Old Testament
- GenGenesis
- ExoExodus
- LevLeviticus
- NumNumbers
- DeuDeuteronomy
- JosJoshua
- JugJudges
- RutRuth
- 1Sa1 Samuel
- 2Sa2 Samuel
- 1Ki1 Kings
- 2Ki2 Kings
- 1Ch1 Chronicles
- 2Ch2 Chronicles
- EzrEzra
- NehNehemiah
- EstEsther
- JobJob
- PsmPsalms
- ProProverbs
- EccEcclesiastes
- SonSong of Songs
- IsaIsaiah
- JerJeremiah
- LamLamentations
- EzeEzekiel
- DanDaniel
- HosHosea
- JoeJoel
- AmoAmos
- ObaObadiah
- JonJonah
- MicMicah
- NahNahum
- HabHabakkuk
- ZepZephaniah
- HagHaggai
- ZecZechariah
- MalMalachi
New Testament
- MatMatthew
- MakMark
- LukLuke
- JhnJohn
- ActActs of the Apostles
- RomRomans
- 1Co1 Corinthians
- 2Co2 Corinthians
- GalGalatians
- EphEphesians
- PhlPhilippians
- ColColossians
- 1Ts1 Thessalonians
- 2Ts2 Thessalonians
- 1Ti1 Timothy
- 2Ti2 Timothy
- TitTitus
- MonPhilemon
- HebHebrews
- JasJames
- 1Pe1 Peter
- 2Pe2 Peter
- 1Jn1 John
- 2Jn2 John
- 3Jn3 John
- JudJude
- RevRevelation
Bible Versions
Simplified Chinese
English
Traditional Chinese
Spanish
Korean
Russian
Indonesian
French
Japanese
Arabic
Settings
Show Verse Number
Show Title
Show Footnotes
Verse List View
1How wonderful to be wise,
to analyze and interpret things.
Wisdom lights up a person’s face,
softening its harshness.
Obedience to the King
2Obey the king since you vowed to God that you would.
3Don’t try to avoid doing your duty, and don’t stand with those who plot evil, for the king can do whatever he wants.
4His command is backed by great power. No one can resist or question it.
5Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right,
6for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble.
7Indeed, how can people avoid what they don’t know is going to happen?
8None of us can hold back our spirit from departing. None of us has the power to prevent the day of our death. There is no escaping that obligation, that dark battle. And in the face of death, wickedness will certainly not rescue the wicked.
The Wicked and the Righteous
9I have thought deeply about all that goes on here under the sun, where people have the power to hurt each other.
10I have seen wicked people buried with honor. Yet they were the very ones who frequented the Temple and are now praised8:10 As in some Hebrew manuscripts and Greek version; many Hebrew manuscripts read and are forgotten. in the same city where they committed their crimes! This, too, is meaningless.
11When a crime is not punished quickly, people feel it is safe to do wrong.
12But even though a person sins a hundred times and still lives a long time, I know that those who fear God will be better off.
13The wicked will not prosper, for they do not fear God. Their days will never grow long like the evening shadows.
14And this is not all that is meaningless in our world. In this life, good people are often treated as though they were wicked, and wicked people are often treated as though they were good. This is so meaningless!
15So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.
16In my search for wisdom and in my observation of people’s burdens here on earth, I discovered that there is ceaseless activity, day and night.
17I realized that no one can discover everything God is doing under the sun. Not even the wisest people discover everything, no matter what they claim.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.