Chapter 1

The Futility of All Endeavor

1 The words of the aPreacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

2 “1aVanity of vanities,” says the Preacher,

“1Vanity of vanities! All is 2vanity.”

3 aWhat advantage does man have in all his work

Which he does under the sun?

4 A generation goes and a generation comes,

But the aearth 1remains forever.

5 Also, athe sun rises and the sun sets;

And 1hastening to its place it rises there again.

6 1aBlowing toward the south,

Then turning toward the north,

The wind continues 2swirling along;

And on its circular courses the wind returns.

7 All the rivers 1flow into the sea,

Yet the sea is not full.

To the place where the rivers 1flow,

There they 1flow again.

8 All things are wearisome;

Man is not able to tell it.

aThe eye is not satisfied with seeing,

Nor is the ear filled with hearing.

9 aThat which has been is that which will be,

And that which has been done is that which will be done.

So there is nothing new under the sun.

10 Is there anything of which one might say,

“See this, it is new”?

Already it has existed for ages

Which were before us.

11 There is ano remembrance of 1earlier things;

And also of the 2later things which will occur,

There will be for them no remembrance

Among those who will come 2later still.

The Futility of Wisdom

12 I, the aPreacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.

13 And I aset my 1mind to seek and bexplore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. It is 2a grievous ctask which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.

14 I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is 1avanity and striving after wind.

15 What is acrooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.

16 I 1said to myself, “Behold, I have magnified and increased awisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my 2mind has observed 3a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.”

17 And I aset my 1mind to know wisdom and to bknow madness and folly; I realized that this also is cstriving after wind.

18 Because ain much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain.