“Better is the end of a thing
Than its beginning.
The patient in spirit are better
Than the proud in spirit.
Be not quick to anger!
Anger lodges in the bosom of fools.
Do not say.
‘Why were the former days
Better than these?’
It is not from wisdom
That you ask this.
Wisdom is good
With an inheritance.
Wisdom is an advantage
To those who see the sun.
The protection of wisdom is
Like the protection of money.
The advantage of knowledge is
That wisdom gives life
To the one who possesses it.”
Following up on the preceding dichotomies, Qoheleth then went on to speak about the value of wisdom. The end is better than its beginning. The patient in spirit are better than the proud in spirit. Do not be quick to anger because that is the way of fools. Wise people do not talk about the good old days. You should try to hand on wisdom as an inheritance, just like you might want to hand on a financial inheritance. In fact, knowledge and wisdom give life to the one who possesses it.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 