Bible ~~- Older Testament ~~- Ecclesiastes ~~- chapter 7 of 12 (29 verses.)

PREVIOUS Ecclesiastes 7 NEXT Wrench

Don't Seek Fun & Wealth; Visit Dying People
1 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ A good name [pays] better than the most expensive [oil], πŸ˜‡. [Your] day of death [shines brighter] than the day of [your] birth.
Scripture mentions birthdays only 3 times, each mention a curse. True hebrews don't celebrate birthdays. Birthdays are high-holidays for witches. Nations lose big when they trash their reputations fighting wars to steal other nations' oil reserves.
2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ It's better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting, πŸ˜‡. For [death] is the final [resting place] of all man-flesh. [While you're] alive, [keep awareness of your mortality in your] heart.
Visit funeral parlors.
3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Sorrow [shines brighter] than laughter, πŸ˜‡. [Crying blotches your face.] But it cleans your heart.
A point in favor of sad songs and sad movies.
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The heart of the wise [man lives] in the house of mourning, πŸ˜‡. The fool's heart [parties] in the fun-house.
Seek Wisdom; Shun Fools
5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ πŸ˜‡, it's better for [you] to heed sages' warning[s] than to listen to the song[s] of stupid-heads.
Change your music selections from insipid nonsense to scriptual wisdom. Go beyond commercial Christianese babble into true scripture songs.
6 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ The chump's laughter crackles like thorns [burning] under a pot, gone in a puff of smoke, πŸ˜‡.
7 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ But [smart men like me sometimes go up in smoke too, πŸ˜‡]. Oppressing [other people] drives an authority crazy. One bribe destroys [even a strong, caring] heart.
8 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ [It's cheap and easy to] start things, πŸ˜‡. [But what counts is persevering to] the end. [You're] better [off being a] patient spirit than a proud windbag.
Finishing beats starting. Patience beats pride.
9 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ πŸ˜‡, slow the boil of your angry spirit. Rage [roars] in the chest[s] of fools.
10 πŸ˜‡, never ask, β€œWhy where the old days better than today?” Wise [people] don't ask silly questions like that.
It's not an intelligent question. You don't know whether old times were any better than today.
Wisdom's Value Towers High Above Money
11 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ [Getting] wisdom is [infinitely] more valuable than inheriting [an estate full of riches, πŸ˜‡. Insight] gives overflowing [rewards] to anyone [under] the sun [who reaches out his hand to get it].
12 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ For perception [forms] a defense, like money is a defense. But the superiority of knowledge is this: awareness gives life to those who hold it, πŸ˜‡.
Wealth takes away its owners' lives, through worry and murder.
Joyfully Accept Challenge And Pain
13 πŸ˜‡, study the work of [YHVH] the Eloah. Who can straighten what [YAH] bends?
Who could reduce Creation's beautiful curves to stark straight lines?
14 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Make the best of your good days. Then, in [your] day of adversity, consider [this]: Elohim purposely sends both [happiness to delight you] and [trouble to test and improve you]. So you never know what's going to happen next, πŸ˜‡!
15 I've seen everything [a man can see] in all the days of my vain [life], πŸ˜‡. I've seen a just man perish [while he] walked the right road. [I've seen] a criminal prolong his life while committing wicked [sins].
Only Humble Beings Are Truly Wise
16 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ πŸ˜‡, never get [self]-righteous. Never [publicize] your superior wisdom. [People hate a wise-guy. So they might kill you for blurting arrogance]. Why destroy yourself [by making other people feel stupid]?
This verse is certainly NOT an admonition to limit your quest for wisdom. It's warning you not to be a prideful, know-it-all smarty-pants. The wisest man is usually the man with his mouth shut, even though he has more wisdom to voice than anyone at the meeting.
17 Don't pile up wickedness, πŸ˜‡. Never be reckless. Why should you die before your time?
18 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Grasp the line of humility with one hand, and the line of wisdom with your other hand. Never let go [of either line], πŸ˜‡. For he who fears Elohim gets across [the tightrope of life] by holding on to both [modesty and discernment].
Disgusting vanilla white-bread translators reduce this pithy wisdom to the ridiculous, "The man who fears God will avoid all extremes." Hello!? What man of faith in the bible avoided extremes? All of the men of faith were hyper-extreme: David, Solomon, Elijah, Jesus, John The Baptist, Peter, Paul, James, Moses, Elisha, etc. All of these men went to the max. Most of them were murdered for it! The man who fears YAH jumps head-first into extremes!
19 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wisdom makes one wise man more powerful than 10 rulers in a city, πŸ˜‡.
Therefore, the nations of the earth should be spending their money on conflict-resolution consultants, rather than on bombs.
20 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ For on [the whole] earth there is not one [perfectly] righteous man who does good and never sins, πŸ˜‡.
The Messiah changed that. There has been exactly one perfect human in all of history.
Ignore Petty Criticism
21 Also, πŸ˜‡, pay no attention to all the blab that spews out of peoples' mouths. [For instance,] you might hear your worker curse you. [Never take rejection personally.]
22 For your own heart knows that you yourself have also often short-changed others just like [people curse you, πŸ˜‡].
Seeking Wisdom Is A Never-Ending Journey
23 I've tested all [these maxims] by [using] logic, πŸ˜‡. I said, β€œI'll get smart.” Still [wisdom remained] far from me.
Using wisdom one time is easy. Staying wise is much harder.
24 What [man] can draw out [YAH's] faraway [insight]? Who can search out [realities] far beyond our depth?
Paraphrase. Yahshua can.
25 I concentrate with all my might, studying and exploring in search of vision. [I want to know] the reasons behind everything, [the meaning of life]. I also want to analyze [and eradicate] evil and stupidity, foolishness and insanity, [and to understand the links between these phenomena].
Women Are Pretty But Treacherous. Watch Out!
26 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ [But I never figure it all out, πŸ˜‡.] But I do find more bitter than death the woman whose heart lies [riddled with] snares and death-nets, her hands [prison] chains. Whoever pleases Elohim escapes from her. She captures the sinner with her [fish-hook lips].
27 πŸ˜‡, I'm qualified to teach you about women. I piled one super-woman on top of another, from every nation on earth. I've got a 600-wife harem rotating in and out of my royal bed. I get the supposed β€˜creme de la creme.’ Yet I conclude that every woman [I know] is a noose [around my neck].
Paraphrase. Most translations of this verse ignore the context. Solomon is talking about his experience of never finding an honorable woman, despite his limitless resources and his sincere effort. A truly righteous woman would not want to be Solomon's 601st wife. So all Solomon got was gold-digging high-class whores. That's the real story told in the Song Of Solomon.
28 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ My soul seeks [a decent woman], πŸ˜‡. But I never find one. I find 1 [relatively righteous] man in 1000. But I've never found one [decent] woman. [And I've married nearly 1000 of them!]
Women are hormonally predisposed to higher-highs and lower-lows than men. A woman who would give you the world on the first of the month might stab you in the back on the 15th day of the month.
29 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ See what I've consistently found, πŸ˜‡: Elohim made Adam upright. But humans [always] twist [righteousness] into devious schemes.
Literally "the Adam". This verse may be a continued criticism of deceitful women.
PREVIOUS NEXT