The Vanity of Life

1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, aking in Jerusalem.

2 “Vanity b 1of vanities,” says the Preacher;

“Vanity of vanities, call is vanity.”

3 dWhat profit has a man from all his labor

In which he 2toils under the sun?

4 One generation passes away, and another generation comes;

eBut the earth abides forever.

5 fThe sun also rises, and the sun goes down,

And 3hastens to the place where it arose.

6 gThe wind goes toward the south,

And turns around to the north;

The wind whirls about continually,

And comes again on its circuit.

7 hAll the rivers run into the sea,

Yet the sea is not full;

To the place from which the rivers come,

There they return again.

8 All things are 4full of labor;

Man cannot express it.

iThe eye is not satisfied with seeing,

Nor the ear filled with hearing.

9 jThat which has been is what will be,

That which is done is what will be done,

And there is nothing new under the sun.

10 Is there anything of which it may be said,

“See, this is new”?

It has already been in ancient times before us.

11 There is kno remembrance of former things,

Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come

By those who will come after.

The Grief of Wisdom

12 I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 And I set my heart to seek and lsearch out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; mthis burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be 5exercised. 14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.

15 nWhat is crooked cannot be made straight,

And what is lacking cannot be numbered.

16 I communed with my heart, saying, “Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained omore wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has 6understood great wisdom and knowledge.” 17 pAnd I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind.

18 For qin much wisdom is much grief,

And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

The Vanity of Pleasure

2 I said ain my heart, “Come now, I will test you with bmirth; 1therefore enjoy pleasure”; but surely, cthis also was vanity. 2 I said of laughter—“Madness!”; and of mirth, “What does it accomplish?” 3 dI searched in my heart how 2to gratify my flesh with wine, while guiding my heart with wisdom, and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was egood for the sons of men to do under heaven all the days of their lives.

4 I made my works great, I built myself fhouses, and planted myself vineyards. 5 I made myself gardens and orchards, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 6 I made myself water pools from which to 3water the growing trees of the grove. 7 I acquired male and female servants, and had 4servants born in my house. Yes, I had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me. 8 gI also gathered for myself silver and gold and the special treasures of kings and of the provinces. I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and 5musical instruments of all kinds.

9 hSo I became great and 6excelled imore than all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.

10 Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.

I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure,

For my heart rejoiced in all my labor;

And jthis was my 7reward from all my labor.

11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done

And on the labor in which I had toiled;

And indeed all was kvanity and grasping for the wind.

There was no profit under the sun.

The End of the Wise and the Fool

12 Then I turned myself to consider wisdom land madness and folly;

For what can the man do who succeeds the king?—

Only what he has already mdone.

13 Then I saw that wisdom nexcels folly

As light excels darkness.

14 oThe wise man’s eyes are in his head,

But the fool walks in darkness.

Yet I myself perceived

That pthe same event happens to them all.

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 qno 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 rI must leave it to the man who will come after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will rule over all my labor in which I toiled and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity. 20 Therefore I turned my heart and despaired of all the labor in which I had toiled under the sun. 21 For there is a man whose labor is with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; yet he must leave his 8heritage to a man who has not labored for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. 22 sFor what has man for all his labor, and for the striving of his heart with which he has toiled under the sun? 23 For all his days are tsorrowful, and his work burdensome; even in the night his heart takes no rest. This also is vanity.

24 uNothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God. 25 For who can eat, or who can have enjoyment, 9more than I? 26 For God gives vwisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight; but to the sinner He gives the work of gathering and collecting, that whe may give to him who is good before God. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Everything Has Its Time

3 To everything there is a season,

A atime for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time 1to be born,

And ba time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

3 A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

4 A time to cweep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

5 A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

dA time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7 A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

eA time to keep silence,

And a time to fspeak;

8 A time to love,

And a time to ghate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

The God-Given Task

9 hWhat profit has the worker from that in which he labors? 10 iI have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that jno one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.

12 I know that nothing is kbetter for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, 13 and also that levery man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.

14 I know that whatever God does,

It shall be forever.

mNothing can be added to it,

And nothing taken from it.

God does it, that men should fear before Him.

15 nThat which is has already been,

And what is to be has already been;

And God 2requires an account of 3what is past.

Injustice Seems to Prevail

16 Moreover oI saw under the sun:

In the place of 4judgment,

Wickedness was there;

And in the place of righteousness,

5Iniquity was there.

17 I said in my heart,

p“God shall judge the righteous and the wicked,

For there is a time there for every 6purpose and for every work.”

18 I said in my heart, “Concerning the condition of the sons of men, God tests them, that they may see that they themselves are like animals.” 19 qFor what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity. 20 All go to one place: rall are from the dust, and all return to dust. 21 sWho 7knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, which goes down to the earth? 22 tSo I perceived that nothing is better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for uthat is his 8heritage. vFor who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

4 Then I returned and considered all the aoppression that is done under the sun:

And look! The tears of the oppressed,

But they have no comforter—

1On the side of their oppressors there is power,

But they have no comforter.

2 bTherefore I praised the dead who were already dead,

More than the living who are still alive.

3 cYet, better than both is he who has never existed,

Who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

The Vanity of Selfish Toil

4 Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbor. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

5 dThe fool folds his hands

And consumes his own flesh.

6 eBetter a handful with quietness

Than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.

7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:

8 There is one alone, without 2companion:

He has neither son nor brother.

Yet there is no end to all his labors,

Nor is his feye satisfied with riches.

But ghe never asks,

“For whom do I toil and deprive myself of hgood?”

This also is vanity and a 3grave misfortune.

The Value of a Friend

9 Two are better than one,

Because they have a good reward for their labor.

10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls,

For he has no one to help him up.

11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;

But how can one be warm alone?

12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.

And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Popularity Passes Away

13 Better a poor and wise youth

Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no more.

14 For he comes out of prison to be king,

Although 4he was born poor in his kingdom.

15 I saw all the living who walk under the sun;

They were with the second youth who stands in his place.

16 There was no end of all the people 5over whom he was made king;

Yet those who come afterward