Eccl 7:6 For as the crackling of thorn bushes under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool; And this too is futility.
Eccl 7:7 For oppression makes a wise man mad, And a bribe corrupts the heart.
Eccl 7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning; Patience of spirit is better than haughtiness of spirit.
Eccl 7:9 Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, For anger resides in the bosom of fools.
Eccl 7:10 Do not say, "Why is it that the former days were better than these?" For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.
Eccl 7:11 Wisdom along with an inheritance is good And an advantage to those who see the sun.
Eccl 7:12 For wisdom is protection just as money is protection, But the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the lives of its possessors.
Eccl 7:13 Consider the work of God, For who is able to straighten what He has bent?
Eccl 7:14 In the day of prosperity be happy, But in the day of adversity consider-- God has made the one as well as the other So that man will not discover anything that will be after him.
Eccl 7:15 ¶ I have seen everything during my lifetime of futility; there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his wickedness.
Eccl 7:16 Do not be excessively righteous and do not be overly wise. Why should you ruin yourself?
Eccl 7:17 Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?
Eccl 7:18 It is good that you grasp one thing and also not let go of the other; for the one who fears God comes forth with both of them.
Eccl 7:19 ¶ Wisdom strengthens a wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
Eccl 7:20 Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins.
Eccl 7:21 Also, do not take seriously all words which are spoken, so that you will not hear your servant cursing you.
Eccl 7:22 For you also have realized that you likewise have many times cursed others.
Eccl 7:23 ¶ I tested all this with wisdom, and I said, "I will be wise," but it was far from me.
Eccl 7:24 What has been is remote and exceedingly mysterious. Who can discover it?
Eccl 7:25 I directed my mind to know, to investigate and to seek wisdom and an explanation, and to know the evil of folly and the foolishness of madness.