For everything there [is] an appointed time, a time for every matter under heaven:

There is neither remembrance of former generations, nor will there be remembrance of future generations.

I, the Teacher, [was] king over Israel in Jerusalem.

Two [are] better than the one, for they enjoy a better reward for their toil.

a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance;

Now that all has been heard, here is the final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commandments, for this [is] the whole [duty] of man.

He has made everything suitable in its time. He also has put {the past} in their hearts, yet no one can grasp what God does from the beginning to the end.

What does a person gain in all his toil with which he toils under the sun?

For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything. They no longer have a reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten.

Remember your Creator in the days of your youth-- before the days of trouble come and the years draw near when you will say, "I find no pleasure in them!"

Whatever your hand finds to do--do [it] with [all] your might; for in Sheol--where you are going--no one works, plans, knows, or thinks about anything.

"Vanity of vanities!" says the Teacher, "Vanity of vanities! All [is] vanity!"

Do not let your mouth lead your flesh into sin, and do not tell the messenger that it [was] a mistake. Why anger God at your words, so that he destroys the work of your hands?

The end of a matter [is] better than its beginning; {better to be slow to anger than hot-headed}.

What has been--it is what will be; what has been done--it is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun.

The sun rises, and the sun goes down; to its place it hurries, and there it rises again.

The wind goes to the south and goes around to the north; around and around it goes, and on its circuit the wind returns.

All things toil continuously; no one can ever finish describing this. The eye is never satisfied with seeing, and the ear is never filled with hearing.

{The fool refuses to work with his hands, so he has nothing to eat except his own skin}!

All the streams flow to the sea, but the sea is never full; to the place where the streams flow, there they continue to flow.

For with many dreams [come] vanities and numerous words. Therefore, fear God!

I also {explored} {the effects of indulging my flesh} with wine. My mind guiding me with wisdom, {I investigated} folly so that I might discover what [is] good under heaven for {humans} to do {during the days of their lives}.

There is a thing [of] which it is said, "Look at this! This is new!" [But] it already existed in ages past before us.

I applied my mind to seek and to search by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. It [is] a grievous task God has given to {humans}.

I saw all the works that are done under the sun. Look! Everything [is] vanity and chasing wind.

a time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;

For in much wisdom [is] much frustration, and whoever increases knowledge increases sorrow.

So {I dedicated myself} to learn about wisdom and [to] learn about delusion and folly. However, I discovered that this also [is] chasing wind.

What is twisted cannot be straightened, and what is lacking cannot be counted.

I saw all this as I applied my heart to all the deeds done under the sun: {sometimes those in authority harm others}.

{I said to myself}, "Look! I have become great and have increased [in] wisdom more than anyone who {has preceded} me over Jerusalem. {I have acquired a great deal of wisdom and knowledge}."

Better [is] one handful with peace than two fists full with toil and chasing wind.

Do not be surprised if you see the poor being oppressed with violence or [do not see] justice and righteousness in the province. For one official is watched by a higher official, and [there are] even higher officials over them!

{For wisdom offers protection like money offers protection}. But knowledge [has] an advantage--wisdom restores life to its possessor.

If the snake bites before the charming, {the snake charmer will not succeed}.

For man does not know his time. Just as fish are caught in a cruel net and like birds who are seized in a snare, so also {humans} are ensnared at a cruel time when it falls suddenly upon them.

Do not say, "Why were the former days better than these?" For [it is] not from wisdom [that] you ask this.

a time to seek and a time to lose; a time to keep and a time to throw away;

The wise man [wins] favor by the words of his mouth, but the fool is devoured by his own lips.

Sometimes a man is all alone with no companion; he also has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eye is not satisfied with wealth. [He laments,] "For whom am I toiling and depriving {myself} of pleasure?" This also [is] vanity--it is an unhappy business!

Wisdom [is] good with an inheritance; {it benefits the living}.

Meanwhile, I saw the wicked being [honorably] buried, but those who came and went from the holy place were forgotten in the city, even though they had done so. This also [is] vanity!

All of a man's toil [is] for his mouth-- yet his appetite is never satisfied.

I turned again and saw another vanity under the sun.

a time to love and a time to hate; a time [for] war and a time [for] peace.

What does the worker gain in his toil?

