Ecclesiastes 7:18–19

¹³¶ Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

²¶ But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

⁶In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

¹²¶ Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:

⁵⁰And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

⁴²But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

¹⁴I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him.

⁴⁰And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.

²⁵Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

²⁶Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

²⁷Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.

²⁰I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment:

¹⁹He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

²⁰The Lord preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy.

¹²What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose.

¹³His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth.

¹⁴The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.

⁹For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;

¹⁰That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

¹¹Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;

²²A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof.

¹³¶ This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me:

¹⁴There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:

¹⁵Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.

¹⁶Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.

¹⁷The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.

¹⁸Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good.

⁵A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

¹⁶¶ Then cried a wise woman out of the city, Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither, that I may speak with thee.

¹⁷And when he was come near unto her, the woman said, Art thou Joab? And he answered, I am he. Then she said unto him, Hear the words of thine handmaid. And he answered, I do hear.

¹⁸Then she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old time, saying, They shall surely ask counsel at Abel: and so they ended the matter.

¹⁹I am one of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel: thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the Lord?

²⁰And Joab answered and said, Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy.

²¹The matter is not so: but a man of mount Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David: deliver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall.

²²Then the woman went unto all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it out to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king.