Ecclesiastes 7:19-25

New American Standard Bible

^19 (A)Wisdom strengthens a wise person more than ten rulers who are in a city. ²⁰ Indeed, ^(B)there is not a righteous person on earth who always does good and does not ever sin. ²¹ Also, do not ^[a]take seriously all the words which are spoken, so that you do not hear your servant ^(C)cursing you, ²² for ^[b]you know that even you have cursed others many times as well.

²³ I tested all this with wisdom, and I said, “I will be wise,” ^(D)but wisdom was far from me. ²⁴ What has been is remote and ^(E)very ^[c]mysterious. ^(F)Who can discover it? ²⁵ I ^[d](G)directed my ^[e]mind to know and to investigate, and to seek wisdom and an explanation, and to know the evil of foolishness and the foolishness of insanity.