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Listen and speak carefully

Watch[a] your steps when you go to God’s house. It’s more acceptable to listen than to offer the fools’ sacrifice—they have no idea that they’re acting wrongly. Don’t[b] be quick with your mouth or say anything hastily before God, because God is in heaven, but you are on earth. Therefore, let your words be few.

Remember:
Dreams come with many cares,
    and the voice of fools with many words.

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 5:1 4:17 in Heb
  2. Ecclesiastes 5:2 5:1 in Heb

Fulfill Your Vow to God

[a]Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

Do not be quick with your mouth,
    do not be hasty in your heart
    to utter anything before God.(A)
God is in heaven
    and you are on earth,
    so let your words be few.(B)
A dream(C) comes when there are many cares,
    and many words mark the speech of a fool.(D)

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1 is numbered 4:17, and 5:2-20 is numbered 5:1-19.

Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.

Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.

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