Wisdom, like an inheritance, is good, and it benefits those who see the sun.
Parallel translations
- WEB Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
- KJV Wisdom is good with an inheritance: and by it there is profit to them that see the sun.
- NKJV Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun.
- NASB Wisdom along with an inheritance is good, And an advantage to those who see the sun.
- NLT Wisdom is even better when you have money. Both are a benefit as you go through life.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Wisdom is as good as an inheritance, indeed more excellent, for the living. It matters because wisdom is a treasure that profits us throughout life.
Overview
The Preacher esteems wisdom alongside, and even above, material inheritance for those 'who see the sun,' the living. Wisdom equips us to handle life well, surpassing mere wealth. This high valuation of wisdom prepares for the New Testament revelation that Christ is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24,30), the truest inheritance of all who are in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Eccl 11:7Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.
- 1 Tim 6:17–19Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us to enjoy.
- Prov 8:10–11Receive my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold.
- Eccl 2:13And I saw that wisdom exceeds folly, just as light exceeds darkness:
- 1 Kgs 3:6–9Solomon replied, “You have shown much loving devotion to Your servant, my father David, because he walked before You in faithfulness, righteousness, and uprightness of heart. And You have maintained this loving devotion by giving him a son to sit on his throne this very day.
- Eccl 9:15–18Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.
- Luke 16:8–9The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the sons of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the sons of light.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The search that finds everything 'under the sun' to be vapor exposes the emptiness of life without God and drives us to the one who alone gives meaning, the resurrection that makes our labor not in vain.
How Ecclesiastes 7:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.