Ecclesiastes 1

1ST CHAPTER

Introducing the Spokesman

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

The Theme

²“Absolutely pointless!” says the spokesman. “Absolutely pointless! Everything is pointless.” 

Life Is an Endless Circle

³What do people gain from all their hard work under the sun? 

⁴Generations come, and generations go, 

but the earth lasts forever. 

⁵The sun rises, and the sun sets, 

and then it rushes back to the place where it will rise ⸤again⸥. 

⁶The wind blows toward the south and shifts toward the north. 

Round and round it blows. It blows in a full circle. 

⁷All streams flow into the sea, but the sea is never full. 

The water goes back to the place where the streams began 

in order to ⸤start⸥ flowing again. 

⁸All of these sayings are worn-out phrases. They are more than anyone can express, comprehend, or understand. 

⁹Whatever has happened before will happen ⸤again⸥. Whatever has been done before will be done ⸤again⸥. There is nothing new under the sun. ¹⁰Can you say that anything is new? It has already been here long before us. ¹¹Nothing from the past is remembered. Even in the future, nothing will be remembered by those who come after us. 

The Spokesman Begins to Study Everything under Heaven

¹²I, the spokesman, have been king of Israel in Jerusalem. ¹³With all my heart I used wisdom to study and explore everything done under heaven. 

The Spokesman’s General Conclusion

Mortals are weighed down with a terrible burden that God has placed on them. ¹⁴I have seen everything that is done under the sun. Look at it! It’s all pointless. ⸤It’s like⸥ trying to catch the wind. 

¹⁵No one can straighten what is bent. 

No one can count what is not there. 

The Spokesman Begins to Study Life

¹⁶I thought to myself, “I have grown wiser than anyone who ⸤has ruled⸥ Jerusalem before me. I’ve had a lot of experience with wisdom and knowledge.” ¹⁷I’ve used my mind to understand wisdom and knowledge as well as madness and stupidity. ⸤Now⸥ I know that this is ⸤like⸥ trying to catch the wind. 

¹⁸With a lot of wisdom ⸤comes⸥ a lot of heartache. 

The greater ⸤your⸥ knowledge, the greater ⸤your⸥ pain.