Ecclesiastes 7:15
in Ecclesiastes 7In my futile life I have seen both of these: A righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
All this have I seen in my days of vanity: there is a righteous man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his evil-doing.
KJV
All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness.
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This verse in Ecclesiastes 7
Commentary
11 notes on this verse"I have seen all things in the days of my vanity: there is a just man, that dies in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that remains alive in his wickedness. "Similar to this is what the Saviour says in the Gospel: "he who finds his soul will lose it, and he who loses it on account of me, will find it" [Matth. 10. 39.]. The Maccabees are seen to die on account of their justice by the law and justice of God, and martyrs too, who shed their blood for Christ.
This site's exposition
In my futile life I have seen both of these
on Ecclesiastes 7:15-18
The Teacher reports two anomalies, A righteous man perishing and a wicked man living long. The counsel Do not be overly righteous has drawn two readings, a caution against censorious strictness, or the world's excuse for sin reported. For he who fears God will follow both warnings.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
"In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also has set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.
There is an absolute righteousness and a righteousness that is only righteous for one.… A righteous person can get lost in what is only righteous for him. Those, however, who are really righteous … do not remain in what is righteous for them alone and …
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
BonaventureCommentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 7 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
Here is noted the fourth instruction, by which he teaches that diligent discretion must be exercised regarding merits, because they are very hidden. Therefore he says: "These things also I saw in the day of my birth," that is, after I was born, "I saw" …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
There is a judgment to come, which will rectify this seeming irregularity, to the glory of God and the full satisfaction of all his people, and we must wait with patience till then. Wisdom will be of use both for caution to saints in their way, and for a check to sinners in their way.
All - All sorts of events. My vanity - Since I have come into this vain life. Perisheth - Yea, for his righteousness, which exposes him to the envy, anger, or hatred of wicked men.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
All things have I seen in the days of my vanity,.... Or, "all these things" (u).
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The days of my vanity - This does not imply that those days of vanity were ended (see Ecc 1:12 note). The meaning may be best explained by a paraphrase. Solomon states how the wise man should regard the “crooked Ecc 7:13 work of God” when it bears upon him. He says in effect, “Do not think that thou couldest alter the two instances (described in Ecc 7:15) of such crooked work so as to make it straight, that thou art more righteous or more wise than He is Who ordained these events.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Job 21:7). just . . . perisheth-- (1Ki 21:13). Temporal not eternal death (Joh 10:28). But see on Ec 7:16; "just" is probably a self-justiciary. wicked . . . prolongeth--See the antidote to the abuse of this statement in Ec 8:12.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
There is a just man that perisheth - This is another objection as if he had said, “I also have had considerable experience; and I have not discovered any marked approbation of the conduct of the righteous, or disapprobation of that of the wicked. On the contrary, I have seen a righteous man perish, while employed in the work of righteousness; and a wicked man prosperous, and even exalted, while living wickedly. The former is indeed a victim to his righteousness, while the life and prosperity of the latter were preserved: hence I conclude, it is not prudent, whatever good there may be in religion, and whatever excellence in wisdom, that men should be overmuch righteous, or over-wise: for why should they by austerity and hard study destroy themselves?” So far the objector.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
On a day of goodness [prosperity], be in good spirits. On a day in which you have the ability to do good, 35 Alternatively, on a day of good fortune be happy and enjoy it. (Metsudas Dovid) be among those who do good.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 1 further source is cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַכֹּ֥ל | hakol | <the> everything | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| רָאִ֖יתִי | raiti | I have seen | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| בִּימֵ֣י | bimei | in [the] days of | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| הֶבְלִ֑י | hevli | futility my | H1892 → | 73 times |
| יֵ֤שׁ | yesh | there | H3426 → | 140 times |
| צַדִּיק֙ | tzadik | [is] a righteous [person] | H6662 → | 206 times |
| אֹבֵ֣ד | ʾoved | [who] perishes | H6 → | 184 times |
| בְּצִדְק֔וֹ | betzidko | in righteousness his | H6664 → | 119 times |
| וְיֵ֣שׁ | veyesh | and there | H3426 → | 140 times |
| רָשָׁ֔ע | rasha' | [is] a wicked [person] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| מַאֲרִ֖יךְ | maarikh | [who] prolongs | H748 → | 34 times |
| בְּרָעָתֽוֹ׃ | beraato | in evil his | H7451 → | 662 times |
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַכֹּ֥ל<the> everything
hakolH3605 →5413 times
רָאִ֖יתִיI have seen
raitiH7200 →1300 times
בִּימֵ֣יin [the] days of
bimeiH3117 →2304 times
הֶבְלִ֑יfutility my
hevliH1892 →73 times
יֵ֤שׁthere
yeshH3426 →140 times
צַדִּיק֙[is] a righteous [person]
tzadikH6662 →206 times
אֹבֵ֣ד[who] perishes
ʾovedH6 →184 times
בְּצִדְק֔וֹin righteousness his
betzidkoH6664 →119 times
וְיֵ֣שׁand there
veyeshH3426 →140 times
רָשָׁ֔ע[is] a wicked [person]
rasha'H7563 →263 times
מַאֲרִ֖יךְ[who] prolongs
maarikhH748 →34 times
בְּרָעָתֽוֹ׃in evil his
beraatoH7451 →662 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ecclesiastes 6:12For who knows what is good for a man during the few days in which he passes through his fleeting life like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will come after him…
it leads to
- James 4:14
You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
- Job 14:2
Like a flower, he comes forth, then withers away; like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure.
- Ecclesiastes 3:22
I have seen that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will come after him?
- Psalms 144:4
Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.
- Lamentations 3:24–27
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.”
- James 4:14
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Ecclesiastes
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bonaventure, Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 7; Didymus the Blind, COMMENTARY ON ECCLESIASTES 213:23; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Ecclesiastes; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.