Ecclesiastes 7

This chapter begins the second half of Ecclesiastes. As if answering the question posed at the end of Ecclesiastes 6, "For who knoweth what is good for man in this life" (Ecclesiastes 6:12), it presents a series of short proverbs weighing which things are better than others.

Outline

• Verses 1–6: A good name is better than precious ointment, the day of death better than the day of birth, the house of mourning better than the house of feasting, and sorrow better than laughter. The rebuke of the wise is contrasted with the song of fools, and the laughter of the fool is likened to the crackling of thorns under a pot.
• Verses 7–10: A warning against oppression and bribery. The end of a thing is better than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. The reader is urged to avoid hasty anger and the saying that "the former days were better."
• Verses 11–14: Wisdom and money are both a defense, but wisdom preserves the life of those who have it. God has set the day of prosperity and the day of adversity side by side.
• Verses 15–22: Observing that the righteous perish while the wicked prolong their lives, the Preacher counsels against being overly righteous or overly wicked. He states that there is no righteous man who does not sin and advises his readers not to take to heart everything others say.
• Verses 23–29: The Preacher confesses that he sought wisdom, but it remained far from him. He warns against the woman who is like a snare and says that he found one man among a thousand but not a woman among them all. He concludes with the insight that God made man upright, but people have sought out many schemes.

Key Verses

• Ecclesiastes 7:14: "In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider." The verse places both the joys and the hardships of life under the sovereignty of God.
• Ecclesiastes 7:20: "For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." The verse declares the universal sinfulness of humanity.
• Ecclesiastes 7:29: "God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions." The verse contrasts humanity's original created state with its subsequent departure from it.

People and Places

• The Preacher: The narrator of the book. The Hebrew term is Qoheleth, generally understood to mean "one who speaks in an assembly." He has traditionally been identified with Solomon, though some scholars regard the book as a later composition.

Points for Reflection

• Interpretations differ on "Be not righteous over much" in verses 16–17. Some commentaries read it as counsel toward moderation and the avoidance of extremes; others read it as a warning against self-righteousness.
• Verses 26–28 are sometimes read as disparaging women in general. Many interpreters, however, take them to refer to a particular kind of temptation, like the adulteress of Proverbs 7. Some also see verse 28 as a lament that genuinely upright people, whether men or women, are rare.
• Verse 20 is read alongside "There is none righteous" in Romans 3:10–12, though Paul's quotation is generally thought to come chiefly from Psalm 14.
• An interpretive tradition connects verse 29 with the account of the Fall.

In the Korean Church

Verse 2, "It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting," is frequently cited at funeral services and memorial services as a passage prompting reflection on life and death.