Ecclesiastes 7:26-8:12

English Standard Version

²⁶ And I find something more ^(A)bitter than death: ^(B)the woman whose heart is ^(C)snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God escapes her, but ^(D)the sinner is taken by her. ²⁷ Behold, this is what I found, says ^(E)the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— ²⁸ which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. ^(F)One man among a thousand I found, but ^(G)a woman among all these I have not found. ²⁹ See, this alone I found, that ^(H)God made man upright, but ^(I)they have sought out many schemes.

Keep the King's Command

² I say:^[a] Keep the king's command, because of ^(L)God's oath to him.^{[b] 3} Be not hasty to ^(M)go from his presence. Do not take your stand in an evil cause, for he does whatever he pleases. ⁴ For the word of the king is supreme, and ^(N)who may say to him, “What are you doing?” ⁵ Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way.^{[c] 6} For there is a time and a way ^(O)for everything, although man's trouble^[d] lies heavy on him. ⁷ For he ^(P)does not know what is to be, for ^(Q)who can tell him how it will be? ⁸ No man has power to ^(R)retain the spirit, ^(S)or power over the day of death. There is no ^(T)discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it. ^9 (U)All this I observed while applying my heart to all that is done under the sun, when man had power over man to his hurt.

Those Who Fear God Will Do Well

¹⁰ Then I saw the wicked buried. They used to go in and out of ^(V)the holy place and were ^(W)praised^[e] in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity.^{[f] 11} Because ^(X)the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, ^(Y)the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil. ¹² Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and ^(Z)prolongs his life, yet I know that ^(AA)it will be well with ^(AB)those who fear God, because they fear before him.