¹³ I thought, “Wisdom is better than foolishness, just as light is better than darkness.

⁸ For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!

²³ But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!

Advice for Young and Old

⁷ Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning.

³⁴ “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when it is unhealthy, your body is filled with darkness. ³⁵ Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness.

¹⁸ Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

The Coming Day of Judgment

4 ^[a]The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says, “The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed—roots, branches, and all.

² “But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings.^[b] And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.

¹⁶ So even though wisdom is better than strength, those who are wise will be despised if they are poor. What they say will not be appreciated for long.

¹⁹ One wise person is stronger than ten leading citizens of a town!