Ecclesiastes 10:16-18

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

¹⁶ Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child or a servant and when your officials feast in the morning!

¹⁷ Happy (fortunate and to be envied) are you, O land, when your king is a free man and of noble birth and character and when your officials feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness!^(A)

¹⁸ Through indolence the rafters [of state affairs] decay and the roof sinks in, and through idleness of the hands the house leaks.