Then I considered all the skillful work that is done: Surely it is nothing more than competition between one person and another. This also is profitless -- like chasing the wind.

So I again considered another futile thing on earth:

This is another misfortune: Just as he came, so will he go. What did he gain from toiling for the wind?

Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs heavily on people:

Surely no one knows the future, and no one can tell another person what will happen.

Here is another enigma that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. I said, "This also is an enigma."

I have seen another misfortune on the earth: It is an error a ruler makes.