Ecclesiastes 10:11-12:1

English Standard Version

¹¹If the serpent bites before it is ^(A)charmed,
there is no advantage to the charmer.

¹²The words of a wise man's mouth ^(B)win him favor,^[a]
    but ^(C)the lips of a fool consume him.
¹³The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness,
    and the end of his talk is evil madness.
¹⁴^(D)A fool multiplies words,
    though no man knows what is to be,
    and who can tell him ^(E)what will be after him?
¹⁵The toil of a fool wearies him,
    for he does not know ^(F)the way to the city.

¹⁶^(G)Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child,
    and your princes feast in the morning!
¹⁷Happy are you, O land, when your king is the son of the nobility,
    and your princes feast at the proper time,
    for strength, and not for ^(H)drunkenness!
¹⁸Through sloth the roof sinks in,
    and through indolence the house leaks.
¹⁹Bread is made for laughter,
    and ^(I)wine gladdens life,
    and ^(J)money answers everything.
²⁰Even in your thoughts, ^(K)do not curse the king,
    nor in your ^(L)bedroom curse the rich,
for a bird of the air will carry your voice,
    or some winged creature tell the matter.

Cast Your Bread upon the Waters

11 ^(M)Cast your bread upon the waters,
    ^(N)for you will find it after many days.
²^(O)Give a portion to ^(P)seven, or even to eight,
    ^(Q)for you know not what disaster may happen on earth.
³If the clouds are full of rain,
    they empty themselves on the earth,
and if a tree falls to the south or to the north,
    in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.
⁴He who observes the wind will not sow,
    and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

⁵As you do not know the way ^(R)the spirit comes to ^(S)the bones in the womb^[b] of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

⁶In the morning sow your seed, and at evening ^(T)withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.

⁷Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to ^(U)see the sun.

⁸So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember ^(V)that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is ^(W)vanity.^[c]

⁹^(X)Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. ^(Y)Walk in the ways of your heart and ^(Z)the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things ^(AA)God will bring you into judgment.

¹⁰Remove vexation from your heart, and ^(AB)put away pain^[d] from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.

Remember Your Creator in Your Youth

12 Remember also your Creator in ^(AC)the days of your youth, before ^(AD)the evil days come and the years draw near of which ^(AE)you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

Footnotes

Ecclesiastes 10:12 Or are gracious
Ecclesiastes 11:5 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Targum; most Hebrew manuscripts As you do not know the way of the wind, or how the bones grow in the womb
Ecclesiastes 11:8 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath”; also verse 10 (see note on 1:2)
Ecclesiastes 11:10 Or evil