Parallel Bible results for "ecclesiastes 7"

Ecclesiastes 7

The Complete Jewish Bible CJB

1 A good name is better than perfumed oil, and the day of death better than the day of birth.

2 Better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for all are destined to be mourned; the living should lay this to heart.

3 Grief is better than laughter, for sadness can improve a person.

4 The thoughts of the wise are in the house of mourning, but the thoughts of fools are in the house of pleasure.

5 It is better to hear the rebukes of the wise than to listen to the songs of fools.

6 For the laughter of fools is like the crackling of thorns burning under a pot; this too is pointless.

7 But oppression can make a wise man stupid; also a gift can destroy understanding.

8 The end of something is better than its beginning, so the patient are better than the proud.

9 Don't be quick to get angry, for [only] fools nurse anger.

10 Don't ask why the old days were better than now, because that is a foolish question.

11 Wisdom is good, along with possessions, an advantage to all who see the sun.

12 For wisdom is a shelter, and money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom keeps the one who has it alive.

13 Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked?

14 When things are going well, enjoy yourself; but when things are going badly, consider that God made the one alongside the other, so that people would learn nothing of their futures.

15 In my pointless life, I've seen everything -from the righteous person perishing in his uprightness to the wicked one who lives a long life and keeps on doing wrong.

16 So don't be overly righteous or overly wise; why should you disappoint yourself?

17 But don't be overly wicked, and don't be foolish; why should you die before your time?

18 Don't grasp just one of these rules; take hold of the other as well; for he who is in fear of God will live by both of them.

19 To a wise man wisdom is better protection than ten rulers in a city.

20 For there isn't a righteous person on earth who does [only] good and never sins.

21 Also, don't take seriously every word spoken, such as when you hear your servant speaking badly of you;

22 because often, as you yourself know, you have spoken badly of others.

23 All this I have put to the test of wisdom; I said, "I will acquire wisdom"; but wisdom remained far away from me.

24 That which exists is far away and deep, so deep, that it can't be discovered.

25 So I turned myself and my thoughts to know, search out and seek wisdom and the reasons behind things, also to know how foolish it is to be wicked and how stupid to act like a fool.

26 I found more bitter than death the woman who is a trap, whose heart is a snare and whose hands are like prison chains. The man who pleases God will escape from her, but the sinner will be caught by her.

27 I have found this - says Kohelet -adding one thing to another to reach a conclusion,

28 I searched a long time without finding it: one man in a thousand I have found, but a woman among all those I have not found.

29 This is the only thing I have found, that God made human beings upright, but they have devised many schemes.

The Message Bible MSG

1 good reputation is better than a fat bank account. Your death date tells more than your birth date.

2 You learn more at a funeral than at a feast - After all, that's where we'll end up. We might discover something from it.

3 Crying is better than laughing. It blotches the face but it scours the heart.

4 Sages invest themselves in hurt and grieving. Fools waste their lives in fun and games.

5 You'll get more from the rebuke of a sage Than from the song and dance of fools.

6 The giggles of fools are like the crackling of twigs Under the cooking pot. And like smoke.

7 Brutality stupefies even the wise And destroys the strongest heart.

8 Endings are better than beginnings. Sticking to it is better than standing out.

9 Don't be quick to fly off the handle. Anger boomerangs. You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.

10 Don't always be asking, "Where are the good old days?" Wise folks don't ask questions like that.

11 Wisdom is better when it's paired with money, Especially if you get both while you're still living.

12 Double protection: wisdom and wealth! Plus this bonus: Wisdom energizes its owner.

13 Take a good look at God's work. Who could simplify and reduce Creation's curves and angles To a plain straight line?

14 On a good day, enjoy yourself; On a bad day, examine your conscience. God arranges for both kinds of days So that we won't take anything for granted. Stay in Touch with Both Sides

15 I've seen it all in my brief and pointless life - here a good person cut down in the middle of doing good, there a bad person living a long life of sheer evil.

16 So don't knock yourself out being good, and don't go overboard being wise. Believe me, you won't get anything out of it.

17 But don't press your luck by being bad, either. And don't be reckless. Why die needlessly?

18 It's best to stay in touch with both sides of an issue. A person who fears God deals responsibly with all of reality, not just a piece of it.

19 Wisdom puts more strength in one wise person Than ten strong men give to a city.

20 There's not one totally good person on earth, Not one who is truly pure and sinless.

21 Don't eavesdrop on the conversation of others. What if the gossip's about you and you'd rather not hear it?

22 You've done that a few times, haven't you - said things Behind someone's back you wouldn't say to his face?

23 I tested everything in my search for wisdom. I set out to be wise, but it was beyond me,

24 far beyond me, and deep - oh so deep! Does anyone ever find it?

25 I concentrated with all my might, studying and exploring and seeking wisdom - the meaning of life. I also wanted to identify evil and stupidity, foolishness and craziness.

26 One discovery: A woman can be a bitter pill to swallow, full of seductive scheming and grasping. The lucky escape her; the undiscerning get caught.

27 At least this is my experience - what I, the Quester, have pieced together as I've tried to make sense of life.

28 But the wisdom I've looked for I haven't found. I didn't find one man or woman in a thousand worth my while.

29 Yet I did spot one ray of light in this murk: God made men and women true and upright; we're the ones who've made a mess of things.