Ecclesiastes 2:15–18
15 Then I said in my heart, v“What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so very wise?” And I said in my heart that this also is vanity. 16 For of the wise as of the fool there is wno enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. xHow the wise dies just like the fool! 17 So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for oall is vanity and a striving after wind.
18 I hated yall my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must zleave it to the man who will come after me,
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — The New International Version (NIV)
15 Then I said to myself,
“The fate of the fool will overtake me also.
What then do I gain by being wise?”
I said to myself,
“This too is meaningless.”
16 For the wise, like the fool, will not be long remembered;
the days have already come when both have been forgotten.
Like the fool, the wise too must die!
17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — King James Version (KJV 1900)
15 Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity. 16 For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool. 17 Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit. 18 Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — New Living Translation (NLT)
15 Both will die. So I said to myself, “Since I will end up the same as the fool, what’s the value of all my wisdom? This is all so meaningless!” 16 For the wise and the foolish both die. The wise will not be remembered any longer than the fool. In the days to come, both will be forgotten.
17 So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun is so troubling. Everything is meaningless—like chasing the wind.
18 I came to hate all my hard work here on earth, for I must leave to others everything I have earned.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — The New King James Version (NKJV)
15 So I said in my heart,
“As it happens to the fool,
It also happens to me,
And why was I then more wise?”
Then I said in my heart,
“This also is vanity.”
16 For there is no more remembrance of the wise than of the fool forever,
Since all that now is will be forgotten in the days to come.
And how does a wise man die?
As the fool!
17 Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
18 Then I hated all my labor in which I had toiled under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — New Century Version (NCV)
15 I thought to myself,
“What happens to a fool will happen to me, too,
so what is the reward for being wise?”
I said to myself,
“Being wise is also useless.”
16 The wise person and the fool
will both die,
and no one will remember either one for long.
In the future, both will be forgotten.
17 So I hated life. It made me sad to think that everything here on earth is useless, like chasing the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had worked for here on earth, because I must leave them to someone who will live after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — American Standard Version (ASV)
15 Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then said I in my heart, that this also is vanity. 16 For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no remembrance for ever; seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. And how doth the wise man die even as the fool! 17 So I hated life, because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
18 And I hated all my labor wherein I labored under the sun, seeing that I must leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)
15 And I said in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool so will it happen even to me; and why was I then so wise? Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity. 16 For there shall be no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; because everything is already forgotten in the days which come. And how dieth the wise even as the fool?
17 And I hated life; for the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and pursuit of the wind. 18 And I hated all my labour wherewith I had been toiling under the sun, because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
15 I thought to myself, “⸤If⸥ the destiny that waits for the fool waits for me as well, then what is the advantage in being wise?” So I thought that even this is pointless.
16 Neither the wise person nor the fool will be remembered for long, since both will be forgotten in the days to come. Both the wise person and the fool will die. 17 So I came to hate life because everything done under the sun seemed wrong to me. Everything was pointless. ⸤It was like⸥ trying to catch the wind.
18 I came to hate everything for which I had worked so hard under the sun, because I will have to leave it to the person who replaces me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
15 So I said to myself, “What happens to the fool will also happen to me. Why then have I been overly wise?” And I said to myself that this is also futile. 16 For, just like the fool, there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man, since in the days to come both will be forgotten. How is it that the wise man dies just like the fool? 17 Therefore, 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.
18 I hated all my work that I labored at under the sun because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
15 Then I said to myself, “What happens to the fool will happen to me also; why then have I been so very wise?” And I said to myself that this also is vanity. 16 For there is no enduring remembrance of the wise or of fools, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. How can the wise die just like fools? 17 So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.
18 I hated all my toil in which I had toiled under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to those who come after me
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)
15 So I said to myself, “If I also suffer the same fate as the fool, what advantage is my great wisdom?” So I said to myself, “This also is vanity!”
16 Certainly no one will remember the wise man or the fool in future generations. When future days come, both will have been forgotten already. How is it that the wise man dies the same as the fool? 17 So I hated life because the work done under the sun is grievous to me. For everything is vanity and chasing wind!
18 So I hated all my toil with which I have toiled under the sun, for I must leave it behind to someone who will be after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)
15 Then I thought,
“What happens to a foolish person will catch up with me too.
So what do I gain by being wise?”
I said to myself,
“That doesn’t have any meaning either.”
16 Like a foolish person, a wise man won’t be remembered very long.
In days to come, both of them will be forgotten.
Like a person who is foolish,
a wise man must die too!
17 So I hated life. That’s because the work that is done on this earth made me sad. None of it has any meaning. It’s like chasing the wind.
18 I hated everything I had worked for on earth. I’ll have to leave all of it to someone who lives after me.
Ecclesiastes 2:15–18 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)
15 Then I said to myself, “As is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. Why then have I been extremely wise?” So I said to myself, “This too is vanity.”
16 For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man and the fool alike die!
17 So I hated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was grievous to me; because everything is futility and striving after wind.
18 Thus I hated all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who will come after me.