Who has gone up to heaven and come down?
Who has gathered the wind in His hands?
Who has bound up the waters in a cloak?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is His name,
and what is the name of His Son—
if you know?

Every word of God is pure;
He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

Don’t add to His words,
or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.

Two things I ask of You;
don’t deny them to me before I die:

Otherwise, I might have too much
and deny You, saying, “Who is the Lord?”
or I might have nothing and steal,
profaning the name of my God.

Don’t slander a servant to his master
or he will curse you, and you will become guilty.

The leech has two daughters: “Give, Give!”
Three things are never satisfied;
four never say, “Enough!”:

As for the eye that ridicules a father
and despises obedience to a mother,
may ravens of the valley pluck it out
and young vultures eat it.

Three things are beyond me;
four I can’t understand:

a lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and doesn’t retreat before anything,

Don’t spend your energy on women
or your efforts on those who destroy kings.

It is not for kings, Lemuel,
it is not for kings to drink wine
or for rulers to desire beer.

Give beer to one who is dying
and wine to one whose life is bitter.

She extends her hands to the spinning staff,
and her hands hold the spindle.

Her hands reach out to the poor,
and she extends her hands to the needy.

She makes and sells linen garments;
she delivers belts to the merchants.

Strength and honor are her clothing,
and she can laugh at the time to come.

The sun rises and the sun sets;
panting, it returns to its place
where it rises.

Gusting to the south,
turning to the north,
turning, turning, goes the wind,
and the wind returns in its cycles.

All the streams flow to the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
The streams are flowing to the place,
and they flow there again.

All things are wearisome;
man is unable to speak.
The eye is not satisfied by seeing
or the ear filled with hearing.

I applied my mind to seek and explore through wisdom all that is done under heaven. God has given people this miserable task to keep them occupied.

I have seen all the things that are done under the sun and have found everything to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.

I said to myself, “Look, I have amassed wisdom far beyond all those who were over Jerusalem before me, and my mind has thoroughly grasped wisdom and knowledge.”

I applied my mind to know wisdom and knowledge, madness and folly; I learned that this too is a pursuit of the wind.

I said to myself, “Go ahead, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy what is good.” But it turned out to be futile.

I explored with my mind how to let my body enjoy life with wine and how to grasp folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom—until I could see what is good for people to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.

I constructed reservoirs of water for myself from which to irrigate a grove of flourishing trees.

When I considered all that I had accomplished and what I had labored to achieve, I found everything to be futile and a pursuit of the wind. There was nothing to be gained under the sun.

Then I turned to consider wisdom, madness, and folly, for what will the man be like who comes after the king? He will do what has already been done.

And I realized that there is an advantage to wisdom over folly, like the advantage of light over darkness.

The wise man has eyes in his head,
but the fool walks in darkness.

Yet I also knew that one fate comes to them both.

So I said to myself, “What happens to the fool will also happen to me. Why then have I been overly wise?” And I said to myself that this is also futile.

For, just like the fool, there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man, since in the days to come both will be forgotten. How is it that the wise man dies just like the fool?

Therefore, I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me. For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

I hated all my work that I labored at under the sun because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will take over all my work that I labored at skillfully under the sun. This too is futile.

So I began to give myself over to despair concerning all my work that I had labored at under the sun.

When there is a man whose work was done with wisdom, knowledge, and skill, and he must give his portion to a man who has not worked for it, this too is futile and a great wrong.

For all his days are filled with grief, and his occupation is sorrowful; even at night, his mind does not rest. This too is futile.

There is nothing better for man than to eat, drink, and enjoy his work. I have seen that even this is from God’s hand,

For to the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner He gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give to the one who is pleasing in God’s sight. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

a time to give birth and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to uproot;

a time to kill and a time to heal;
a time to tear down and a time to build;

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

a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;
a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing;

a time to search and a time to count as lost;
a time to keep and a time to throw away;

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

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

I have seen the task that God has given people to keep them occupied.

