Ecclesiastes 6–8

^aThere is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: ²a man ^bto whom ^cGod hath given ^criches, ^dwealth, and ^chonour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God ^bgiveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease. ³If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that ^ethe days of his years be many, and ^eehis soul be not filled with good, and also ^fthat he have no burial; I say, that ^gan untimely birth is better than he. ⁴For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and ^hhis name shall be covered with darkness. ⁵Moreover he hath not seen the sun, nor known any thing: this hath more ⁱrest than the other. ⁶Yea, ^kthough he live a thousand years twice told, yet ^eehath he ^lseen no good: do not all go to one place?

^7mAll the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the ⁿappetite is not filled. ⁸For what hath the wise ^omore than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living? ⁹Better is ^pthe sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also ^qvanity and vexation of spirit. ¹⁰That which hath been ^his named ^ralready, and it is known that it is man: ^sneither may he contend with him that is ^tmightier than he. ¹¹Seeing there be many things that increase vanity, what is man ^othe better? ¹²For who knoweth what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as ^ua shadow? for ^xwho can tell a man ^ywhat shall be after him under the sun?

VII.A ^agood ^bname is better than precious ^bointment; and ^cthe day of death than the day of one’s birth. ²It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will ^dlay it to his heart. ^3eSorrow is better than laughter: ^ffor by the sadness of the countenance ^gthe heart is made better. ⁴The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. ^5hIt is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools. ⁶For ⁱas the crackling of thorns under a pot, ^kso is the laughter of the fool: this also is vanity.

⁷Surely ^loppression ^mmaketh a wise man mad; and ⁿa gift destroyeth the heart. ⁸Better is ^othe end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and ^pthe patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. ^9qBe not hasty in thy spirit ^pto be angry: for anger ^rresteth in the bosom of fools. ¹⁰Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this. ¹¹Wisdom is good with an inheritance: and by it there is ^sprofit ^tto them that see the sun.¹²For wisdom is a defence, and money is a defence: but the ^uexcellency of knowledge is, that wisdom ^wgiveth life to ^xthem that have it. ¹³Consider the work of God: for who can ^ymake that straight, which he hath ^yzmade crooked? ^14aIn the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, ^bto the end that man should find nothing after him.

¹⁵All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: ^cthere is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth ^dhis life in his wickedness. ¹⁶Be not righteous over much; ^eneither make thyself ^fover wise: why shouldest thou destroy thyself?¹⁷Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: ^gwhy shouldest thou die before thy time? ¹⁸It is good that thou shouldest take hold of ^hthis; yea, also from ⁱthis ^kwithdraw not thine hand: for he that feareth God shall come forth of them all. ^19lWisdom strengtheneth the wise more than ten ^mmighty men which are in the city. ²⁰ⁿFor there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and ⁿsinneth not. ²¹Also ^otake no heed unto all words that are spoken; lest thou hear ^pthy servant curse thee:^22ofor oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed others.

²³All this have I proved by wisdom: ^qI said, I will be wise; but it was far from me. ²⁴That which is far off, and ^rexceeding deep, ^swho can find it out? ^25tI applied mine heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the ^ureason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness: ²⁶and I find more ^wbitter than death the woman, whose heart is ^xsnares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but ^ythe sinner shall be taken by her. ²⁷Behold, this have I found, ^zsaith the Preacher, counting one by one, to find out the account:²⁸which yet my soul seeketh, but I find not: ^abone man among a thousand have I found; but a woman ^camong all those have I not found. ²⁹Lo, this only have I found, ^dthat God hath made man upright; but ^ethey have sought out many ^finventions.

VIII.Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? ^aa man’s wisdom ^bmaketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed. ²I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment, and that ^cin regard of ^dthe oath of God. ^3eBe not hasty ^fto go out of his sight: ^gstand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. ⁴Where the word of a king is, there is ^hpower: and ⁱwho may say unto him, What doest thou? ⁵Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man’s heart discerneth both time and ^jjudgment.

⁶Because ^kto every purpose there is time and ^jjudgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him. ⁷For ^lhe knoweth not that which shall be: for ^mwho can tell him when it shall be? ⁸There is no man that hath ⁿpower over the spirit ^oto retain the spirit; neither hath he ^hpower in the day of death: and there is no ^pdischarge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver ^qthose that are given to it. ⁹All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt. ¹⁰And ^rso I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from ^sthe place of the holy, and ^tthey were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity.

^11uBecause sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men ^xis fully set in them to do evil. ¹²Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and ^yhis ^zadays be prolonged, yet surely I know that ^ait shall be well ^bwith them that fear God, which fear before him: ¹³but it ^bcshall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are ^das a shadow; because he feareth not before God.

¹⁴There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, ^eunto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, ^fto whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity. ¹⁵Then I commended mirth, because ^ga man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall ^habide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.

¹⁶When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the ⁱbusiness that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) ¹⁷then I beheld all the work of God, that ^ka man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea further, though a wise man think to know it, ^lyet shall he not be able to find it.

IX.