Ecclesiastes 1–12

EVERYTHING IS FUTILE

1The words of the Teacher,^Aa son of David, king in Jerusalem.^b

²“Absolute futility,” says the Teacher.

“Absolute futility. Everything is futile.”^c

³What does a person gain for all his efforts

that he labors at under the sun?^d

⁴A generation goes and a generation comes,

but the earth remains forever.^e

⁵The sun rises and the sun sets;

panting, it hurries back to the place^f

where it rises.

⁶Gusting to the south,

turning to the north,

turning, turning, goes the wind,^g

and the wind returns in its cycles.

⁷All the streams flow to the sea,

yet the sea is never full;

to the place where the streams flow,

there they flow again.

⁸All things^B are wearisome,

more than anyone can say.

The eye is not satisfied by seeing^h

or the ear filled with hearing.

⁹What has been is what will be,

and what has been done is what will be done;

there is nothing new under the sun.

¹⁰Can one say about anything,

“Look, this is new”?

It has already existed in the ages before us.

¹¹There is no remembrance of those who^C came before;ⁱ

and of those who will come after

there will also be no remembrance

by those who follow them.

THE LIMITATIONS OF WISDOM

¹²I, the Teacher,^j have been^D king over Israel in Jerusalem. ¹³I applied my mind to examine^k and explore through wisdom all that is done under heaven.^l God has given people^E this miserable task to keep them occupied.^{m 14}I have seen all the things that are done under the sun and have found everything to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.ⁿ

¹⁵What is crooked cannot be straightened;^o

what is lacking cannot be counted.

¹⁶I said to myself, “See, I have amassed wisdom far beyond all those who were over Jerusalem before me,^p and my mind has thoroughly grasped^G wisdom and knowledge.” ¹⁷I applied my mind to know wisdom and knowledge,^q madness and folly;^r I learned that this too is a pursuit of the wind.^s

¹⁸For with much wisdom is much sorrow;^t

as knowledge increases, grief increases.

THE EMPTINESS OF PLEASURE

2I said to myself, “Go ahead, I will test you with pleasure;^u enjoy what is good.” But it turned out to be futile. ²I said about laughter,^v “It is madness,” and about pleasure, “What does this accomplish?” ³I explored with my mind the pull of wine^w on my body—my mind still guiding me with wisdom—and how to grasp folly,^x until I could see what is good for people to do under heaven^A during the few days of their lives.^y

THE EMPTINESS OF POSSESSIONS

⁴I increased my achievements. I built houses^z and planted vineyards^aa for myself. ⁵I made gardens^ab and parks for myself and planted every kind of fruit tree in them. ⁶I constructed reservoirs for myself from which to irrigate a grove of flourishing trees.^{ac 7}I acquired male and female servants and had slaves who were born in my house.^ad I also owned livestock—large herds and flocks—more than all who were before me in Jerusalem.^{ae 8}I also amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces.^af I gathered male and female singers for myself,^ag and many concubines, the delights of men.^{BC 9}So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem;^a my wisdom also remained with me. ¹⁰All that my eyes desired, I did not deny them.^b I did not refuse myself any pleasure, for I took pleasure in all my struggles. This was my reward for all my struggles.^{c 11}When I considered all that I had accomplished^D and what I had labored to achieve, I found everything to be futile and a pursuit of the wind.^d There was nothing to be gained under the sun.^e

THE RELATIVE VALUE OF WISDOM

¹²Then I turned to consider wisdom,^f madness, and folly, for what will the king’s successor^F be like? He^G will do what has already been done.^{g 13}And I realized that there is an advantage to wisdom over folly, like the advantage of light over darkness.^h

¹⁴The wise person has eyes in his head,

but the fool walks in darkness.ⁱ

Yet I also knew that one fate comes to them both.^{j 15}So I said to myself, “What happens to the fool will also happen to me. Why then have I been overly wise?”^k And I said to myself that this is also futile. ¹⁶For, just like the fool, there is no lasting remembrance of the wise,^l since in the days to come both will be forgotten. How is it that the wise person dies just like the fool? ¹⁷Therefore, I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me. For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

THE EMPTINESS OF WORK

¹⁸I hated all my work that I labored at under the sun^m because I must leave it to the one who comes after me.^{n 19}And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool?^o Yet he will take over all my work that I labored at skillfully under the sun. This too is futile. ²⁰So I began to give myself over^A to despair concerning all my work that I had labored at under the sun. ²¹When there is a person whose work was done with wisdom, knowledge, and skill,^p and he must give his portion to a person who has not worked for it, this too is futile and a great wrong. ²²For what does a person get with all his work and all his efforts^q that he labors at under the sun? ²³For all his days are filled with grief, and his occupation is sorrowful;^r even at night, his mind does not rest.^s This too is futile.

