Wisdom
1A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone;
the living should take this to heart.
3Frustration is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart.
4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
5It is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person
than to listen to the song of fools.
6Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of fools.
This too is meaningless.
7Extortion turns a wise person into a fool,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8The end of a matter is better than its beginning,
and patience is better than pride.
9Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
for anger resides in the lap of fools.
10Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”
For it is not wise to ask such questions.
11Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing
and benefits those who see the sun.
12Wisdom is a shelter
as money is a shelter,
but the advantage of knowledge is this:
Wisdom preserves those who have it.
13Consider what God has done:
Who can straighten
what he has made crooked?
14When times are good, be happy;
but when times are bad, consider this:
God has made the one
as well as the other.
Therefore, no one can discover
anything about their future.
15In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these:
the righteous perishing in their righteousness,
and the wicked living long in their wickedness.
16Do not be overrighteous,
neither be overwise—
why destroy yourself?
17Do not be overwicked,
and do not be a fool—
why die before your time?
18It is good to grasp the one
and not let go of the other.
Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.7:18 Or will follow them both
19Wisdom makes one wise person more powerful
than ten rulers in a city.
20Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous,
no one who does what is right and never sins.
21Do not pay attention to every word people say,
or you may hear your servant cursing you—
22for you know in your heart
that many times you yourself have cursed others.
23All this I tested by wisdom and I said,
“I am determined to be wise”—
but this was beyond me.
24Whatever exists is far off and most profound—
who can discover it?
25So I turned my mind to understand,
to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things
and to understand the stupidity of wickedness
and the madness of folly.
26I find more bitter than death
the woman who is a snare,
whose heart is a trap
and whose hands are chains.
The man who pleases God will escape her,
but the sinner she will ensnare.
27“Look,” says the Teacher,7:27 Or the leader of the assembly “this is what I have discovered:
“Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things—
28while I was still searching
but not finding—
I found one upright man among a thousand,
but not one upright woman among them all.
29This only have I found:
God created mankind upright,
but they have gone in search of many schemes.”
Nimdeɛ
1Din pa yɛ sen aduhuam papa,
na owuda yɛ sen awoda.
2Eye sɛ obi bɛkɔ ayi ase
sen sɛ ɔbɛkɔ aponto ase,
efisɛ owu yɛ onipa biara nkrabea
na ɛsɛ sɛ ateasefo hyɛ eyi nsow.
3Awerɛhow ye sen ɔserew,
efisɛ anim a ayɛ mmɔbɔmmɔbɔ de koma mu nsiesie pa ba.
4Onyansafo koma wɔ ayi ase,
nanso nkwaseafo koma wɔ ahosɛpɛwfo fi.
5Eye sɛ wobetie onyansafo animka
sen sɛ wobetie nkwaseafo dwom.
6Sɛnea nsɔe turuturuw wɔ ɔsɛn ase no
saa ara na nkwaseafo serew te.
Eyi nso yɛ ahuhude.
7Asisi ma onyansafo dan ɔkwasea,
na kɛtɛasehyɛ sɛe koma.
8Asɛm awiei ye sen ne mfiase,
na ntoboase ye sen ahantan.
9Mma wo koma nsɔre ntɛmntɛm,
na abufuw da nkwaseafo srɛ so.
10Nka se, “Adɛn nti na tete nna no ye sen nnɛ mmere yi?”
Onyansafo mmisa nsɛm sɛɛ.
11Nimdeɛ, ɛyɛ ade pa sɛ agyapade ara pɛ,
so wɔ mfaso ma wɔn a wohu owia.
12Sɛnea nimdeɛ yɛ bammɔ no,
saa ara na sika nso te;
nanso nhumu ho ade a eye ne sɛ:
nea ɔwɔ nimdeɛ no bɔ ne nkwa ho ban.
13Dwene nea Onyankopɔn ayɛ ho:
Hena na obetumi ateɛ
nea wɔama akyea?
14Mmere pa mu, ma wʼani nnye;
nanso mmere bɔne mu, hu sɛ
Onyankopɔn na wayɛ ne nyinaa.
Ɛno nti onipa rentumi nhu
nea ɛbɛto no daakye.
15Me nkwanna a ɛyɛ ahuhude yi mu, mahu nneɛma abien:
Ɔtreneeni a owu wɔ ne trenee mu,
ne omumɔyɛfo a ɔtena ase kyɛ wɔ nʼamumɔyɛ mu.
16Nyɛ wo ho ɔtreneeni ntra so,
na nyɛ wo ho onyansafo mmoro so;
adɛn nti na wosɛe wo ho?
17Nyɛ omumɔyɛfo ntra so,
na nyɛ ɔkwasea nso,
adɛn nti na ɛsɛ sɛ wuwu ansa na wo bere aso.
18Eye sɛ wubeso baako no mu den
nanso nnyaa nea aka no mu.
Onipa a osuro Onyankopɔn no besiw nneyɛe mmoroso nyinaa ano.
19Nimdeɛ ma onyansafo baako tumi bebree
sen kuropɔn mu asodifo du.
20Onipa treneeni biara nni asase so a
ɔyɛ papa na ɔnyɛ bɔne da.
21Mfa nea nnipa ka nyinaa nyɛ asɛm,
anyɛ saa a wobɛte sɛ wo somfo redome wo,
22na wunim wɔ wo koma sɛ
wo nso woadome nkurɔfo mpɛn bebree.
23Mede nimdeɛ asɔ eyinom nyinaa ahwɛ, na mekae se,
“Masi mʼadwene pi sɛ mɛyɛ onyansafo”
nanso na eyi boro me so.
24Sɛnea nimdeɛ te biara,
ɛwɔ akyiri na emu dɔ,
hena na obetumi ahwehwɛ ahu?
25Afei meyɛɛ mʼadwene sɛ mɛte ase,
ayɛ nhwehwɛmu na mapɛɛpɛɛ nimdeɛ ne sɛnea nneɛma nhyehyɛe te
na mate amumɔyɛ mu agyimisɛm ase,
ne nkwaseasɛm mu adammɔsɛm nso.
26Mahu nea ɛyɛ nwene sen owu;
ɔbea a ɔyɛ afiri;
ne koma yɛ nnaadaa
na ne nsa yɛ mpokyerɛ.
Onipa a ɔsɔ Onyankopɔn ani no renkɔ ne ho
nanso ɔbɔnefo de ɔbɛtɔ nʼafiri mu.
27Ɔsɛnkafo no se, “Hwɛ eyi ne nea mahwehwɛ ahu:
“Mekekaa nneɛma bobɔɔ so pɛɛ sɛ mihu sɛnea nneɛma nhyehyɛe te,
28mereyɛ nhwehwɛmu,
na minhu hwee no,
mihuu ɔbarima treneeni baako wɔ mmarima apem mu,
nanso manhu ɔbea treneeni biara wɔ wɔn mu.
29Eyi nko ara na mahu:
Onyankopɔn yɛɛ adesamma atreneefo,
nanso nnipa adan wɔn ho hwehwɛ nhyehyɛe foforo.”
