16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die ^xbefore your time? 18 It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who ^yfears God shall come out from both of them.

19 Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.

20 ^zSurely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

21 Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. 22 Your heart knows that many times you yourself have cursed others.

23 All this I have tested by ^awisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. 24 That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out?

25 I turned my heart to know and to ^bsearch out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of ^cfolly and the foolishness that is madness. 26 And I find something more ^dbitter than death: the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. ^eHe who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is taken by her. 27 Behold, this is what I found, says the ^fPreacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— 28 which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. One man among a thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found.