Ecclesiastes 10
New King James Version
Wisdom and Folly
10 Dead[a] flies [b]putrefy the perfumer’s ointment,
And cause it to give off a foul odor;
So does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.
2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand,
But a fool’s heart at his left.
3 Even when a fool walks along the way,
He lacks wisdom,
(A)And he shows everyone that he is a fool.
4 If the spirit of the ruler rises against you,
(B)Do not leave your post;
For (C)conciliation[c] pacifies great offenses.
5 There is an evil I have seen under the sun,
As an error proceeding from the ruler:
6 (D)Folly is set in [d]great dignity,
While the rich sit in a lowly place.
7 I have seen servants (E)on horses,
While princes walk on the ground like servants.
8 (F)He who digs a pit will fall into it,
And whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a serpent.
9 He who quarries stones may be hurt by them,
And he who splits wood may be endangered by it.
10 If the ax is dull,
And one does not sharpen the edge,
Then he must use more strength;
But wisdom [e]brings success.
11 A serpent may bite (G)when it is not charmed;
The [f]babbler is no different.
12 (H)The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious,
But (I)the lips of a fool shall swallow him up;
13 The words of his mouth begin with foolishness,
And the end of his talk is raving madness.
14 (J)A fool also multiplies words.
No man knows what is to be;
Who can tell him (K)what will be after him?
15 The labor of fools wearies them,
For they do not even know how to go to the city!
16 (L)Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child,
And your princes feast in the morning!
17 Blessed are you, O land, when your king is the son of nobles,
And your (M)princes feast at the proper time—
For strength and not for drunkenness!
18 Because of laziness the [g]building decays,
And (N)through idleness of hands the house leaks.
19 A feast is made for laughter,
And (O)wine makes merry;
But money answers everything.
20 (P)Do not curse the king, even in your thought;
Do not curse the rich, even in your bedroom;
For a bird of the air may carry your voice,
And a bird in flight may tell the matter.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 10:1 Lit. Flies of death
- Ecclesiastes 10:1 Tg., Vg. omit putrefy
- Ecclesiastes 10:4 Lit. healing, health
- Ecclesiastes 10:6 exalted positions
- Ecclesiastes 10:10 Lit. is a successful advantage
- Ecclesiastes 10:11 Lit. master of the tongue
- Ecclesiastes 10:18 Lit. rafters sink
Ecclesiastes 10
21st Century King James Version
10 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor; so doth a little folly in him that hath a reputation for wisdom and honor.
2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left.
3 Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh along the way, his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to everyone that he is a fool.
4 If the ire of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy station; for yielding pacifieth great offenses.
5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun as an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
6 folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in lowly places.
7 I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.
8 He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh through a hedge, a serpent shall bite him.
9 Whoso removeth out stones shall be hurt therewith; and he that cleaveth wood shall be endangered thereby.
10 If the ax be blunt and one does not whet the edge, then must he put to it more strength; but wisdom is profitable to direct him.
11 Surely the serpent will bite if not charmed, and a babbler is no better.
12 The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool will swallow himself up;
13 the beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of his talk is mischievous madness.
14 A fool also is full of words: A man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him — who can tell him?
15 The labor of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city.
16 Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child and thy princes feast in the morning!
17 Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength and not for drunkenness!
18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth, and through idleness of the hands the house leaks.
19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry; but money answereth all things.
20 Curse not the king, no, not even in thy thoughts, and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber; for a bird of the air shall carry thy voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1994 by Deuel Enterprises, Inc.