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5 Be careful what you say when you go to God’s house. Go there to listen. Don’t be like foolish people when you offer your sacrifice. They do what is wrong and don’t even know it.
2 Don’t be too quick to speak.
Don’t be in a hurry to say anything to God.
He is in heaven. You are on earth.
So use only a few words when you speak.
3 Dreams come to people when they worry a lot.
When foolish people talk, they use too many words.
4When you make a promise to God, don’t wait too long to carry it out. He isn’t pleased with foolish people. So do what you have promised. 5It is better to make no promise at all than to make a promise and not keep it.
6Don’t let your mouth cause you to sin. Don’t object to the temple messenger. Don’t say, “My promise was a mistake.” Why should God be angry with what you say? Why should he destroy what you have done? 7Dreaming too much and talking too much are meaningless. So have respect for God.
8Suppose you see poor people being mistreated somewhere. And what is being done to them isn’t right or fair. Don’t be surprised by that. One official is watched by a higher one. Others who are even higher are watching both of them. 9All of them take what the land produces. And the king himself takes his share from the fields.
10 Anyone who loves money never has enough.
Anyone who loves wealth is never satisfied with what he gets.
That doesn’t have any meaning either.
11 As more and more goods are made,
more and more people use them up.
So how can those goods benefit their owner?
All he can do is look at them with longing.
12 The sleep of a worker is sweet.
It doesn’t matter whether he eats a little or a lot.
But the wealth of a rich man
keeps him awake at night.
13I’ve seen something very evil on earth.
It’s when wealth is stored up
and then brings harm to its owner.
14 It’s also when wealth is lost
because of an unwise business deal.
Then there won’t be anything left
for the owner’s son.
He comes into the world with nothing.
And he goes out of it with nothing.
He doesn’t get anything from his work
that he can take with him.
16Here’s something else that is very evil.
A man is born, and a man dies.
And what does he get for his work?
Nothing. It’s like working for the wind.
17 All his life he eats in darkness.
His life is full of trouble, suffering and anger.
18I realized that it’s good and proper for a man to eat and drink. It’s good for him to be satisfied with his hard work on this earth. That’s what he should do during the few days of life God has given him. That’s what God made him for.
19Sometimes God gives a man wealth and possessions. He makes it possible for him to enjoy them. He helps him accept the life he has given him. He helps him to be happy in his work. All of those things are gifts from God. 20A man like that doesn’t have to think about how his life is going. That’s because God fills his heart with joy.
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About New International Reader’s Version (1998)The New International Reader’s Version (NIrV) was developed to help early readers understand the Bible. Begun in 1992, the NIrV is a simplification of the New International Version (NIV). The NIrV uses shorter words and sentences so that those with a typical fourth grade reading level can comprehend what they are reading. The chapters have been separated into shorter sections and most have titles that clearly indicate what the section is all about. The NIrV will be a valuable translation to those for whom English is a second language. The NIrV still relies on the best and oldest copies of the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts for its translation, guaranteeing that those who read it are getting the actual Word of God. |
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Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998 by International Bible Society. All rights reserved. The NIrV text may be quoted for non-commercial usage in any form (written, visual, electronic or audio) up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without the express written permission of the publisher, providing the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible nor do the verses quoted account for twenty-five percent (25%) or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted. Notice of copyright must appear on the title or copyright page of the work as follows: Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL READER’S VERSION™. Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. When quotations from the NIrV text are used in non-saleable media, such as church bulletins, orders of service, posters, transparencies or similar media, a complete copyright notice is not required, but the initials (NIrV) must appear at the end of each quotation. Any commentary or other Biblical reference work produced for commercial sale that uses the New International Reader’s Version must obtain written permission for use of the NIrV text. Permission requests for commercial use within the U.S. and Canada that exceed the above guidelines must be directed to, and approved in writing by, Zondervan, 5300 Patterson Ave. S.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49530. Permission requests for commercial use within the U.K., EEC, and EFTA countries that exceed the above guidelines must be directed to, and approved in writing by, Hodder Headline Plc., 338 Euston Road, London NW1 3BH, England. Permission requests for non-commercial usage that exceed the above guidelines must be directed to, and approved in writing by, International Bible Society, 1820 Jet Stream Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80921. |
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