Ecclesiastes 10-12

New International Version

10 As dead flies give perfume a bad smell,
    so a little folly^(A) outweighs wisdom and honor.
² The heart of the wise inclines to the right,
    but the heart of the fool to the left.
³ Even as fools walk along the road,
    they lack sense
    and show everyone^(B) how stupid they are.
⁴ If a ruler’s anger rises against you,
    do not leave your post;^(C)
    calmness can lay great offenses to rest.^(D)

⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun,
    the sort of error that arises from a ruler:
⁶ Fools are put in many high positions,^(E)
    while the rich occupy the low ones.
⁷ I have seen slaves on horseback,
    while princes go on foot like slaves.^(F)

⁸ Whoever digs a pit may fall into it;^(G)
    whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.^(H)
9 Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them;
    whoever splits logs may be endangered by them.^(I)

¹⁰ If the ax is dull
    and its edge unsharpened,
more strength is needed,
    but skill will bring success.

¹¹ If a snake bites before it is charmed,
    the charmer receives no fee.^(J)

¹² Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious,^(K)
    but fools are consumed by their own lips.^(L)
13 At the beginning their words are folly;
    at the end they are wicked madness—
¹⁴     and fools multiply words.^(M)

No one knows what is coming—
    who can tell someone else what will happen after them?^(N)

¹⁵ The toil of fools wearies them;
    they do not know the way to town.

¹⁶ Woe to the land whose king was a servant^[a](O)
    and whose princes feast in the morning.
¹⁷ Blessed is the land whose king is of noble birth
    and whose princes eat at a proper time—
    for strength and not for drunkenness.^(P)

¹⁸ Through laziness, the rafters sag;
    because of idle hands, the house leaks.^(Q)

¹⁹ A feast is made for laughter,
    wine^(R) makes life merry,
    and money is the answer for everything.

²⁰ Do not revile the king^(S) even in your thoughts,
    or curse the rich in your bedroom,
because a bird in the sky may carry your words,
    and a bird on the wing may report what you say.

³ If clouds are full of water,
    they pour rain on the earth.
Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north,
    in the place where it falls, there it will lie.
⁴ Whoever watches the wind will not plant;
    whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

⁵ As you do not know the path of the wind,^(V)
    or how the body is formed^[b] in a mother’s womb,^(W)
so you cannot understand the work of God,
    the Maker of all things.

⁶ Sow your seed in the morning,
    and at evening let your hands not be idle,^(X)
for you do not know which will succeed,
    whether this or that,
    or whether both will do equally well.

⁹ You who are young, be happy while you are young,
    and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.
Follow the ways of your heart
    and whatever your eyes see,
but know that for all these things
    God will bring you into judgment.^(AA)
10 So then, banish anxiety^(AB) from your heart
    and cast off the troubles of your body,
    for youth and vigor are meaningless.^(AC)

12 Remember^(AD) your Creator
    in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble^(AE) come
    and the years approach when you will say,
    “I find no pleasure in them”—
² before the sun and the light
    and the moon and the stars grow dark,
    and the clouds return after the rain;
³ when the keepers of the house tremble,
    and the strong men stoop,
when the grinders cease because they are few,
    and those looking through the windows grow dim;
⁴ when the doors to the street are closed
    and the sound of grinding fades;
when people rise up at the sound of birds,
    but all their songs grow faint;^(AF)
5 when people are afraid of heights
    and of dangers in the streets;
when the almond tree blossoms
    and the grasshopper drags itself along
    and desire no longer is stirred.
Then people go to their eternal home^(AG)
    and mourners^(AH) go about the streets.

⁶ Remember him—before the silver cord is severed,
    and the golden bowl is broken;
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
    and the wheel broken at the well,
⁷ and the dust returns^(AI) to the ground it came from,
    and the spirit returns to God^(AJ) who gave it.^(AK)

⁸ “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.^[c](AL)
    “Everything is meaningless!^(AM)”

¹³ Now all has been heard;
    here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God^(AS) and keep his commandments,^(AT)
    for this is the duty of all mankind.^(AU)
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,^(AV)
    including every hidden thing,^(AW)
    whether it is good or evil.