Ecclesiastes 7:17

New King James Version

Do not be overly wicked, Nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time?

Parallel Translations

English Standard Version
Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time?

Geneva Bible (1587)
Be not thou wicked ouermuch, neither be thou foolish: wherefore shouldest thou perish not in thy time?

Christian Standard Bible®
Don’t be excessively wicked, and don’t be foolish. Why should you die before your time?

Hebrew Names Version
Don't be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?

Darby Translation
Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?

Amplified Bible
Do not be excessively or willfully wicked and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?

American Standard Version
Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?

Contemporary English Version
Don't die before your time by being too evil or acting like a fool.

Complete Jewish Bible
But don't be overly wicked, and don't be foolish; why should you die before your time?

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish; why shouldest thou die before thy time?

King James Version (1611)
Be not ouermuch wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Be not very just; neither be very wise: lest thou be confounded.

English Revised Version
Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?

Berean Standard Bible
Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?

Lexham English Bible
Do not act excessively wicked, and do not be a fool, lest you die before your time.

Literal Translation
Do not be very evil, and do not be a fool; why should you not die in your time?

New Century Version
Don't be too wicked, and don't be foolish. Why die before your time?

New English Translation
Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool; otherwise you might die before your time.

New Living Translation
On the other hand, don't be too wicked either. Don't be a fool! Why die before your time?

New Life Bible
Do not be too sinful, and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?

New Revised Standard
Do not be too wicked, and do not be a fool; why should you die before your time?

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Do not be so very lawless, neither become thou foolish, - wherefore shouldst thou die, before thy time?

Douay-Rheims Bible
(7-18) Be not overmuch wicked: and be not foolish, lest thou die before thy time.

George Lamsa Translation
Be not excessively wicked, lest you be hated much; neither be foolish, lest you die before your time.

Good News Translation
But don't be too wicked or too foolish, either—why die before you have to?

New American Standard Bible
Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be foolish. Why should you die before your time?

King James Version
Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Be neither to vnrighteous also nor to foolishe, lest thou die before thy time.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Do thou not wickidli myche, and nyle thou be a fool; lest thou die in a tyme not thin.

Young's Literal Translation
Do not much wrong, neither be thou a fool, why dost thou die within thy time?

World English Bible
Don't be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?

Revised Standard Version
Be not wicked overmuch, neither be a fool; why should you die before your time?

Update Bible Version
Don't be overly wicked, neither be foolish: why should you die before your time?

Webster's Bible Translation
Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldst thou die before thy time?

Bible in Basic English
Be not evil overmuch, and be not foolish. Why come to your end before your time?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
be nether to vnrightuous also ner to foolish, lest thou die before thy tyme.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time?

Legacy Standard Bible
Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be a simpleminded fool. Why should you die before your time?

Contextual Overview

¹¹ Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun. ¹² For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it. ¹³ Consider the work of God; For who can make straight what He has made crooked? ¹⁴ In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him. ¹⁵ I have seen everything in my days of vanity: There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness, And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness. ¹⁶ Do not be overly righteous, Nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself? ¹⁷ Do not be overly wicked, Nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time? ¹⁸ It is good that you grasp this, And also not remove your hand from the other; For he who fears God will escape them all. ¹⁹ Wisdom strengthens the wise More than ten rulers of the city. ²⁰ For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

not: Jeremiah 2:33, Jeremiah 2:34, Ezekiel 8:17, Ezekiel 16:20, James 1:21

why: Genesis 38:7-10, 1 Samuel 25:38, Job 15:32, Job 15:33, Psalms 55:23, Proverbs 10:27, Acts 5:5, Acts 5:10, Acts 12:23

before thy time: Heb. not in thy time

Reciprocal: Job 22:16 - cut down Proverbs 11:3 - the perverseness Acts 16:28 - Do

Cross-References

Genesis 7:4
For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made."

Genesis 7:12
And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Be not over much wicked,.... Not that a man should be wicked at all; but some, observing that wicked men prolong their days in wickedness, are encouraged to go into greater lengths in sin than they have yet done, and give up themselves to all iniquity; and run into excess of not, into the grossest and most scandalous enormities. Some render it, "do not disturb" or "frighten thyself" a, distress and distract thyself with the business of life, bustling and stirring, restless and uneasy, to get wealth and riches; but be easy and satisfied with what is enjoyed, or comes without so much stir and trouble; this is the original sense of the word. The meaning seems to be, either do not multiply sin, add unto it, and continue in it; or do not aggravate it, making sins to be greater and more heinous than they are, and a man's case worse than it is, and so sink into despair; and thus it stands opposed to an ostentatious show of righteousness;

neither be thou foolish; or give up thyself to a profligate life, to go on in a course of sin, which will issue in the ruin of body and soul; or in aggravating it in an excessive manner;

why shouldest thou die before thy time? bring diseases on thy body by a wicked course of living, which will issue in death; or fall into the hands of the civil magistrate, for capital offences, for which sentence of death must pass and be executed, before a man comes to the common term of human life; see Psalms 55:23; or, as Mr. Broughton renders it, "before thy ordinary time"; not before the appointed time b. The Targum is,

"be the cause of death to thy soul;''

or through despair commit suicide.

a אל תרשע "ne paveas", Pagninus; "ne te occupes multum, aut distrahas te, sive inquietes", some in Vatablus; so Aben Ezra and Ben Melech. b "Ante diem", Virgil. Aeneid. 4. prope finem. Vid. Servium in ib. Ovid. Metamorph. l. 1. Fab. 4.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The days of my vanity - This does not imply that those days of vanity were ended (see Ecclesiastes 1:12 note).

The meaning may be best explained by a paraphrase. Solomon states how the wise man should regard the “crooked Ecclesiastes 7:13 work of God” when it bears upon him. He says in effect, “Do not think that thou couldest alter the two instances (described in Ecclesiastes 7:15) of such crooked work so as to make it straight, that thou art more righteous or more wise than He is Who ordained these events. To set up thy judgment in opposition to His would imply an excess of wickedness and folly, deserving the punishment of premature death. But rather it is good for thee to grasp these seeming anomalies; if thou ponder them they will tend to impress on thee that fear of God which is a part of wisdom, and will guide thee safely through all the perplexities of this life” (compare Ecclesiastes 8:12-13). The suggestion that these verses are intended to advocate a middle course between sin and virtue is at variance with the whole tenor of the book.

Ecclesiastes 7:16

Destroy thyself - The Septuagint and Vulgate render it: “be amazed.” Compare “marvel not” Ecclesiastes 5:8.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 17. Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time? — אל תרשע הרבה al tirsha harbeh. Do not multiply wickedness, do not add direct opposition to godliness to the rest of your crimes. Why should you provoke God to destroy you before your time? Perdition will come soon enough. If you will not turn from your sins, and avoid it finally, yet keep out of it as long as you can.

It cannot be supposed, except by those who are totally unacquainted with the nature of true religion, that a man may have too much holiness, too much of the life of God in his soul! And yet a learned doctor, in three sermons on this text, has endeavoured to show, out-doing Solomon's infidel, "the sin, folly, and danger of being righteous overmuch." O rare darkness!