Ecclesiastes 2:1–17

The Futility of Pleasure and Possessions

¹I said ¹to myself, “Come now, I will test you with ^apleasure. So ²enjoy yourself.” And behold, it too was futility.

^2aI said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?”

³I explored with my ¹mind how to ^astimulate my body with wine while my mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of ^bfolly, until I could see ^cwhat good there is for the sons of men ²to do under heaven the few ³years of their lives.

⁴I enlarged my works: I ^abuilt houses for myself, I planted ^bvineyards for myself;

⁵I made ^agardens and ^bparks for myself and I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees;

⁶I made ^aponds of water for myself from which to irrigate a forest of growing trees.

⁷I bought male and female slaves and I had ^1ahomeborn slaves. Also I possessed flocks and ^bherds larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem.

⁸Also, I collected for myself silver and ^agold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself ^bmale and female singers and the pleasures of men—many concubines.

⁹Then I became ^agreat and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me.

^10aAll that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my ^breward for all my labor.

¹¹Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had ¹exerted, and behold all was ^2avanity and striving after wind and there was ^bno profit under the sun.

Wisdom Excels Folly

¹²So I turned to ^aconsider wisdom, madness and folly; for what will the man do who will come after the king except ^bwhat has already been done?

¹³And I saw that ^awisdom excels folly as light excels darkness.

¹⁴The wise man’s eyes are in his head, but the ^afool walks in darkness. And yet I know that ^bone fate befalls them both.

¹⁵Then I said ¹to myself, “^aAs is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. ^bWhy then have I been extremely wise?” So ²I said to myself, “This too is vanity.”

¹⁶For there is ^ano ¹lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And ^bhow the wise man and the fool alike die!

¹⁷So I ^ahated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was ¹grievous to me; because everything is futility and striving after wind.