Font Size
Ecclesiastes 10
Christian Standard Bible
Ecclesiastes 10
Christian Standard Bible
The Burden of Folly
10 Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil ferment and stink;(A)
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2 A wise person’s heart goes to the[a] right,
but a fool’s heart to the left.
3 Even when the fool walks along the road, his heart lacks sense,
and he shows everyone he is a fool.(B)
4 If the ruler’s anger rises against you, don’t leave your post,(C)
for calmness puts great offenses to rest.(D)
5 There is an evil I have seen under the sun, an error proceeding from the presence of the ruler:
6 The fool is appointed to great heights,(E)
but the rich remain in lowly positions.
7 I have seen slaves on horses,(F)
but princes walking on the ground like slaves.(G)
8 The one who digs a pit may fall into it,(H)
and the one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.(I)
9 The one who quarries stones may be hurt by them;
the one who splits logs may be endangered by them.
10 If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen its edge,
then one must exert more strength;
however, the advantage of wisdom is that it brings success.
11 If the snake bites before it is charmed,(J)
then there is no advantage for the charmer.[b]
12 The words from the mouth of a wise person are gracious,(K)
but the lips of a fool consume him.(L)
13 The beginning of the words from his mouth is folly,
but the end of his speaking is evil madness;
14 yet the fool multiplies words.
No one knows what will happen,
and who can tell anyone what will happen after him?(M)
15 The struggles of fools weary them,
for they don’t know how to go to the city.
16 Woe to you, land, when your king is a youth(N)
and your princes feast in the morning.
17 Blessed are you, land, when your king is a son of nobles
and your princes feast at the proper time—
for strength and not for drunkenness.(O)
18 Because of laziness the roof caves in,
and because of negligent hands the house leaks.
19 A feast is prepared for laughter,
and wine makes life happy,(P)
and money[c] is the answer for everything.(Q)
20 Do not curse the king even in your thoughts,(R)
and do not curse a rich person even in your bedroom,(S)
for a bird of the sky may carry the message,
and a winged creature may report the matter.
Ecclesiastes 10
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Ecclesiastes 10
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Miscellaneous Observations
10 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a foul odor;[a]
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right,
but the heart of a fool to the left.
3 Even when fools walk on the road, they lack sense
and show to everyone that they are fools.(A)
4 If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your post,
for calmness will undo great offenses.(B)
5 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as great an error as if it proceeded from the ruler: 6 folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place.(C) 7 I have seen slaves on horseback and princes walking on the ground like slaves.
8 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a snake.(D)
9 Whoever quarries stones will be hurt by them,
and whoever splits logs will be endangered by them.
10 If the iron is blunt and one does not whet the edge,
then more strength must be exerted,
but wisdom helps one to succeed.
11 If the snake bites before it is charmed,
there is no advantage in a charmer.(E)
12 Words spoken by the wise bring them favor,
but the lips of fools consume them.(F)
13 The words of their mouths begin in foolishness,
and their talk ends in wicked madness,(G)
14 yet fools talk on and on.
No one knows what is to happen,
and who can tell anyone what the future holds?(H)
15 The toil of fools wears them out,
for they do not even know the way to town.
16 Alas for you, O land, when your king is a child
and your princes feast in the morning!(I)
17 Happy are you, O land, when your king is a nobleman,
and your princes feast at the proper time—
for strength and not for drunkenness!(J)
18 Through sloth the roof sinks in,
and through indolence the house leaks.(K)
19 Feasts are made for laughter,
wine gladdens life,
and money meets every need.(L)
20 Do not curse the king, even in your thoughts,
or curse the rich, even in your bedroom,
for a bird of the air may carry your voice,
or some winged creature tell the matter.(M)
Footnotes
- 10.1 Gk Vg Syr: Meaning of Heb uncertain
Ecclesiastes 10
New International Version
Ecclesiastes 10
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.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 10:16 Or king is a child
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.