Ecclesiastes Chapter 5
Showing all 20 verses for Ecclesiastes Chapter 5.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. "
"Watch your step when you go to worship - be more ready to listen than to offer the kind of empty ritual that fools give, since they don't even realise they're doing wrong."
I want your listening heart more than your performance - come to me ready to hear, not just to go through motions you think earn you credit. Real relationship with me starts with paying attention, not with putting on a show.
"Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few. "
"Don't be reckless with your words, and don't let your heart rush to blurt things out in prayer - remember, God is in heaven and you are on earth, so keep your words few."
I don't need a flood of words from you - I know what you need before you ask. Come to me simply and honestly; a few sincere words matter far more to me than an anxious rush of empty ones.
"For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words. "
"Just as a busy, overactive mind produces restless dreams, a fool is recognised by how much they talk."
I'd rather you speak a little and mean it than fill the air with words that carry no weight. Let your yes be yes and your no be no - a restless mouth, like a restless mind, rarely leads anywhere good.
"When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. "
"If you make a promise to God, don't put off keeping it - he takes no pleasure in fools, so follow through on what you've vowed."
Let your promises mean something - if you tell me, or anyone, that you'll do something, follow through. Integrity between your words and your actions is one of the clearest signs that your faith is real, not just talk.
"Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. "
"It's better not to make a vow at all than to make one and fail to keep it."
Don't make grand promises to impress people or to feel better in the moment - think before you commit, and only promise what you actually intend to deliver. Your reliability matters more to me than your eloquence.
" not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands? "
💡 Highlighted words feature Jacobean 1611 tooltips to clarify shifted 17th-century English terms.
"Don't let your careless words lead you into wrongdoing, and don't try to excuse yourself afterwards by claiming it was a mistake - why give God reason to be angry at what you said and wreck everything you've worked for?"
Own your words and their consequences rather than excusing them away - real integrity means taking responsibility, not looking for a technicality to escape it. I'd rather you be careful and honest than clever with excuses.
"For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God. "
"Too much dreaming and too much talking both lead to a lot of meaningless nonsense - so instead, hold God in awe."
Trade the noise in your head and the show you put on for others for real, quiet reverence - awe that changes how you actually live, not just what you say. That kind of respect for something greater than yourself is where real wisdom starts.
"If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they. "
"If you see the poor being oppressed and justice being violently twisted in a region, don't be shocked by it - there's someone higher than the highest officials watching, and above even them, someone higher still."
When you see corruption stacked on corruption and feel powerless against it, know that nothing escapes my sight - not the official, not the one above him, not anyone. Don't let despair at broken systems stop you from still doing what's right within your own reach.
"Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself is served by the field. "
"Besides, the earth's produce is meant for everyone - even the king depends on food grown in the fields."
However much power or wealth you gather, remember you depend on the same daily bread as everyone else - the same sun, the same rain, the same soil. Let that keep you humble and grateful rather than proud.
"He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity. "
"Whoever loves money will never have enough money, and whoever loves wealth will never be satisfied no matter how much it grows - this too is meaningless."
I warn you plainly - you cannot serve both God and money, because money will always demand more of you than it gives back. Set your heart on things that actually satisfy: love, purpose, connection with me - not on a number that keeps moving.
"When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes? "
"As your wealth grows, so does the number of people who consume it - so what real benefit is there for the owner, other than getting to look at it?"
Don't chase more just to watch the number grow - a bigger pile rarely brings a bigger life. I want you to find joy in using what you have well, not in merely possessing and admiring it from a distance.
"The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not him to sleep. "
💡 Highlighted words feature Jacobean 1611 tooltips to clarify shifted 17th-century English terms.
"A working person sleeps well, whether they've eaten a little or a lot - but the rich person's abundance keeps them awake at night."
I don't want your nights stolen by anxiety over what you own - come to me with your worries and let me carry them, so you can actually rest. A tired body from honest work sleeps easier than an anxious mind guarding a fortune.
"There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt. "
"I've seen a painful kind of wrong in this world: wealth hoarded by its owner that ends up harming them."
Don't let what you save become a burden that harms you - hold what you have loosely, ready to share and to let go, rather than clutching it so tightly it starts to hurt you. Generosity protects your heart in a way hoarding never can.
"But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand. "
"That wealth gets lost through some disastrous turn of events, and by the time this man has a son, there's nothing left to give him."
Don't build your sense of security on something a single disaster could erase overnight - build it on your relationship with me and on people, neither of which a bad investment or bad luck can take away. What you leave behind that truly lasts isn't money, it's love and character.
"As he came forth of his mother’s womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand. "
"Just as he came naked from his mother's womb, he'll leave this life the same way he arrived - taking nothing from all his hard work that he can carry away with him."
You brought nothing into this life and you'll carry nothing out of it - so don't spend your one life chasing what you can't keep. Store up instead what actually travels with you: love shown, kindness given, a life lived close to me.
"And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go: and what profit hath he that hath laboured for the wind? "
"This too is a painful wrong: in every respect, a person leaves exactly as they arrived - so what does anyone actually gain from labouring after something as ungraspable as the wind?"
Don't spend your life's energy grasping at wind - chasing wealth as if it were the whole point of living. Redirect that same energy towards what you can actually hold: relationships, integrity, and a life lived with me, none of which slip through your fingers the way money does.
"All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness. "
"On top of that, he spends all his days eating in gloom, weighed down with grief, frustration, and poor health."
I don't want your days spent in gloom, guarding what you have instead of living the life I've given you. Let go of the grip that's poisoning your joy, and choose light over darkness in how you spend your days.
"Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. "
"Here's what I've concluded: it's genuinely good and fitting for a person to eat, drink, and enjoy whatever good comes from their work, throughout the days of life that God has given them - because that's simply their allotted share."
I came that you might have life, and have it abundantly - not a joyless, anxious grind, but real enjoyment of the ordinary meal, the shared drink, the honest day's work. Receive your portion of life today with gratitude instead of always reaching past it for more.
"Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God. "
"And when God gives someone riches and wealth, along with the ability to actually enjoy them, take their share, and find joy in their work - that ability itself is God's gift."
If you have been given plenty, receive it as a gift, not a burden to protect - let your heart be free enough to actually enjoy it and share it. The real blessing isn't the amount you hold, it's the peace to enjoy what you're given.
"For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart. "
"Such a person won't spend much time brooding over how short life is, because God keeps them occupied with genuine joy in their heart."
I want your heart so filled with real joy in the present that you're not haunted by counting down the days. Let go of anxious brooding over time slipping away, and let gratitude for what's in front of you fill your heart instead.