Ecclesiastes 7:13–14

Wisdom Acknowledges God’s Orchestration of Life

7:13 Consider the work of God:

For who can make straight what he has bent?

7:14 In times of prosperity45 be joyful,

but in times of adversity46 consider this:

God has made one as well as the other,47

so that no one can discover what the future holds.48

45	tn Heb “the day of good.”
46	tn Heb “the day of evil.”
47	tn Less probable renderings of this line are “God hath made the one side by side with the other” (ASV) and “God has set the one alongside the other” (NEB).
48	tn Heb “anything after him.” This line is misinterpreted by several versions: “that man may not find against him any just complaint” (Douay); “consequently, man may find no fault with Him” (NJPS); “so that man cannot find fault with him in anything” (NAB).