²I’m telling you to obey the king’s command. You took an oath to serve him. You made a promise to God. ³Don’t be in a hurry to quit your job in the palace. Don’t stand up for something the king doesn’t like. He’ll do anything he wants to. ⁴He has the final word. So who can ask him, “What are you doing?”

⁵No one who obeys his command will be harmed.

Those who are wise will know the proper time and way to approach him.

⁶There’s a proper time and way for people to do everything.

That’s true even though a man might be suffering greatly.

⁷No one knows what lies ahead.

So who can tell a person what’s going to happen?

⁸He can’t stop the wind from blowing.

And he doesn’t have the power to decide when he will die.

No one is let out of the army in times of war.

And evil won’t let go of those who practice it.

⁹I understood all of those things. I used my mind to study everything that’s done on earth. A man sometimes makes life hard for others. But he ends up hurting himself.

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