{I accomplished great things}. I built for myself houses; I planted for myself vineyards.

In the day of prosperity, rejoice! But in the day of adversity, consider! For God made one in place of another so that mortals cannot find out what will happen {in the future}.

a time to tear and a time to sew; a time to be silent and a time to speak;

Consider the work of God. For who is able to make straight what he made crooked?

So I recommend enjoyment. For there [is] nothing better for man under the sun than to eat and to drink and to rejoice. This will accompany him in his toil the days of his life that God gives to him under the sun.

A poor but wise youth [is] better than an old but foolish king who no longer knows {how to receive advice}.

I looked again, and I saw all the oppression that occurs under the sun. {I saw the tears of the oppressed-- no one comforts them! Those who oppress them are powerful-- no one can comfort them}!

The fool {talks too much}, for no one knows what will be. Who can tell anyone what will happen {in the future}?

What is--it already was, and what will be--it already is, for {God will do what he has done.}

Woe to you, O land, when your king is a youth and your princes feast in the morning.

The Teacher sought to find delightful words, and he wrote what is upright--truthful words.

Now, a poor wise man was found in it, and he delivered the city by his wisdom.

So I said {to myself}, "God will surely judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed a time [of judgment] for every deed and every work."

Although the sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I also know that it will be good for those who fear God--because they fear {his presence}.

I said to myself concerning {humans}, "God sifts them in order to show them that they are like beasts."

For if one falls, his companion may help him up. But pity the one who falls and there is {no one} to help him up.

So I hated life because the work done under the sun [is] grievous to me. For everything [is] vanity and chasing wind!

The produce of the land is exploited by everyone; {even the king profits from the field [of the poor]}!

Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, and do not curse the rich even in your own bedroom, for a bird of the sky may carry your voice; a winged messenger may repeat your words.

That wealth was lost in a bad venture. Although he has borne a child, {he has nothing to leave to him}.

Blessed are you, O land, when your king is a son of nobility and your princes feast at the proper time-- to gain strength and not to get drunk.

The words of the wise [are] like cattle goads; the collections of the sages [are] like pricks inflicted by one shepherd.

I applied my mind to know wisdom and to understand the business that is done on earth--how neither day nor night one's eyes see sleep.

There [is] a vanity that happens on earth: sometimes the righteous suffer what the wicked deserve, and sometimes the wicked receive what the righteous deserve. I said, "This also [is] vanity!"

So do the wise [really] have an advantage over fools? {Can the poor [really] gain anything by knowing how to act in front of others}?

So all this I laid to my heart, and I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their deeds, [are] in the hand of God. So no one knows anything that will [come] to them, whether [it will be] love or hatred.

I neither withheld anything from my eyes that they desired, nor did I deprive any pleasure from my heart. My heart rejoiced in all my toil, for this was my reward from all my toil.

So I hated all my toil with which I have toiled under the sun, for I must leave it behind to someone who will be after me.

Through sloth the roof sinks in, and through idleness of hands the house leaks.

I have also seen this [example of] wisdom under the sun, and it [seemed] great to me.

But it will not go well with the wicked, and they will not prolong [their] days, like the shadow; because there is no fearing {God's presence}.

I have seen the busyness God gives to {humans} to preoccupy them.

The words of the wise are heard in peace [more] than the shouting of a ruler [is heard] among the fools.

So I concluded that wisdom [is] better than might, yet the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heard.

[There was] a small city with few people in it. A great king came and besieged it, building great siege works against it.

There is no end to all the people, to all who were before him. Yet the later generation will not rejoice in him, for this also [is] vanity and chasing wind!

I know everything God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, and nothing can be taken from it, for God so acts that humans might stand in awe before him.

Also, he eats in darkness all his days; he is frustrated [in] much sickness and resentment.

Because sentence against an evil deed is not carried out quickly, the heart of {humans} fills up within them to do evil.

Do not pay attention to everything people say, lest you hear your own servant curse you.

Wisdom gives more strength to the wise than ten rulers who are in the city.

So I realized that there is {nothing better} for them than to {rejoice and enjoy themselves} during their lives.

When the guards of the house tremble, and the men of strength are bent; the grinders cease because they are few, and those looking through the windows see dimly.

{Better to be content with what your eyes see than for your soul to constantly crave more}. This also [is] vanity and chasing wind!

