The Relative Value of Wisdom

12 Then I turned to consider wisdom,(A) madness, and folly, for what will the man be like who comes after the king? He[a] will do what has already been done.(B) 13 And I realized that there is an advantage to wisdom over folly, like the advantage of light over darkness.(C)

14 The wise man has eyes in his head,
but the fool walks in darkness.(D)

Yet I also knew that one fate comes to them both.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 2:12 Some Hb mss read They

Wisdom and Folly Are Meaningless

12 Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom,
    and also madness and folly.(A)
What more can the king’s successor do
    than what has already been done?(B)
13 I saw that wisdom(C) is better than folly,(D)
    just as light is better than darkness.
14 The wise have eyes in their heads,
    while the fool walks in the darkness;
but I came to realize
    that the same fate overtakes them both.(E)

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