²⁴There is nothing better for a person than to eat, drink, and enjoy^BC his work.^t I have seen that even this is from God’s hand,^{u 25}because who can eat and who can enjoy life^D apart from him?^{E 26}For to the person who is pleasing in his sight, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy;^v but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give to the one who is pleasing in God’s sight.^w This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.^x

THE MYSTERY OF TIME

3There is an occasion for everything,

and a time for every activity under heaven:^y

²a time to give birth and a time to die;^z

a time to plant and a time to uproot;^F

³a time to kill and a time to heal;

a time to tear down and a time to build;

⁴a time to weep and a time to laugh;^aa

a time to mourn and a time to dance;^ab

⁵a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;^ac

a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing;^ad

⁶a time to search and a time to count as lost;

a time to keep and a time to throw away;

⁷a time to tear and a time to sew;

a time to be silent and a time to speak;^ae

⁸a time to love and a time to hate;

a time for war and a time for peace.^af

⁹What does the worker gain from his struggles?^{ag 10}I have seen the task that God has given the children of Adam to keep them occupied.^{ah 11}He has made everything appropriate^G in its time.^ai He has also put eternity in their hearts,^H but no one can discover the work God has done from beginning to end.^{aj 12}I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and enjoy the^I good life. ¹³It is also the gift of God whenever anyone eats, drinks, and enjoys all his efforts.^{a 14}I know that everything God does will last forever; there is no adding to it or taking from it.^b God works so that people will be in awe of him.^{c 15}Whatever is, has already been,^d and whatever will be, already is. However, God seeks justice for the persecuted.^A

THE MYSTERY OF INJUSTICE AND DEATH

¹⁶I also observed under the sun: there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness.^{e 17}I said to myself, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked,^f since there is a time for every activity and every work.”^{g 18}I said to myself, “This happens so that God may test the children of Adam and they may see for themselves that they are like animals.”^{h 19}For the fate of the children of Adam and the fate of animals is the same.ⁱ As one dies, so dies the other; they all have the same breath. People have no advantage over animals since everything is futile. ²⁰All are going to the same place; all come from dust, and all return to dust.^{j 21}Who knows if the spirits of the children of Adam go upward and the spirits of animals go downward to the earth? ²²I have seen that there is nothing better than for a person to enjoy his activities^k because that is his reward. For who can enable him to see what will happen after he dies?^Bl

4Again, I observed all the acts of oppression being done under the sun.^m Look at the tears of those who are oppressed; they have no one to comfort them. Power is with those who oppress them; they have no one to comfort them. ²So I commended the dead,ⁿ who have already died, more than the living, who are still alive. ³But better than either of them is the one who has not yet existed,^o who has not seen the evil activity that is done under the sun.

THE LONELINESS OF WEALTH

⁴I saw that all labor and all skillful work is due to one person’s jealousy of another.^p This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.^q

⁵The fool folds his arms^r

and consumes his own flesh.^s

⁶Better one handful with rest

than two handfuls with effort and a pursuit of the wind.^t

⁷Again, I saw futility under the sun: ⁸There is a person without a companion,^D without even a son or brother, and though there is no end to all his struggles, his eyes are still not content with riches.^u “Who am I struggling for,” he asks, “and depriving myself of good things?” This too is futile and a miserable task.

⁹Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. ¹⁰For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up. ¹¹Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm?^{v 12}And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.

¹³Better is a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer pays attention to warnings.^{w 14}For he came from prison to be king,^x even though he was born poor in his kingdom. ¹⁵I saw all the living, who move about under the sun, follow^A a second youth who succeeds him. ¹⁶There is no limit to all the people who were before them, yet those who come later…