When prosperity increases, those who consume it increase. {So its owner gains nothing, except to see his wealth before it is spent}.

When the doors on the street are shut, when the sound of the grinding mill is low; one rises up to the sound of the bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low.

He begins by saying what is foolish and ends by uttering what is wicked delusion.

[It is] good to take hold of the one and also must not let go of the other; for whoever fears God will hold both of them secure.

I made for myself gardens and parks, and I planted all [sorts of] fruit trees in them.

I myself found [that] more bitter than death [is] the woman who [is] a trap, whose heart [is] a snare, and whose hands [are] bonds. The one who pleases God escapes from her, but the sinner is caught by her.

For no one knows [whether] the spirit of a human ascends [to heaven] and [whether] the spirit of the beast descends to the ground!

They are afraid of heights, and terrors [are] on the road. The almond tree blossoms, and the grasshopper draws itself along, and desire fails because man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about in the streets.

This also [is] a grievous illness. Exactly as he came, so he will go. What profit [does] he gain for all his toil for the wind?

I made for myself pools of water from which to irrigate a grove of flourishing trees.

I saw something else under the sun: instead of justice [there was] evil; instead of righteousness [there was] wickedness.

"Vanity of vanity!" says the Teacher. "Everything [is] vanity!"

I said {to myself}, "Come! I will test pleasure {to see whether it is worthwhile}." But look, "This also [is] vanity!"

Next, I considered wisdom, as well as delusion and folly. What can anyone [do] who will come after the king that has not already been done?

Before the sun, the light, the moon, and the stars darken and the clouds return after the rain.

I also gathered to myself silver and gold--the royal and provincial treasuries. I acquired for myself male and female singers, as well as the delight of {men}, {voluptuous concubines}.

Send out your bread on the water, for in many days you will find it.

Before the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl is broken; and the jar at the foundation is broken, and the wheel at the cistern is broken.

I have seen all these things in my vain life: Sometimes a righteous man perishes in [spite of] his righteousness, and sometimes a wicked man lives a long life in [spite of] his evil.

The Teacher was full of wisdom, and he taught the people with knowledge. He carefully considered many proverbs and carefully arranged them.

Thus, {I accomplished far more} than anyone who [was] before me in Jerusalem--indeed, my wisdom stood by me.

And for anyone to eat and drink, that is, {to enjoy the fruit of all his toil}, this also is a gift of God.

The fool is so worn out by a hard day's work {he cannot even find his way home at night}.

{Feasts are held for celebration}, wine cheers the living, and money answers everything.

There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth {hoarded} by its owner to his harm.

Dead flies cause a bad smell [and] ruin the ointment of the perfumer. So also a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

I acquired male slaves and female slaves, as well as children [born in my] house. I also had livestock, cattle, and flocks more than anyone who [was] before me in Jerusalem.

Yet when I considered all the effort which I expended and the toil with which I toiled to do, then behold, "Everything [is] vanity and chasing wind! There is nothing profitable under the sun!"

Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth! Follow the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes-- but know that God will bring you into judgment for all these things.

Also if two lie together, {they can keep each other warm}. But how can one person be warm?

Just as you do not know how the path of the wind [goes], nor how the bones [of a fetus] form in a mother's womb, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

a time to bear and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to root up [what is] planted;

Do not act excessively wicked, and do not be a fool, lest you die before your time.

{Whatever is--it is far beyond comprehension}. Who can discover it?

Do not be excessively righteous, and do not act excessively wise, lest you destroy yourself.

The sleep of the laborer [is] pleasant, whether he eats little or much, but the wealth of the rich man does not allow him to rest.

There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and {find delight} in his toil. For I also realized that this [is] from the hand of God!

Just as he came from his mother's womb naked, {he will depart} just as he came; he will take nothing with him for his toil.

Both go to one place--both came from dust and both return to dust.

{The wise man can see where he is walking}, but the fool walks in darkness. Yet I also realized that both of them suffer the same fate.

When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, for {he takes no pleasure} in fools. Fulfill what you vow!

For to the person who [is] good in his eyes, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and heaping up only to give [it] to [him who is] pleasing to him. This also [is] vanity and chasing wind!

The light is sweet, and it [is] pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.

