Ecclesiastes 7:23

Ecclesiastes 7:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)All this have I proved by wisdom: I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me.
• New International Version (NIV)All this I tested by wisdom and I said, “I am determined to be wise”— but this was beyond me.
• English Standard Version (ESV)All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, "I will be wise," but it was far from me.
• New King James Version (NKJV)All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise”; But it was far from me.

Context of Ecclesiastes 7:23

21Don’t eavesdrop on others—you may hear your servant curse you. 22For you know how often you yourself have cursed others. I have always tried my best to let wisdom guide my thoughts and actions. I said to myself, “I am determined to be wise.” But it didn’t work. 24Wisdom is always distant and difficult to find. 25I searched everywhere, determined to find wisdom and to understand the reason for things. I was determined to prove to myself that wickedness is stupid and that foolishness is madness.

Ecclesiastes 7:23 word by word

כָּל־זֹ֖ה נִסִּ֣יתִי בַֽחָכְמָ֑ה אָמַ֣רְתִּי אֶחְכָּ֔מָה וְהִ֖יא רְחוֹקָ֥ה מִמֶּֽנִּי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• All thisזֹהzôh · thisH2090
• have I provedנָסָהnâsâh · to testH5254
• by wisdomחׇכְמָהchokmâh · wisdomH2451
• I saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• I will be wiseחָכַםchâkam · be wiseH2449
• farרָחֹקrâchôq râchôq · distantH7350

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 7:23

• Genesis 3:5“God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”
• 1 Kings 3:11So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies—
• 1 Kings 11:1Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites.
• Romans 1:22Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.
• 1 Corinthians 1:20So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 7:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23All this have I proved by wisdom - These rules I have laid down for my own conduct, and sought after more wisdom; but have fallen far short of what I wished to be.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23I will be - Or, I am. There was a time when Solomon thought himself wise enough to comprehend the work of God, and therefore needed for himself the self-humbling conviction declared in this verse. It - i. e. Wisdom. Compare Ecclesiastes 8:17.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-29Verses 23-29 Solomon, in his search into the nature and reason of things, had been miserably deluded. But he here speaks with godly sorrow. He alone who constantly aims to please God, can expect to escape; the careless sinner probably will fall to rise no more. He now discovered more than ever the evil of the great sin of which he had been guilty, the loving many strange women, I Kin. 11:1. A woman thoroughly upright and godly, he had not found. How was…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23-25it was beyond me: The Teacher could not find the wisdom or reasons he sought. Such reasons are hidden in God's mind (Ecclesiastes 3:11; 8:17).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. All this--resuming the "all" in Ec 7:15; Ec 7:15-22 is therefore the fruit of his dearly bought experience in the days of his "vanity." I will be wise--I tried to "be wise," independently of God. But true wisdom was then "far from him," in spite of his human wisdom, which he retained by God's gift. So "over wise" (Ec 7:16).Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 7:23

• Ignorance
• Wisdom

In the dictionaries

• I Will Be
• Adversity
• Bosom
• Consider
• Crackling
• Living
• Rest
• Synagogue, the Great

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings