Ecclesiastes 9:7-11:4

American Standard Version

⁷ Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God hath already accepted thy works. ⁸ Let thy garments be always white; and let not thy head lack oil. ^9 [a]Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of thy life of vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all thy days of vanity: for that is thy portion in life, and in thy labor wherein thou laborest under the sun. ¹⁰ Whatsoever thy hand ^[b]findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest. ¹¹ I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. ¹² For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare, even so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them. ¹³ I have also seen wisdom under the sun on this wise, and it seemed great unto me: ¹⁴ There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it. ¹⁵ Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man. ¹⁶ Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard. ¹⁷ The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. ¹⁸ Wisdom is better than weapons of war; but one sinner destroyeth much good.

10 Dead flies cause the oil of the perfumer ^[c]to send forth an evil odor; so doth a little folly ^[d]outweigh 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 the fool walketh by the way, his ^[e]understanding faileth him, and he saith ^[f]to every one that he is a fool. ⁴ If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for ^[g]gentleness allayeth great offences. ⁵ There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as it were an error which proceedeth from the ruler: ⁶ folly is set in great ^[h]dignity, and the rich sit in a low place. ⁷ I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking like servants upon the earth. ⁸ He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh through a wall, a serpent shall bite him. ⁹ Whoso ^[i]heweth out stones shall be hurt therewith; and he that cleaveth wood is endangered thereby. ¹⁰ If the iron be blunt, and one do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct. ^11 [j]If the serpent bite ^[k]before it is charmed, then is there no advantage in ^[l]the charmer. ¹² The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself. ¹³ The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness; and the end of ^[m]his talk is mischievous madness. ¹⁴ A fool also multiplieth words: yet man knoweth not what shall be; and that which shall be after him, who can tell him? ¹⁵ The labor of fools wearieth every one of them; for he knoweth not how to go to the city. ¹⁶ Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a ^[n]child, and thy princes eat in the morning! ¹⁷ Happy art thou, O land, when thy king is ^[o]the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness! ¹⁸ By slothfulness the ^[p]roof sinketh in; and through idleness of the hands the house leaketh. ¹⁹ A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh glad the life; and money answereth all things. ²⁰ Revile not the king, no, not in thy thought; and revile not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the heavens shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.

11 ^[q]Cast thy bread ^[r]upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days. ^2 [s]Give a portion to seven, yea, even unto eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. ³ If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; and if a tree fall ^[t]toward the south, or ^[u]toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there shall it be. ⁴ He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.