Ecclesiastes 7:7–9

¹⁹Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.

⁸¶ And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

²³A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.

³And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.

³³The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:

³⁴So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.

⁶⁵And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:

¹SO I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter.

²³Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.

⁸A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it: whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth.

³Behold, here I am: witness against me before the Lord, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.

¹⁵He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

³⁶For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

⁵They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

⁶He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

²⁹He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.

¹³Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

¹¹Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

⁸Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

¹⁸A wrathful man stirreth up strife: but he that is slow to anger appeaseth strife.

²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

¹⁹In your patience possess ye your souls.

³²He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

²⁵But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

⁷To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

⁸But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

¹⁰Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.

²⁰For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

²¹For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

²⁵He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be made fat.

²With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

⁵Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

⁶Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

²⁴¶ Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.

²⁵For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.

²⁸He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages:

²⁹They are gone over the passage: they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled.

³⁰Lift up thy voice, O daughter of Gallim: cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth.

³¹Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee.

³²As yet shall he remain at Nob that day: he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

³³Behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror: and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled.

³⁴And he shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.

¹⁹Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

¹⁷He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated.

³²He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

²⁶Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

²⁷Neither give place to the devil.

²³Burning lips and a wicked heart are like a potsherd covered with silver dross.

²⁴He that hateth dissembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him;

²⁵When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart.

²⁶Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness shall be shewed before the whole congregation.

²¹Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath requited me evil for good.

²²So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.

²²And Absalom spake unto his brother Amnon neither good nor bad: for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.

⁴³And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, We have ten parts in the king, and we have also more right in David than ye: why then did ye despise us, that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king? And the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.

⁵And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.

⁶And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had shewed him the people of Mordecai: wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.

³⁰And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.

³¹And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?

⁷And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done.

⁸And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.

²⁸¶ Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now when Amnon’s heart is merry with wine, and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon; then kill him, fear not: have not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant.

²⁵¶ And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males.

²⁶And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went out.

⁵But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

⁶And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

¹⁹Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not:

⁸And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

⁹And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.

²⁴And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.

³²And Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David’s brother, answered and said, Let not my lord suppose that they have slain all the young men the king’s sons; for Amnon only is dead: for by the appointment of Absalom this hath been determined from the day that he forced his sister Tamar.