He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts, but man cannot discover the work God has done from beginning to end.

I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and enjoy the good life.

I know that all God does will last forever; there is no adding to it or taking from it. God works so that people will be in awe of Him.

I said to myself, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every work.”

I said to myself, “This happens concerning people, so that God may test them and they may see for themselves that they are like animals.”

All are going to the same place; all come from dust, and all return to dust.

Who knows if the spirit of people rises upward and the spirit of animals goes downward to the earth?

I have seen that there is nothing better than for a person to enjoy his activities because that is his reward. For who can enable him to see what will happen after he dies?

Again, I observed all the acts of oppression being done under the sun. Look at the tears of those who are oppressed; they have no one to comfort them. Power is with those who oppress them; they have no one to comfort them.

I saw that all labor and all skillful work is due to a man’s jealousy of his friend. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

Better one handful with rest
than two handfuls with effort and a pursuit of the wind.

There is a person without a companion, without even a son or brother, and though there is no end to all his struggles, his eyes are still not content with riches. “So who am I struggling for,” he asks, “and depriving myself from good?” This too is futile and a miserable task.

Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts.

For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up.

Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm?

And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.

Better is a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer pays attention to warnings.

For he came from prison to be king, even though he was born poor in his kingdom.

There is no limit to all the people who were before them, yet those who come later will not rejoice in him. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Better to draw near in obedience than to offer the sacrifice as fools do, for they ignorantly do wrong.

Do not be hasty to speak, and do not be impulsive to make a speech before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.

When you make a vow to God, don’t delay fulfilling it, because He does not delight in fools. Fulfill what you vow.

Better that you do not vow than that you vow and not fulfill it.

Do not let your mouth bring guilt on you, and do not say in the presence of the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands?

If you see oppression of the poor and perversion of justice and righteousness in the province, don’t be astonished at the situation, because one official protects another official, and higher officials protect them.

The one who loves money is never satisfied with money, and whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with income. This too is futile.

When good things increase, the ones who consume them multiply; what, then, is the profit to the owner, except to gaze at them with his eyes?

There is a sickening tragedy I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owner to his harm.

This too is a sickening tragedy: exactly as he comes, so he will go. What does the one gain who struggles for the wind?

Here is what I have seen to be good: it is appropriate to eat, drink, and experience good in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of his life God has given him, because that is his reward.

God has also given riches and wealth to every man, and He has allowed him to enjoy them, take his reward, and rejoice in his labor. This is a gift of God,

God gives a man riches, wealth, and honor so that he lacks nothing of all he desires for himself, but God does not allow him to enjoy them. Instead, a stranger will enjoy them. This is futile and a sickening tragedy.

And if he lives a thousand years twice, but does not experience happiness, do not both go to the same place?

What advantage then does the wise man have over the fool? What advantage is there for the poor person who knows how to conduct himself before others?

Better what the eyes see than wandering desire. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

Whatever exists was given its name long ago, and it is known what man is. But he is not able to contend with the One stronger than he.

A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of one’s death than the day of one’s birth.

It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
since that is the end of all mankind,
and the living should take it to heart.

It is better to listen to rebuke from a wise person
than to listen to the song of fools,

for like the crackling of burning thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of the fool.
This too is futile.

Don’t let your spirit rush to be angry,
for anger abides in the heart of fools.

Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these?”
since it is not wise of you to ask this.

Wisdom is as good as an inheritance
and an advantage to those who see the sun,

In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man cannot discover anything that will come after him.

Don’t be excessively righteous, and don’t be overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

Don’t be excessively wicked, and don’t be foolish. Why should you die before your time?

It is good that you grasp the one and do not let the other slip from your hand. For the one who fears God will end up with both of them.

Don’t pay attention to everything people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you,

I turned my thoughts to know, explore, and seek wisdom and an explanation for things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity and folly is madness.

“Look,” says the Teacher, “I have discovered this by adding one thing to another to find out the explanation,