Ecclesiastes 7:28 (ASV)

Passage

which my soul still seeketh, but I have not found: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found.

Nearby Context

Ecclesiastes 7:26 And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, [and] whose hands are bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.

Ecclesiastes 7:27 Behold, this have I found, saith the Preacher, [laying] one thing to another, to find out the account;

Ecclesiastes 7:28 which my soul still seeketh, but I have not found: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found.

Ecclesiastes 7:29 Behold, this only have I found: that God made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "soul", "still", "seeketh", "found", "thousand", and "woman". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "soul" and "still", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 27's "Behold this have I found saith the..." into verse 29's "Behold this only have I found that...", so "soul" and "still" belong inside that flow. In Ecclesiastes context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "soul" and "still" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.