Online Bible

Wisdom and Folly Contrasted

A ^agood name is better than precious perfume,And the ^bday of one’s death better than the day of one’s birth.2 It is better to go to the house of mourningThan to go to the house of feasting,For that day of death is the ^aend of every man,And the living will ^btake it to heart and solemnly ponder its meaning.3 ^aSorrow is better than laughter,For ^bwhen a face is sad (deep in thought) the heart may be happy because it is growing in wisdom. 2+@Cor 7:104 The heart of the wise learns when it is in the house of mourning,But the heart of fools is senseless in the house of pleasure.5 It is better to ^alisten to the rebuke of the wise man and pursue wisdomThan for one to listen to the song of fools and pursue stupidity.6 For like the crackling of burning ^athorn bushes under a pot,So is the ^blaughter of the fool;And this too is vanity (futility) .7 For ^aoppression makes a wise man foolish,And a ^bbribe corrupts the good judgment of the heart.8 The ^aend of a matter is better than its beginning;^bPatience of spirit is better than haughtiness of spirit (pride) .9 Do not be ^aeager in your heart to be angry,For anger dwells in the heart of fools. James 1:19, 2010 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.11 Wisdom along with an inheritance is goodAnd an ^aexcellent advantage for those who see the sun.12 For ^awisdom is a protection even as money is a protection,But the excellent advantage of knowledge is that ^bwisdom shields and preserves the lives of its possessors.13 Consider the ^awork of God:Who ^bcan make straight what He has bent?14 ^aIn the day of prosperity be joyful,But ^bin the day of adversity consider thatGod has made the one as well as the other,So that man will ^cnot find out anything that will be after him.

15 I have seen everything during my fleeting ^adays of futility; there is a ^brighteous man who perishes in spite of his righteousness, and there is ^ca wicked man who ¹lives a long life in spite of his wickedness. 16 Do not be excessively ^arighteous like those given to self-conceit, and do not ^bbe overly wise (pretentious)—why should you bring yourself to ruin? 17 Do not be excessively or willfully wicked and do not be a fool. Why should you ^adie before your time? 18 It is good that you take hold of one thing (righteousness) and also not let go of the other (wisdom) ; for the one who ^afears and worships God with awe-filled reverence will come forth with both of them.

19 ^aWisdom strengthens the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city. Ps 127:1; 2+@Tim 3:15 20 Indeed, ^athere is not a righteous man on earth who always does good and who never sins. Is 53:6; Rom 3:23 21 Also, do not take seriously everything that is said, so that you will not hear your servant ^acursing you, 22 for you also know that you too have cursed others many times.

23 I have tested all this with wisdom. I said, “I will be wise independently of God,” ^abut true wisdom was far from me. 24 Whatever has been is far off, deeply remote and ^aexceedingly mysterious. ^bWho can discover it for it is beyond the grasp of man? Job 28:12-28; 1+@Cor 2:9-16 25 I ^aturned around and directed my heart to know, to investigate and to seek skillful and godly wisdom and the reason for things, and to know that wickedness is folly and that foolishness is madness leading to stupidity and recklessness. 26 And I discovered that of all irrational sins none has been so destructive in beguiling one away from God as immoral women for more ^abitter than death is the woman whose heart is composed of ^bsnares and nets, and whose hands are chains. ^cWhoever pleases God will escape from her, but ^dthe sinner will be taken captive by her evil.

27 “Behold, I have discovered this,” says the Preacher, “while adding one thing to another to find an explanation, 28 which I am still seeking but have not found. I have found one ¹man among a thousand who pleases God, but I have not found such a ^awoman among all these a thousand in my harem. 1+@Kin 11:3 29 Behold, I have found only this as a reason: ^aGod made man upright and uncorrupted, but they both men and women have sought out many devices for evil.”