Ecclesiastes 10

¹As dead flies give perfume a bad smell,

so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

²The heart of the wise inclines to the right,

but the heart of the fool to the left.

³Even as fools walk along the road,

they lack sense

and show everyone how stupid they are.

⁴If a ruler’s anger rises against you,

do not leave your post;

calmness can lay great offenses to rest.

⁵There is an evil I have seen under the sun,

the sort of error that arises from a ruler:

⁶Fools are put in many high positions,

while the rich occupy the low ones.

⁷I have seen slaves on horseback,

while princes go on foot like slaves.

⁸Whoever digs a pit may fall into it;

whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.

⁹Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them;

whoever splits logs may be endangered by them.

¹⁰If the ax is dull

and its edge unsharpened,

more strength is needed,

but skill will bring success.

¹¹If a snake bites before it is charmed,

the charmer receives no fee.

¹²Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious,

but fools are consumed by their own lips.

¹³At the beginning their words are folly;

at the end they are wicked madness—

¹⁴and fools multiply words.

No one knows what is coming—

who can tell someone else what will happen after them?

¹⁵The toil of fools wearies them;

they do not know the way to town.

¹⁶Woe to the land whose king was a servant

and whose princes feast in the morning.

¹⁷Blessed is the land whose king is of noble birth

and whose princes eat at a proper time—

for strength and not for drunkenness.

¹⁸Through laziness, the rafters sag;

because of idle hands, the house leaks.

¹⁹A feast is made for laughter,

wine makes life merry,

and money is the answer for everything.

²⁰Do not revile the king even in your thoughts,

or curse the rich in your bedroom,

because a bird in the sky may carry your words,

and a bird on the wing may report what you say.