CHAPTER 7
It is better
to enter
a house
of mourning
than
a house
of feasting,
since
death
is the end
of every
man,
and the living
should take this
to
heart.
The heart
of the wise
is in the house
of mourning,
but the heart
of fools
is in the house
of pleasure.
For
like the crackling
of thorns
under
the pot,
so
is the laughter
of the fool—
this
too
is futile.
The end
of a matter
is better
than the beginning,
and a patient
spirit
is better
than a proud
one.
Do not
say,
“Why
were
the old
days
better
than these?”
For
it is unwise
of you to ask
about
this.
For
wisdom,
like money,
is a shelter,
and the advantage
of knowledge
is that wisdom
preserves the life
of its owner.
In the day
of prosperity
be
joyful,
but in the day
of adversity,
consider this:
God
has made
one of these
along with
the other,
so that
a man
cannot
discover
anything
that will come after him.
In my futile
life
I have seen
both of these:
A righteous man
perishing
in his righteousness,
and
a wicked man
living long
in his wickedness.
It is good
to grasp
the one
and
not
let the other slip
from
your hand.
For
he who fears
God
will follow
both warnings.
I
directed
my mind
to understand,
to explore,
to search out
wisdom
and explanations,
and to understand
the stupidity
of wickedness
and the folly
of madness.
And I
find
more bitter
than
death
the woman
who
is a snare,
whose heart
is a net,
and whose hands
are chains.
The man who pleases
God
will escape her,
but the sinner
will be ensnared.
“Behold,”
says
the Teacher,
“I have discovered
this
by adding one
thing to another
to find
an explanation.
While
my soul
was still
searching
but not
finding,
among a thousand
I have found
one
upright man,
but among all
these
I have not
found
a virtuous woman.
Only
this
have I found:
I have discovered
that
God
made
men
upright,
but they
have sought out
many
schemes.”