Ecclesiastes part eight

Moving on to chapter seven. This whole chapter consists of poetry and proverbs or poetic proverbs. Let's see how many we can get through.

"A good name is better than fine perfume." (Maybe, unless you don't care.)

"It is better to go to a house of mourning than a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man..." (Yes, death is every person's destiny. So have a feast and enjoy yourself while you are still alive, for goodness sake. Go to houses of mourning to support those who are still alive. Life is where it's at.)

"Sorrow is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart." (What a load of crap.)

"The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure." (The fools seem to have more fun.)

"It is better to heed a wise man's rebuke than listen to the song of fools." (You can't do both?)

"Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools. This too is meaningless." (So what?)

"Extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart." (I might agree with you there.)

"The end of a matter is better than its beginning" (This guy likes closure) "and patience is better than pride." (I'm not sure which definition of pride he is using here.)

"Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools." (Often true.)

"Do not say 'Why were the old days better than these?' For it is not wise to ask such questions." (Tell me about it. Usually our memories of the old days are faulty.)

"Wisdom, like an inheritance is a good thing...wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter." (This guy loves money.)

"Wisdom preserves the life of its possessor." (Not always.)

"Consider what god has done, who can straighten what he has made crooked?" (What has god made crooked?)

"When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider, god has made the one as well as the other."  (See here folks, it's in the Bible. God is responsible for the bad times.)

More to come.