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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Ecclesiastes 7 NIV</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/ecclesiastes/7.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" 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id="topheading"><a href="../ecclesiastes/6.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 6">◄</a> Ecclesiastes 7 <a href="../ecclesiastes/8.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 8">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New International Version</td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/p/niv/esv/ecclesiastes/7.shtml" style="color:#001320" title="Parallel Chapters"> Par ▾ </a></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><p class="sectionhead">Wisdom</p><div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>A good name is better than fine perfume,</p><p class="line2">and the day of death better than the day of birth.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>It is better to go to a house of mourning</p><p class="line2">than to go to a house of feasting,</p><p class="line1">for death is the destiny of everyone;</p><p class="line2">the living should take this to heart.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>Frustration is better than laughter,</p><p class="line2">because a sad face is good for the heart.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,</p><p class="line2">but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>It is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person</p><p class="line2">than to listen to the song of fools.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,</p><p class="line2">so is the laughter of fools.</p><p class="line2">This too is meaningless.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>Extortion turns a wise person into a fool,</p><p class="line2">and a bribe corrupts the heart.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>The end of a matter is better than its beginning,</p><p class="line2">and patience is better than pride.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,</p><p class="line2">for anger resides in the lap of fools.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”</p><p class="line2">For it is not wise to ask such questions.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing</p><p class="line2">and benefits those who see the sun.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>Wisdom is a shelter</p><p class="line2">as money is a shelter,</p><p class="line1">but the advantage of knowledge is this:</p><p class="line2">Wisdom preserves those who have it.</p></div> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>Consider what God has done:</p><div class="stanza"><p class="line1">Who can straighten</p><p class="line2">what he has made crooked?</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>When times are good, be happy;</p><p class="line2">but when times are bad, consider this:</p><p class="line1">God has made the one</p><p class="line2">as well as the other.</p><p class="line1">Therefore, no one can discover</p><p class="line2">anything about their future.</p></div> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these:</p><div class="stanza"><p class="line1">the righteous perishing in their righteousness,</p><p class="line2">and the wicked living long in their wickedness.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>Do not be overrighteous,</p><p class="line2">neither be overwise—</p><p class="line2">why destroy yourself?</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>Do not be overwicked,</p><p class="line2">and do not be a fool—</p><p class="line2">why die before your time?</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>It is good to grasp the one</p><p class="line2">and not let go of the other.</p><p class="line2">Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes. <span class="nivfootnote"><sup><a href="#footnotes" title="Or will follow them both">a</a></sup></span> </p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>Wisdom makes one wise person more powerful</p><p class="line2">than ten rulers in a city.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous,</p><p class="line2">no one who does what is right and never sins.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>Do not pay attention to every word people say,</p><p class="line2">or you may hear your servant cursing you—</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>for you know in your heart</p><p class="line2">that many times you yourself have cursed others.</p></div> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-23.htm"><b>23</b></a></span>All this I tested by wisdom and I said,</p><div class="stanza"><p class="line1">“I am determined to be wise”—</p><p class="line2">but this was beyond me.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-24.htm"><b>24</b></a></span>Whatever exists is far off and most profound—</p><p class="line2">who can discover it?</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-25.htm"><b>25</b></a></span>So I turned my mind to understand,</p><p class="line2">to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things</p><p class="line1">and to understand the stupidity of wickedness</p><p class="line2">and the madness of folly.</p></div> <div class="stanza"><p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-26.htm"><b>26</b></a></span>I find more bitter than death</p><p class="line2">the woman who is a snare,</p><p class="line1">whose heart is a trap</p><p class="line2">and whose hands are chains.</p><p class="line1">The man who pleases God will escape her,</p><p class="line2">but the sinner she will ensnare.</p></div> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-27.htm"><b>27</b></a></span>“Look,” says the Teacher, <span class="nivfootnote"><sup><a href="#footnotes" title="Or the leader of the assembly">b</a></sup></span> “this is what I have discovered:</p><div class="stanza"><p class="line1">“Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things—</p> <p class="line2"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-28.htm"><b>28</b></a></span>while I was still searching</p><p class="line2">but not finding—</p><p class="line1">I found one upright man among a thousand,</p><p class="line2">but not one upright woman among them all.</p> <p class="line1"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/ecclesiastes/7-29.htm"><b>29</b></a></span>This only have I found:</p><p class="line2">God created mankind upright,</p><p class="line2">but they have gone in search of many schemes.”</p></div><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"><span class="mainfootnotes"><A name="footnotes"></a><span class="mainfootnoteshdg">Footnotes:</span><br><span class="nivfootnotesbot">a</span> <span class="fnverse">18</span> <span class="footnotebot">Or <i>will follow them both</i></span><br><span class="nivfootnotesbot">b</span> <span class="fnverse">27</span> <span class="footnotebot">Or <i>the leader of the 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