Ecclesiastes 10-12
Contemporary English Version
10 A few dead flies in perfume
make all of it stink,
and a little foolishness
outweighs a lot of wisdom.
2 Sensible thoughts lead you
to do right;
foolish thoughts lead you
to do wrong.
3 Fools show their stupidity
by the way they live;
it's easy to see
they have no sense.
4 Don't give up your job
when your boss gets angry.
If you stay calm,
you'll be forgiven.
5 Rulers do some things that are terribly unfair: 6 They honor fools, but dishonor the rich; 7 they let slaves ride on horses, but force slave owners to walk.
8 (A) If you dig a pit,
you might fall in;
if you break down a wall,
a snake might bite you.[a]
9 You could even get hurt
by chiseling a stone
or chopping a log.
10 If you don't sharpen your ax,
it will be harder to use;
if you are wise,
you'll know what to do.[b]
11 The power to charm a snake
does you no good
if it bites you anyway.
12 If you talk sensibly,
you will have friends;
if you talk foolishly,
you will destroy yourself.
13 Fools begin with nonsense,
and their stupid chatter
ends with disaster.
14 They never tire of talking,
but none of us really know
what the future will bring.
15 Fools wear themselves out—
they don't know enough
to find their way home.[c]
16 A country is in for trouble
when its ruler is childish,
and its leaders
party all day long.
17 But a nation will prosper
when its ruler is mature,
and its leaders
don't party too much.
18 Some people are too lazy
to fix a leaky roof—
then the house collapses.
19 Eating and drinking
make you feel happy,
and money can buy
everything you need.
20 Don't let yourself think about
cursing the king;
don't curse the rich,
not even in secret.
A little bird might hear
and tell everything.
It Pays To Work Hard
11 Be generous, and someday
you will be rewarded.[d]
2 Share what you have
with seven or eight others,
because you never know
when disaster may strike.
3 Rain clouds always bring rain;
trees always stay
wherever they fall.
4 If you worry about the weather
and don't plant seeds,
you won't harvest a crop.
5 No one can explain how a baby breathes before it is born.[e] So how can anyone explain what God does? After all, God created everything.
6 Plant your seeds early in the morning and keep working in the field until dark. Who knows? Your work might pay off, and your seeds might produce.
Youth and Old Age
7 Nothing on earth is more beautiful than the morning sun. 8 Even if you have a very long life, you should try to enjoy each day, because darkness will come and will last a long time. Nothing makes sense.[f]
9 Be cheerful and enjoy life while you are young! Do what you want and find pleasure in what you see. But don't forget that God will judge you for everything you do.
10 Rid yourself of all worry and pain, because the wonderful moments of youth quickly disappear.
12 Keep your Creator in mind while you are young! In years to come, you will be burdened down with troubles and say, “I don't enjoy life anymore.”
2 Someday the light of the sun
and the moon and the stars
will all seem dim to you.
Rain clouds will remain
over your head.
3 Your body will grow feeble,
your teeth will decay,
and your eyesight fail.
4 The noisy grinding of grain
and the voices of singers
will be shut out
by your deaf ears,
but even the song of a bird
will keep you awake.[g]
5 You will be afraid
to climb up a hill
or walk down a road.
Your hair will turn as white
as almond blossoms.
You will feel lifeless
and drag along
like an old grasshopper.
We each go to our eternal home,
and the streets here are filled
with those who mourn.
6 The silver cord snaps,
the golden bowl breaks;
the water pitcher is smashed,
and the pulley at the well
is shattered.
7 So our bodies return
to the earth,
and the life-giving breath[h]
returns to God.
8 Nothing makes sense.
I have seen it all—
nothing makes sense.
Respect and Obey God
9 I was a wise teacher with much understanding, and I collected a number of proverbs that I had carefully studied. 10 Then I tried to explain these things in the best and most accurate way.
11 Words of wisdom are like the stick a farmer uses to make animals move. These sayings come from a shepherd,[i] and they are like nails that fasten things together.[j] 12 My child, I warn you to stay away from any teachings except these.
There is no end to books,
and too much study
will wear you out.
13 Everything you were taught can be put into a few words:
Respect and obey God!
This is what life
is all about.
14 God will judge
everything we do,
even what is done in secret,
whether good or bad.
Footnotes
- 10.8 a snake might bite you: Walls of houses were often made of stones with mud to fill in the cracks between them. If some of the mud washed out, a snake could be living inside the wall.
- 10.10 do: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 10.
- 10.15 home: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 15.
- 11.1 Be generous … rewarded: Or “Don't be afraid to invest. Someday it will pay off.”
- 11.5 how … born: Or “what makes the wind blow or how a baby grows inside its mother.”
- 11.8 Nothing makes sense: Or “There's nothing to look forward to!”
- 12.4 but even the song … awake: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 12.7 life-giving breath: Or “spirit.”
- 12.11 a shepherd: This may be a reference to God as shepherd (see also Psalm 23.1).
- 12.11 These sayings … together: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
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