Ecclesiastes 7:23 (YLT)

Passage

All this I have tried by wisdom; I have said, `I am wise,' and it <FI>is<Fi> far from me.

Nearby Context

Ecclesiastes 7:21 Also to all the words that they speak give not thy heart, that thou hear not thy servant reviling thee.

Ecclesiastes 7:22 For many times also hath thy heart known that thou thyself also hast reviled others.

Ecclesiastes 7:23 All this I have tried by wisdom; I have said, `I am wise,' and it <FI>is<Fi> far from me.

Ecclesiastes 7:24 Far off <FI>is<Fi> that which hath been, and deep, deep, who doth find it?

Ecclesiastes 7:25 I have turned round, also my heart, to know and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and reason, and to know the wrong of folly, and of foolishness the madness.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "tried", "wisdom", "said", and "wise". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "tried" and "wisdom", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "For many times also hath thy heart..." into verse 24's "Far off FI is Fi that which...", so "tried" and "wisdom" 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 "tried" and "wisdom" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.