Halakhah sa Eclesiastes 7:16: Mishneh Torah, Human Dispositions, Kitzur Shulchan Arukh, Sefer Chasidim & Sefer HaChinukh

Peradventure man will say: Seeing that envy, desire and vainglory and like tendencies are evil tendencies and remove man from life, I will separate myself from them exceedingly and reach their remotest extreme. Until he will eat no meat, drink no wine, marry no woman, dwell in no comfortable quarters, dress in no proper clothes but in a sack and coarse wool, and the like, as for instance the idolatrous priests do. Even such is an evil way, and it is forbidden to follow it. He who follows this way is called a sinner, for it is said of a Nazarite: "And make an atonement for him, because he hath sinned against the soul" (Num. 6.11), whereupon the sages said: "If the Nazarite, who did not separate himself from aught but wine must have atonement, he who deprives himself from each and every thing how manifold must his atonement be" (Baba Kama. 91b)!¹See Ta’anit, 11a. G. Therefore did the sages command, saying: A man shall not deprive himself of ought save the things which the Torah itself deprived him of; nor shall he bind himself by vows and oaths to abstain from things which are permitted. They have even said: "Is it not enough for thee what the Torah has forbidden, that thou doest forbid thyself even other things" (Yeru. Nedarim. 7.37)? And in this rule are included such who are continuously fasting, for they are not in the good way, and the sages prohibited one from punishing himself with fast days. Concerning such and like matters Solomon admonished saying: "Be not righteous overmuch; neither show thyself wise; why wouldst thou destroy thyself" (Ecc. 7.16).

Perhaps a person might say: "Since envy, lust and glory and the like, are bad character traits that remove a man from the world, I will completely abstain from them, and keep away from them entirely," to the point that he will not eat meat, nor drink wine, nor marry a woman, nor live in a comfortable dwelling, nor wear decent clothes, but he will put on a sackcloth, or something similar; this too is a bad way of life, and it is forbidden to follow it. Anyone who follows this life-style is called a sinner. For in regard to the nazir it is written,²¹Numbers 6:11. (Nazarite) "To atone for him who sinned by the dead,"²²מֵאֲשֶׁר חָטָא עַל הַנֶפֶשׁ—is translated by the Rabbis as “for committing a sin against his soul,” “against himself,” by denying himself things which are permitted. and [our Rabbis] of blessed memory said, "If a nazir who abstained only from drinking wine, needs an atonement, a person who abstains from everything, how much more so does he need [an atonement]."²³Ta’anis 11a. Therefore, our Rabbis of blessed memory ordained that you should abstain only from those things which the Torah prohibits, but do not prohibit to yourself, things which are permitted by means of vows and oaths. Thus said our Sages of blessed memory, "Is not what the Torah forbids enough for you that you have to prohibit to yourself things which are permissible?"²⁴Yerushalmi, Nedarim 9:1. And our Rabbis of blessed memory have forbidden us to inflict pain on ourselves with more fasting than is required. Concerning all these and similar matters, King Solomon, peace be upon him, said, "Do not be excessively righteous, nor overly wise, why destroy yourself."²⁵Ecclesiastes 7:16. And he said [in the same vein],²⁶Proverbs 4:26. "Measure well the path of your foot then you will stay on a straight course."²⁷Malbim explains the word paleis as a form of peles, the name of a measuring instrument. Man should measure carefully to find the middle road of life, staying clear of the extremes.

“Be not righteous overmuch” (Eccl. 7:16). Behold, there is a woman drowning in the river and it is possible for you to rescue her, do not say, “I will let her drown for how can I see her nakedness?”¹Sotah 21b. How dare you not act, it will be held against you as a wrong and you will be punished. Go and learn from Saul who had pity on Agag and engaged in an erroneous syllogism, because of which he was banished. ²Yoma 22b.And thus, “And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his fellow by the word of the Lord, ‘Smite me, I pray thee’” (I Kings 20:35). And through this he was punished, a lion struck him and killed him.³I Kings 20:36.