Ecclesiastes 7
International Children’s Bible
Some Benefits of Serious Thinking
7 It is better to have respect than good perfume.
The day a person dies is better than the day he was born.
2 It is better to go to a funeral
than to a party.
We all must die.
Everyone living should think about this.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter.
Sadness has a good influence on you.
4 A wise man thinks about death,
but a foolish person thinks only about having a good time.
5 It is better to be criticized by a wise man
than to be praised by a foolish person.
6 The laughter of foolish people is useless.
It is like heating a pot by burning straw.
There is a lot of fire but no heat.
7 Even a wise man will become foolish
if he lets money change his thinking.
8 It is better to finish something
than to start it.
It is better to be patient
than to be proud.
9 Don’t become mad quickly,
because getting angry is foolish.
10 Don’t ask, “Why was life better in the ‘good old days’?”
It is not wise to ask such questions.
11 Wisdom is as good to have as inheriting property.
It helps people see what to do.
12 Wisdom is like money.
They both help a person.
But wisdom is better than money,
because it can save a person’s life.
13 Stop and think about everything that God causes to happen.
You cannot change a thing,
even if you think it is wrong.
14 When life is good, enjoy it.
But when life is hard, remember:
God gives us good times and hard times.
And no one knows what tomorrow will bring.
It Is Impossible to Be Truly Good
15 In my short life I have seen both of these:
I have seen good men die being good.
And I have seen evil men living a long time.
16 Don’t try to be too right all the time.
Don’t try to be too wise, either.
Why should you destroy yourself this way?
17 Don’t be too wicked.
And don’t be a foolish person.
You will die young if you do so.
18 Try to avoid going too far in doing anything.
Those who honor God will avoid doing too much of anything.
19 Wisdom gives a person strength.
One wise man is stronger than ten leaders in a city.
20 Surely there is not a good man on earth
who always does good and never sins.
21 Don’t listen to everything people say.
You might hear your servant insulting you.
22 You know that many times
you also have insulted others.
23 I used wisdom to test all these things.
I wanted to be wise,
but it was too hard for me.
24 I cannot understand why things are as they are.
It is too hard for anyone to understand.
25 I studied and tried very hard to find wisdom.
I tried to find some meaning for everything.
I learned that it is foolish to be evil.
And it is crazy to act like a fool.
26 I found that some women are worse than death.
They are as dangerous as traps.
Their love is like a net.
Their arms hold men like chains.
A man who follows God will run away from them.
But a sinner will be caught by them.
27 The Teacher says, “This is what I learned:
I added all these things together
to see if I could find some meaning for everything.
28 I am still looking for it,
but I have not found it.
But I did discover that truly good people are hard to find.
Such people are one in a million!
29 One thing I have learned:
God made people good.
But people have found all kinds of ways to be bad.”
Ecclesiastes 7
English Standard Version
The Contrast of Wisdom and Folly
7 (A)A good name is better than precious ointment,
and (B)the day of death than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will (C)lay it to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
(D)for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 It is (E)better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
than to hear the song of fools.
6 (F)For as the crackling of (G)thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fools;
this also is vanity.[a]
7 Surely (H)oppression drives the wise into madness,
and (I)a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,
and (J)the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
9 (K)Be not quick in your spirit to become angry,
(L)for anger lodges in the heart[b] of fools.
10 Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”
For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.
11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance,
an advantage to those who (M)see the sun.
12 For the protection of wisdom is like (N)the protection of money,
and the advantage of knowledge is that (O)wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
13 Consider (P)the work of God:
(Q)who can make straight what he has made crooked?
14 (R)In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, (S)so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.
15 In my (T)vain[c] life I have seen everything. There is (U)a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who (V)prolongs his life in his evildoing. 16 Be not overly righteous, and do not (W)make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. (X)Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good that you should take hold of (Y)this, and from (Z)that (AA)withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them.
19 (AB)Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
20 Surely (AC)there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
21 Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear (AD)your servant cursing you. 22 Your heart knows that (AE)many times you yourself have cursed others.
23 All this I have tested by wisdom. (AF)I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. 24 That which has been is far off, and (AG)deep, very deep; (AH)who can find it out?
25 (AI)I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness. 26 And I find something more (AJ)bitter than death: (AK)the woman whose heart is (AL)snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God escapes her, but (AM)the sinner is taken by her. 27 Behold, this is what I found, says (AN)the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— 28 which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. (AO)One man among a thousand I found, but (AP)a woman among all these I have not found. 29 See, this alone I found, that (AQ)God made man upright, but (AR)they have sought out many schemes.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 7:6 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath” (see note on 1:2)
- Ecclesiastes 7:9 Hebrew in the bosom
- Ecclesiastes 7:15 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath” (see note on 1:2)
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