Whoever watches the wind will not sow; whoever watches the clouds will not reap.

a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down and a time to build up;

Better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for [death is] the end of every person, and the living should take [it] to his heart.

Do not be rash with your mouth, and do not let your heart be quick to utter a word before God. For God is in heaven, and you [are] on earth; therefore, let your words be few.

For what does a person receive for all his toil and in the longing of his heart with which he toils under the sun?

Look! I have discovered what is good and fitting: to eat and to drink and {to enjoy} all [the fruit of] the toil with which one toils under the sun during the number of the days of his life that God gives to him--for this [is] his lot.

Sow your seed in the morning, and do not let your hands rest in the evening, for you do not know what will prosper-- whether this or that, or whether both of them alike will succeed.

I realized that wisdom has an advantage over folly, just as light has an advantage over darkness.

So I concluded that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy [the fruit of] his labor, for this is his lot in life. {For no one knows what will happen in the future.}

Banish anxiety from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and vigor [are] vanity.

Divide your share in seven or in eight, for you do not know what disaster will happen on the earth.

If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your post, for calmness can undo great offenses.

Certainly no one will remember the wise man or the fool in {future generations}. When [future] days come, both will have been forgotten already. How [is it that] the wise man dies the same as the fool?

Whoever digs a pit will fall into it. Whoever breaks through a wall, a snake will bite him.

Who [is] like the sage? Who knows [the] interpretation of a thing? A man's wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his face is changed.

I have even seen slaves [riding] on horses and princes walking like slaves on the earth!

Even when the fool walks along the road, he lacks sense; he tells everyone [that] he is a fool.

When the clouds are full, they empty rain on the earth. Whether a tree falls to the south or whether it falls to the north, the place where the tree falls--there it will be.

There is an evil I have seen under the sun-- [it is] an error that proceeds from a ruler!

So I said {to myself}, "{If I also suffer the same fate as the fool}, {what advantage is my great wisdom}?" So I said {to myself}, "This also [is] vanity!"

For he came out of the prison house to reign, {since he was born poor in his kingdom}.

For if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in all of them! Let him remember that the days of the darkness will be many-- all that is coming [is] vanity!

Sorrow [is] better than laughter, for by sadness of countenance the heart is made good.

I said of laughter, "[It is] folly!" and of pleasure, "{What does it accomplish?}"

This indeed is a gift of God: everyone to whom God gives wealth and possessions, he also empowers him {to enjoy them}, to accept his lot, and to rejoice in [the fruit of] his toil.

For a dream comes with many cares, and the voice of a fool with many words.

I also realized that all [of the] toil and all [of] the skillful work that is done--it [is] envy between one man and {another}. This also [is] vanity and chasing wind!

Whoever {quarries} stones will be wounded by them. Whoever splits logs will be endangered by them.

If the ax is blunt but one does not sharpen its edge, {he must exert more effort}, but the advantage of wisdom [is] it brings success.

Just as no one can control the wind to restrain the wind, so also no one can control the day of his death. Just as no one is discharged in time of war, so wickedness will not deliver the wicked.

For although a person may toil with great wisdom and skill, he must leave his reward to someone who has not toiled for it. This also [is] vanity and a great calamity.

Then I saw all the work of God--man [is] not able to discover the work that is done under the sun. Although man may toil in seeking, he cannot find it. Even if a wise man claims [that he] knows it, he cannot find it.

I set my mind to try to seek wisdom and the plan, and to know that wickedness [is] foolishness and that folly [is] delusion.

The fool is set in many high places, but the rich sit in lowly places.

It is better that you not vow than that you vow and not fulfill it.

Enjoy life with the wife whom you love all the days of your vain life which he gives you under the sun, because this [is] your lot in life and in the toil with which you toil under the sun.

For who can eat [and drink], and who can enjoy [life] apart from him?

So I deemed the dead who have already died more [fortunate] than the living who are still alive.

All this I have tested with wisdom. I said, "I will be wise!" but {it was beyond my grasp}.

All his days [are] painful, his labor [brings] grief, and his heart cannot rest at night. This also [is] vanity!

Better to listen to [the] rebuke of [the] wise than for a man to listen to [the] song of fools.

Whatever is--it was already determined, {what will be--it has already been decided}. As for man, he cannot argue against what is more powerful than him.

