Ecclesiastes 4–5

4Then I looked again at all the injustice that goes on in this world. The oppressed were weeping, and no one would help them. No one would help them, because their oppressors had power on their side. ²I envy those who are dead and gone; they are better off than those who are still alive. ³But better off than either are those who have never been born, who have never seen the injustice that goes on in this world.

⁴I have also learnt why people work so hard to succeed: it is because they envy their neighbours. But it is useless. It is like chasing the wind. ⁵They say that anyone would be a fool to fold his hands and let himself starve to death. ⁶Perhaps so, but it is better to have only a little, with peace of mind, than to be busy all the time with both hands, trying to catch the wind.

⁷I have noticed something else in life that is useless. ⁸Here is a man who lives alone. He has no son, no brother, yet he is always working, never satisfied with the wealth he has. For whom is he working so hard and denying himself any pleasure? This is useless, too—and a miserable way to live.

⁹Two are better off than one, because together they can work more effectively. ¹⁰If one of them falls down, the other can help him up. But if someone is alone and falls, it’s just too bad, because there is no one to help him. ¹¹If it is cold, two can sleep together and stay warm, but how can you keep warm by yourself? ¹²Two people can resist an attack that would defeat one person alone. A rope made of three cords is hard to break.

^13–14A man may rise from poverty to become king of his country, or go from prison to the throne, but if in his old age he is too foolish to take advice, he is not as well off as a young man who is poor but intelligent. ¹⁵I thought about all the people who live in this world, and I realized that somewhere among them there is a young man who will take the king’s place. ¹⁶There may be no limit to the number of people a king rules; when he is gone, no one will be grateful for what he has done. It is useless. It is like chasing the wind.

Don’t Make Rash Promises

5Be careful about going to the Temple. It is better to go there to learn than to offer sacrifices as foolish people do, people who don’t know right from wrong. ²Think before you speak, and don’t make any rash promises to God. He is in heaven and you are on earth, so don’t say any more than you have to. ³The more you worry, the more likely you are to have bad dreams, and the more you talk, the more likely you are to say something foolish. ^4*So when you make a promise to God, keep it as quickly as possible. He has no use for a fool. Do what you promise to do. ⁵Better not to promise at all than to make a promise and not keep it. ⁶Don’t let your own words lead you into sin, so that you have to tell God’s priest that you didn’t mean it. Why make God angry with you? Why let him destroy what you have worked for? ⁷No matter how much you dream, how much useless work you do, or how much you talk, you must still stand in awe of God.

Life is Useless

⁸Don’t be surprised when you see that the government oppresses the poor and denies them justice and their rights. Every official is protected by the one over him, and both are protected by still higher officials.

⁹Even a king depends on the harvest.^c

¹⁰If you love money, you will never be satisfied; if you long to be rich, you will never get all you want. It is useless. ¹¹The richer you are, the more mouths you must feed. All you gain is the knowledge that you are rich. ¹²Workers may or may not have enough to eat, but at least they can get a good night’s sleep. The rich, however, have so much that they stay awake worrying.

¹³Here is a terrible thing that I have seen in this world: people save up their money for a time when they may need it,^{d 14}and then lose it all in some unlucky deal and end up with nothing left to pass on to their children. ^15*We leave this world just as we entered it—with nothing. In spite of all our work there is nothing we can take with us. ¹⁶It isn’t right! We go just as we came. We labour, trying to catch the wind, and what do we get? ¹⁷We have to live our lives in darkness and grief,^e worried, angry, and sick.

¹⁸This is what I have found out: the best thing anyone can do is to eat and drink and enjoy what he has worked for during the short life that God has given him; this is man’s fate. ¹⁹If God gives a man wealth and property and lets him enjoy them, he should be grateful and enjoy what he has worked for. It is a gift from God. ²⁰Since God has allowed him to be happy, he will not worry too much about how short life is.