Ecclesiastes 10 - New Catholic Bible (NCB)

Chapter 10

1 Just as dead flies give perfumes a foul smell,
so a little folly can outweigh wisdom and honor.
2 The heart of a wise man inclines to the right;
the heart of a fool inclines to the left.
3 Even when a fool walks down the road,
he lacks sense
and indicates to everyone how stupid he is.
4 If the anger of a ruler rises against you,
do not leave your post,
for calmness will mitigate grave offenses.
5 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun,
a great error to which rulers are prone:
6 Fools are ensconced in a lofty position,
while the rich sit in a lowly place.
7 I have seen slaves on horseback
while princes walked on foot like slaves.
8 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and whoever breaks through a wall
will be bitten by a snake.
9 Whoever quarries stones will be hurt by them,
and whoever chops wood places himself at risk.
10 If an ax becomes dull from lack of sharpening,
then one must exert greater strength,
but skill helps one to succeed.
11 If a snake bites because it has not been charmed,
there is no profit for the charmer.
12 The words of a wise man win favor,
but a fool’s tongue is his undoing.
13 The words a fool utters are grounded in stupidity,
and they end in total madness.
14 A fool talks at great length,
but no one knows what direction his words will take,
and who can foretell what the future holds?
15 A fool quickly gets worn out by his labor,
and he cannot even find his own way into town.[a]
16 Woe to you, O country, when your king is a servant
and your princes start feasting in the morning.
17 Blessed are you, O land,
when your king is a nobleman
and your princes feast at the proper time
for strength and not for drunkenness.
18 Because of your negligence the roof begins to collapse,
and when hands remain idle, the house leaks.
19 Feasts are designed for merriment,
wine makes us cheerful,
and money solves every need.[b]
20 Even in your thoughts,
do not curse the king,
nor revile the rich even in your bedroom;
for a bird of the air may carry your voice,
or a winged creature may repeat what you have said.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 10:15 And he cannot even find his own way into town: probably a proverbial expression for extreme stupidity.
  2. Ecclesiastes 10:19 Money solves every need: this may be taken in various ways: (1) as a simple statement about the very versatile character of money, (2) as good advice to earn a living rather than seeking a great time, or (3) as an ironic comment about human values (see Lk 16:9).

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Ecclesiastes 10 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

10 Dead flies cause a perfumer's perfume To send forth a stink; The precious by reason of wisdom -- By reason of honour -- a little folly! 2 The heart of the wise [is] at his right hand, And the heart of a fool at his left. 3 And also, when he that is a fool Is walking in the way, his heart is lacki...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

10 Flies that die (in it), lose the sweetness of [the] ointment. A little folly at some time is more precious than wisdom and glory. (Flies that die in an ointment can destroy its sweetness. And so a little foolishness can sometimes destroy wisdom and glory.) 2 The heart of a wise man is in his righ...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - World English Bible (WEB)

10 Dead flies cause the oil of the perfumer to produce an evil odor; so does a little folly outweigh wisdom and honor.2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand,but a fool’s heart at his left. 3 Yes also when the fool walks by the way, his understanding fails him, and he says to everyone that he is ...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - The Voice (VOICE)

10 Teacher: Remember the saying, Dead flies can spoil a good perfume. In the same way, all the wisdom and honor in the world cannot outweigh a moment’s folly.2 Wise people move to the right where they honor the goodness of God’s creation, while fools move to the left and choose to ignore it. Verse ...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Wisdom and Folly10 Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil stink, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.2 The heart of the wise is to his right, and the heart of the fool is to his left.3 Even as the fool walks along the way, his heart lacks sense and tells everyone what a fool he is. 4 If a ruler’s...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Miscellaneous Observations10 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off an evil odor; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.2 A wise man’s heart inclines him toward the right, but a fool’s heart toward the left.3 Even when the fool walks on the road, he lacks sense, and he says to every...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Miscellaneous Observations10 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a foul odor;[a] so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of a fool to the left.3 Even when fools walk on the road, they lack sense and show to everyone that ...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New Living Translation (NLT)

10 As dead flies cause even a bottle of perfume to stink, so a little foolishness spoils great wisdom and honor. 2 A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one. 3 You can identify fools just by the way they walk down the street! 4 If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New Life Version (NLV)

10 Dead flies make a perfume maker’s oil smell bad. So does acting a little foolish weigh more than wisdom and honor. 2 A wise man’s heart leads him toward the right. But the foolish man’s heart leads him toward the left. 3 Even when the fool walks on the road, he has little understanding and show...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Wisdom and Folly10 Dead[a] flies [b]putrefy the perfumer’s ointment,And cause it to give off a foul odor;So does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand,But a fool’s heart at his left.3 Even when a fool walks along the way,He lacks wisdom,(A)And...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

10 As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honour.2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.3 Even as fools walk along the road, they lack sense and show everyone how stupid they are.4 If a ruler’s anger rises against ...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New International Version (NIV)

10 As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly(A) outweighs wisdom and honor.2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.3 Even as fools walk along the road, they lack sense and show everyone(B) how stupid they are.4 If a ruler’s anger rises aga...
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

10 Dead flies give perfume a bad smell. And a little foolishness can make a lot of wisdom useless.2 The hearts of wise people lead them on the right path. But the hearts of foolish people take them down the wrong path.3 Foolish people don’t have any sense at all. They show everyone they are foolish....
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Ecclesiastes 10 - New English Translation (NET)

10 One dead fly[a] makes the perfumer’s ointment give off a rancid stench,[b]so a little folly can outweigh[c] much wisdom.[d] Wisdom Can Be Nullified By the Caprice of Rulers2 A wise person’s good sense protects him,[e]but a fool’s lack of sense leaves him vulnerable.[f]3 Even when a fool walks al...
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