All the streams flow into the sea, but the sea is not full, and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again.

What exists now is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing truly new on earth.

No one remembers the former events, nor will anyone remember the events that are yet to happen; they will not be remembered by the future generations.

I thought to myself, "Come now, I will try self-indulgent pleasure to see if it is worthwhile." But I found that it also is futile.

So I thought to myself, "The fate of the fool will happen even to me! Then what did I gain by becoming so excessively wise?" So I lamented to myself, "The benefits of wisdom are ultimately meaningless!"

For the wise man, like the fool, will not be remembered for very long, because in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten. Alas, the wise man dies -- just like the fool!

Who knows if he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so wisely on earth! This also is futile!

I also know that whatever God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken away from it. God has made it this way, so that men will fear him.

Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been; for God will seek to do again what has occurred in the past.

I thought to myself, "God will judge both the righteous and the wicked; for there is an appropriate time for every activity, and there is a time of judgment for every deed.

For if they fall, one will help his companion up, but pity the person who falls down and has no one to help him up.

There is no end to all the people nor to the past generations, yet future generations will not rejoice in him. This also is profitless and like chasing the wind.

The one who loves money will never be satisfied with money, he who loves wealth will never be satisfied with his income. This also is futile.

The sleep of the laborer is pleasant -- whether he eats little or much -- but the wealth of the rich will not allow him to sleep.

Just as he came forth from his mother's womb, naked will he return as he came, and he will take nothing in his hand that he may carry away from his toil.

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

For no one knows what is best for a person during his life -- during the few days of his fleeting life -- for they pass away like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth.

It is best to take hold of one warning without letting go of the other warning; for the one who fears God will follow both warnings.

Whoever obeys his command will not experience harm, and a wise person knows the proper time and procedure.

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

Even though a sinner might commit a hundred crimes and still live a long time, yet I know that it will go well with God-fearing people -- for they stand in fear before him.

But it will not go well with the wicked, nor will they prolong their days like a shadow, because they do not stand in fear before God.

So I recommend the enjoyment of life, for there is nothing better on earth for a person to do except to eat, drink, and enjoy life. So joy will accompany him in his toil during the days of his life which God gives him on earth.

So I reflected on all this, attempting to clear it all up. I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their works, are in the hand of God; whether a person will be loved or hated -- no one knows what lies ahead.

For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward -- and even the memory of them disappears.

Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, the place where you will eventually go.

yet a fool keeps on babbling. No one knows what will happen; who can tell him what will happen in the future?

Send your grain overseas, for after many days you will get a return.

If the clouds are full of rain, they will empty themselves on the earth, and whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, the tree will lie wherever it falls.

He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who observes the clouds will not reap.

Sow your seed in the morning, and do not stop working until the evening; for you do not know which activity will succeed -- whether this one or that one, or whether both will prosper equally.

So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many -- all that is about to come is obscure.

Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes, but know that God will judge your motives and actions.

So remember your Creator in the days of your youth -- before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you will say, "I have no pleasure in them";

For God will evaluate every deed, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.