Here is another misfortune that I have seen under the sun, and it [is] prevalent among humankind.

I saw all the living who move about under the sun with the youth; the second who will stand in his place.

For your heart knows that you also have cursed others many times.

Surely oppression makes a fool of the wise, and a bribe corrupts the heart.

For he does not remember the [brief] days of his life, for God keeps his heart preoccupied with enjoyment [of life].

So {I began to despair} of all the toil with which I toiled under the sun.

And who knows [whether] he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will exercise control of all [the fruit of] my toil with which I toiled wisely under the sun. This also [is] vanity!

Wisdom [is] better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

Go--eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart! For God already has approved your deeds.

What my heart sought, I did not find. Although I found one righteous man among one thousand, I did not find one [upright] woman among all these.

But better [off] than both of them is the one who has not yet been born and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.

For who knows what [is] good for a man in his life during the few days of his fleeting life, which are fleeting as a shadow? For who can tell anyone what will happen {in the future} under the sun?

"Look! I found this," said the Teacher, "while trying to find how the plan fits together.

For there is a [proper] time and right [procedure] for every matter, even though the trouble of man [weighs] heavy upon him.

The heart of the wise [is] in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools [is] in the house of mirth.

This [is] the {injustice} that is done under the sun: the same fate [comes] to everyone. Also the hearts of {humans} are full [of] evil; delusion [is] in their hearts during their lives, and then they die.

And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it.

{Increasing words only multiplies futility}, how does that profit anyone?

Like the sound of thorns under a pot, so also the laughter of fools. This also [is] vanity!

Keep [the] command of [the] king {because of your oath to God}.

Since the word of the king [is] supreme, no one can say to him, "What are you doing?"

Whoever obeys [his] command will not suffer disaster. The wise mind knows the [proper] time and the right [procedure].

Surely no one knows what will be, so who can tell anyone what will happen?

God gives a man wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires; yet God does not enable him to enjoy it--instead someone else ends up enjoying it. This [is] vanity--indeed, it [is] a grievous ill!

Do not be terrified of his presence! Go at once and do not delay when a matter [is] unpleasant, for he can do anything that he desires.

Surely there is no one righteous on the earth who [continually] does good and never sins.

Whoever is joined to all the living has hope. After all, even a live dog is better than a dead lion!

The words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

The same fate [comes] to everyone: to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good and to the wicked, to the clean and to the unclean, to those who sacrifice and to those who do not sacrifice. As [with] the good [man], so also to the sinner; [as with] those who swear an oath, so [also] those who fear oaths.

Even if a man fathers a hundred [children] and lives many years so that the days of his years are many, if his heart is not satisfied with {his prosperity} and {he does not receive a proper burial}, I deem the stillborn better than him.

What they loved and hated, as well as what they desired, has already perished. They no longer have any share in what is done under the sun.

Even if a man lives a thousand years twice, if he does not enjoy {prosperity}, {both suffer the same fate}!

He has neither seen nor known the sun, yet he has more rest than him.

For he comes into vanity and departs into darkness, and his name is shrouded in darkness.

The heart of the wise [inclines] to his right, but the heart of the fool [inclines] to his left.

Always be clothed in white garments, and never let your head lack oil!

Do not be quick in your spirit to anger, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.

Whoever loves money is not satisfied [with] money, and whoever loves wealth [is] not [satisfied with] profit. This also [is] vanity!

A good name [is] better than precious ointment, and the day of death [is better] than the day of one's birth.

I looked again and saw under the sun that the race [does] not [belong] to the swift, the battle [does] not [belong] to the mighty, food [does] not [belong] to the wise, wealth [does] not [belong] to the intelligent, and success [does] not [belong] to the skillful, for time and chance befalls all of them.

A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth stands forever.

{Although an assailant may overpower one person, two may withstand him}. A threefold cord {is not easily broken}!

My son, be careful {about anything beyond these things}. For the writing of books is endless, and too much study {is wearisome}.

For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.

For the fate of {humans} and the fate of the beast is {the same}. The death of the one is like the death of the other, for {both are mortal}. Man has no advantage over the beast, for both are fleeting.

Look! This alone I found: God made mankind upright, but they have devised many schemes."

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God; draw near to listen [rather] than to offer a sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil.