Bible Strands
Ecclesiastes 7:29
Only this have I found: I have discovered that God made mankind upright, but they have sought out many schemes.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The Preacher addresses his readers in Ecclesiastes 7, concluding his survey of human morality after noting in verse 28 that he found one upright man among a thousand but no upright woman. He speaks as a reflective observer summarizing his examination of human behavior.
The words — The Hebrew term רְאֵה (re'eh), meaning "consider," frames the observation, while עָשָׂה (asa), "he made," asserts divine agency in the initial creation of humanity. These terms anchor the statement in direct observation rather than abstract theology.
The thread — The theme of human deviation from an original upright state appears in Genesis 6:11, where the earth is described as corrupt before God, and in Jeremiah 4:22, which calls the people foolish children lacking understanding. The New Testament echoes this pattern in Mark 7:8, where Jesus notes the displacement of God's command with human tradition.
Why it lands — The text states that God originally made humanity upright, but people actively pursued their own schemes. It demands a reader acknowledge human responsibility for moral failure without attributing the flaw to divine design.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 4:22 “For My people are fools; they have not known Me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but they know not how to do good.”
- Genesis 6:11 Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and full of violence.
- Mark 7:8 You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men.”
- Genesis 5:1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in His own likeness.
- Titus 3:3 For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.
- Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over all the earth itself and every creature that crawls upon it.”
- Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it.
- Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great upon the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was altogether evil all the time.
- Psalms 99:8 O LORD our God, You answered them. You were a forgiving God to them, yet an avenger of their misdeeds.
- Psalms 106:39 They defiled themselves by their actions and prostituted themselves by their deeds.