's far off and most profound. Who can attain it?

25I 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.

25I committed myself to understand, to learn, to search for wisdom and explanations, and to understand both the evil that is foolishness and the stupidity that is delusion.

26And I find more bitter than death The woman whose heart is snares and nets, Whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God shall escape from her, But the sinner shall be trapped by her.

26I discovered for myself a bitterness that surpasses that of death: the woman whose heart is full of snares and nets, whose hands are chains of bondage. Whoever pleases God will escape from her, but the transgressor will be trapped by her.

27“Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher, “Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,

27"Look at this," says the Teacher. "Linking one thing to another, I reached this conclusion:

28Which 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.

28Among the things I seek but have not found: one man among a thousand I did find, but I have not found one woman to be wise among all these.

29Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes.”

29I have discovered only this: God made human beings for righteousness, but they seek many alternatives."

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