Ecclesiastes 10; Ecclesiastes 11; Ecclesiastes 12; Galatians 1

1 Dead flies can make even perfume stink. In the same way, a little foolishness can spoil wisdom.

2 The heart of the wise leads to right, but the heart of a fool leads to wrong.

3 Even in the way fools walk along the road, they show they are not wise; they show everyone how stupid they are.

4 Don't leave your job just because your boss is angry with you. Remaining calm solves great problems.

5 There is something else wrong that happens here on earth. It is the kind of mistake rulers make:

6 Fools are given important positions while gifted people are given lower ones;

7 I have seen servants ride horses while princes walk like servants on foot.

8 Anyone who digs a pit might fall into it; anyone who knocks down a wall might be bitten by a snake;

9 anyone who moves boulders might be hurt by them; and anyone who cuts logs might be harmed by them.

10 A dull ax means harder work. Being wise will make it easier.

11 If a snake bites the tamer before it is tamed, what good is the tamer?

12 The words of the wise bring them praise, but the words of a fool will destroy them.

13 A fool begins by saying foolish things and ends by saying crazy and wicked things.

14 A fool talks too much. No one knows the future, and no one can tell what will happen after death.

15 Work wears fools out; they don't even know how to get home.

16 How terrible it is for a country whose king is a child and whose leaders eat all morning.

17 How lucky a country is whose king comes from a good family, whose leaders eat only at mealtime and for strength, not to get drunk.

18 If someone is lazy, the roof will begin to fall. If he doesn't fix it, the house will leak.

19 A party makes you feel good, wine makes you feel happy, and money buys anything.

20 Don't make fun of the king, and don't make fun of rich people, even in your bedroom. A little bird might carry your words; a bird might fly and tell what you said.

1 Invest what you have, because after a while you will get a return.

2 Invest what you have in several different businesses, because you don't know what disasters might happen.

3 If clouds are full of rain, they will shower on the earth. A tree can fall to the north or south, but it will stay where it falls.

4 Those who wait for perfect weather will never plant seeds; those who look at every cloud will never harvest crops.

5 You don't know where the wind will blow, and you don't know how a baby grows inside the mother. In the same way, you don't know what God is doing, or how he created everything.

6 Plant early in the morning, and work until evening, because you don't know if this or that will succeed. They might both do well.

7 Sunshine is sweet; it is good to see the light of day.

8 People ought to enjoy every day of their lives, no matter how long they live. But they should also remember this: You will be dead a long time. Everything that happens then is useless.

9 Young people, enjoy yourselves while you are young; be happy while you are young. Do whatever your heart desires, whatever you want to do. for everything you do.

10 Don't worry, and forget the troubles of your body, because youth and childhood are useless.

1 Remember your Creator while you are young, before the days of trouble come and the years when you say, "I find no pleasure in them."

2 When you get old, the light from the sun, moon, and stars will grow dark; the rain clouds will never seem to go away.

3 At that time your arms will shake and your legs will become weak. Your teeth will fall out so you cannot chew, and your eyes will not see clearly.

4 Your ears will be deaf to the noise in the streets, and you will barely hear the millstone grinding grain. You'll wake up when a bird starts singing, but you will barely hear singing.

5 You will fear high places and will be afraid to go for a walk. Your hair will become white like the flowers on an almond tree. You will limp along like a grasshopper when you walk. Your appetite will be gone. Then you will go to your everlasting home, and people will go to your funeral.

6 Soon your life will snap like a silver chain or break like a golden bowl. You will be like a broken pitcher at a spring, or a broken wheel at a well.

7 You will turn back into the dust of the earth again, but your spirit will return to God who gave it.

8 Everything is useless! The Teacher says that everything is useless.

9 The Teacher was very wise and taught the people what he knew. He very carefully thought about, studied, and set in order many wise teachings.

10 The Teacher looked for just the right words to write what is dependable and true.

11 Words from wise people are like sharp sticks used to guide animals. They are like nails that have been driven in firmly. Altogether they are wise teachings that come from one Shepherd.

12 So be careful, my son, about other teachings. People are always writing books, and too much study will make you tired.

13 Now, everything has been heard, so I give my final advice: Honor God and obey his commands, because this is all people must do.

14 God will judge everything, even what is done in secret, the good and the evil.

1 From Paul, an apostle. I was not chosen to be an apostle by human beings, nor was I sent from human beings. I was made an apostle through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead.

2 This letter is also from all those of God's familyn who are with me.

3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

4 Jesus gave himself for our sins to free us from this evil world we live in, as God the Father planned.

5 The glory belongs to God forever and ever. Amen.

6 God, by his grace through Christ, called you to become his people. So I am amazed that you are turning away so quickly and believing something different than the Good News.

7 Really, there is no other Good News. But some people are confusing you; they want to change the Good News of Christ.

8 We preached to you the Good News. So if we ourselves, or even an angel from heaven, should preach to you something different, we should be judged guilty!

9 I said this before, and now I say it again: You have already accepted the Good News. If anyone is preaching something different to you, he should be judged guilty!

10 Do you think I am trying to make people accept me? No, God is the One I am trying to please. Am I trying to please people? If I still wanted to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

11 Brothers and sisters, I want you to know that the Good News I preached to you was not made up by human beings.

12 I did not get it from humans, nor did anyone teach it to me, but Jesus Christ showed it to me.

13 You have heard about my past life in the Jewish religion. I attacked the church of God and tried to destroy it.

14 I was becoming a leader in the Jewish religion, doing better than most other Jews of my age. I tried harder than anyone else to follow the teachings handed down by our ancestors.

15 But God had special plans for me and set me apart for his work even before I was born. He called me through his grace

16 and showed his son to me so that I might tell the Good News about him to those who are not Jewish. When God called me, I did not get advice or help from any person.

17 I did not go to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was. But, without waiting, I went away to Arabia and later went back to Damascus.

18 After three years I went to Jerusalem to meet Peter and stayed with him for fifteen days.

19 I met no other apostles, except James, the brother of the Lord.

20 God knows that these things I write are not lies.

21 Later, I went to the areas of Syria and Cilicia.

22 In Judea the churches in Christ had never met me.

23 They had only heard it said, "This man who was attacking us is now preaching the same faith that he once tried to destroy."

24 And these believers praised God because of me.