Ecclesiastes 7:10

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

Do not say,“Why were the old days better than these days?” for it is not wise to ask that.

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Judg 6:13 : 13 Gideon said to him,“Pardon me, but if the LORD is with us, why has such disaster overtaken us? Where are all his miraculous deeds our ancestors told us about? They said,‘Did the LORD not bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”
  • Ps 14:2-3 : 2 The LORD looks down from heaven at the human race, to see if there is anyone who is wise and seeks God. 3 Everyone rejects God; they are all morally corrupt. None of them does what is right, not even one!
  • Isa 50:1 : 1 This is what the LORD says:“Where is your mother’s divorce certificate by which I divorced her? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Look, you were sold because of your sins; because of your rebellious acts I divorced your mother.
  • Jer 44:17-19 : 17 Instead we will do everything we vowed we would do. We will sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the goddess called the Queen of Heaven just as we and our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders previously did in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty of food, were well-off, and had no troubles. 18 But ever since we stopped sacrificing and pouring out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven, we have been in great need. Our people have died in wars or of starvation.” 19 The women added,“We did indeed sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven. But it was with the full knowledge and approval of our husbands that we made cakes in her image and poured out drink offerings to her.”
  • Rom 1:22-32 : 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image resembling mortal human beings or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonor their bodies among themselves. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creation rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones, 27 and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed in their passions for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done. 29 They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 senseless, covenant-breakers, heartless, ruthless. 32 Although they fully know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.
  • Rom 3:9-9 : 9 The Condemnation of the World What then? Are we better off? Certainly not, for we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin, 10 just as it is written:“There is no one righteous, not even one, 11 there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, not even one.” 13 “Their throats are open graves, they deceive with their tongues, the poison of asps is under their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood, 16 ruin and misery are in their paths, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” 19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable to God.
  • Gen 6:11-12 : 11 The earth was ruined in the sight of God; the earth was filled with violence. 12 God saw the earth, and indeed it was ruined, for all living creatures on the earth were sinful.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

  • Eccl 7:9
    79%

    9Do not let yourself be quickly provoked, for anger resides in the lap of fools.

  • Eccl 7:11
    77%

    11Wisdom Can Lengthen One’s Life Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing; it benefits those who see the light of day.

  • Eccl 7:16-17
    2 verses
    76%

    16So do not be excessively righteous or excessively wise; otherwise you might be disappointed.

    17Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool; otherwise you might die before your time.

  • Job 8:8-9
    2 verses
    75%

    8“For inquire now of the former generation, and pay attention to the findings of their ancestors;

    9For we were born yesterday and do not have knowledge, since our days on earth are but a shadow.

  • Eccl 1:9-11
    3 verses
    74%

    9What exists now is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing truly new on earth.

    10Is there anything about which someone can say,“Look at this! It is new!”? It was already done long ago, before our time.

    11No one remembers the former events, nor will anyone remember the events that are yet to happen; they will not be remembered by the future generations.

  • Job 20:4
    74%

    4“Surely you know that it has been from old, ever since humankind was placed on the earth,

  • Eccl 7:2-5
    4 verses
    73%

    2It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart.

    3Sorrow is better than laughter, because sober reflection is good for the heart.

    4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of merrymaking.

    5Frivolous Living Versus Wisdom It is better for a person to receive a rebuke from those who are wise than to listen to the song of fools.

  • Eccl 7:13-14
    2 verses
    73%

    13Wisdom Acknowledges God’s Orchestration of Life Consider the work of God: For who can make straight what he has bent?

    14In times of prosperity be joyful, but in times of adversity consider this: God has made one as well as the other, so that no one can discover what the future holds.

  • Job 15:8-9
    2 verses
    73%

    8Do you listen in on God’s secret council? Do you limit wisdom to yourself?

    9What do you know that we don’t know? What do you understand that we don’t understand?

  • Eccl 4:3
    73%

    3But better than both is the one who has not been born and has not seen the evil things that are done on earth.

  • Prov 27:1
    72%

    1Do not boast about tomorrow; for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

  • Eccl 11:8-10
    3 verses
    72%

    8So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many– all that is about to come is obscure.

    9Enjoy Life to the Fullest under the Fear of God Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes, but know that God will judge your motives and actions.

    10Banish emotional stress from your mind. and put away pain from your body; for youth and the prime of life are fleeting.

  • Eccl 6:8-9
    2 verses
    72%

    8So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool? And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?

    9It is better to be content with what the eyes can see than for one’s heart always to crave more. This continual longing is futile– like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 2:15-16
    2 verses
    72%

    15So I thought to myself,“The fate of the fool will happen even to me! Then what did I gain by becoming so excessively wise?” So I lamented to myself,“The benefits of wisdom are ultimately meaningless!”

    16For the wise man, like the fool, will not be remembered for very long, because in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten. Alas, the wise man dies– just like the fool!

  • Job 32:9
    72%

    9It is not the aged who are wise, nor old men who understand what is right.

  • Job 17:10
    72%

    10Anticipation of Death“But turn, all of you, and come now! I will not find a wise man among you.

  • Prov 25:7-8
    2 verses
    71%

    7for it is better for him to say to you,“Come up here,” than to put you lower before a prince, whom your eyes have seen.

    8Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do afterward when your neighbor puts you to shame?

  • Job 5:27
    71%

    27Look, we have investigated this, so it is true. Hear it, and apply it for your own good.”

  • Eccl 6:11-12
    2 verses
    71%

    11The more one argues with words, the less he accomplishes. How does that benefit him?

    12For no one knows what is best for a person during his life– during the few days of his fleeting life– for they pass away like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth.

  • Deut 32:7
    71%

    7Remember the ancient days; bear in mind the years of past generations. Ask your father and he will inform you, your elders, and they will tell you.

  • Eccl 12:1
    71%

    1Fear God Now Because Old Age and Death Come Quickly So remember your Creator in the days of your youth– before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you will say,“I have no pleasure in them”;

  • Eccl 8:7
    71%

    7Surely no one knows the future, and no one can tell another person what will happen.

  • Eccl 7:24-25
    2 verses
    71%

    24Whatever has happened is beyond human understanding; it is far deeper than anyone can fathom.

    25True Righteousness and Wisdom Are Virtually Nonexistent I tried to understand, examine, and comprehend the role of wisdom in the scheme of things, and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the insanity of folly.

  • Eccl 8:5
    71%

    5Whoever obeys his command will not experience harm, and a wise person knows the proper time and procedure.

  • Eccl 4:13
    71%

    13Labor Motivated by Prestige-Seeking A poor but wise youth is better than an old and foolish king who no longer knows how to receive advice.

  • Eccl 7:19
    70%

    19Wisdom Needed Because No One is Truly Righteous Wisdom gives a wise person more protection than ten rulers in a city.

  • Eccl 8:17
    70%

    17then I discerned all that God has done: No one really comprehends what happens on earth. Despite all human efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp it. Even if a wise person claimed that he understood, he would not really comprehend it.

  • Prov 23:9
    70%

    9Do not speak in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

  • Prov 26:4
    70%

    4Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you yourself also be like him.

  • Job 32:7
    70%

    7I said to myself,‘Age should speak, and length of years should make wisdom known.’

  • Job 38:21
    70%

    21You know, for you were born before them; and the number of your days is great!

  • Job 12:3
    70%

    3I also have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you. Who does not know such things as these?

  • Prov 14:7
    70%

    7Walk abreast with a foolish person, and you do not understand wise counsel.

  • Prov 23:4
    70%

    4Do not wear yourself out to become rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself.