Prologue

1 The words of the Teacher,[fn] the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

Motto Introduced

• 2 [fn] “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!”

All Toil is Profitless and Repetitious

• 3 with which he toils under the sun?
• 4  but the earth stands forever.
• 5  to its place it hurries,[fn] and there it rises again.
• 6  around and around it goes, and on its circuit the wind returns.
• 7  but the sea is never full;
• to the place where the streams flow,
  • there they continue to flow.
  • 8 [fn] no one can ever finish describing this.[fn]
• The eye is never[fn] satisfied with seeing,
  • and the ear is never[fn] filled with hearing.
  • 9  what has been done—it is what will be done;
    • there is nothing new under the sun.
  • 10 of which it is said, “Look at this! This is new!” But it already existed in ages past before us.
  • 11  nor will there be remembrance of future generations.

Qohelet Introduces His Quest

12 I, the Teacher,[fn] was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to seek and to search by wisdom all that is done under the heavens.[fn] It is a grievous task God has given to humans.[fn] 14 I saw all the works that are done under the sun. Look! Everything is vanity and chasing wind.

• 15 [fn] and what is lacking cannot be counted.[fn]

16 I said to myself,[fn] “Look! I have become great and have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has preceded[fn] me over Jerusalem. I have acquired a great deal of wisdom and knowledge.”[fn] 17 So I dedicated myself[fn] to learn about wisdom and to learn about delusion and folly. However, I discovered[fn] that this also is chasing wind.

• 18 is much frustration,[fn] and whoever increases knowledge increases sorrow.

Qohelet’s Investigation of Self-Indulgence

2 I said to myself,[fn] “Come! I will test[fn] pleasure to see whether it is worthwhile.”[fn] But look, “This also is vanity!” 2 I said of laughter, “It is folly!” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?”[fn] 3 I also explored[fn] the effects of indulging my flesh[fn] with wine. My mind guiding me with wisdom, I investigated[fn] folly so that I might discover what is good under heaven[fn] for humans[fn] to do during the days of their lives.[fn]

Qohelet’s Investigation of Personal Accomplishment

4 I accomplished great things.[fn] I built for myself houses; I planted for myself vineyards. 5 I made for myself gardens and parks, and I planted all sorts of fruit trees in them. 6 I made for myself pools of water from which to irrigate a grove of flourishing trees. 7 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. 8 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,[fn] voluptuous concubines.[fn]

9 Thus, I accomplished far more[fn] than anyone who was before me in Jerusalem—indeed, my wisdom stood by me. 10 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. 11 Yet when I considered[fn] 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!”

The Living Must Abandon the Work of their Hands to Others at Death

12 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? 13 I realized that wisdom has an advantage over folly, just as light has an advantage over darkness. 14 The wise man can see where he is walking,[fn] but the fool walks in darkness. Yet I also realized that both of them suffer the same fate. 15 So I said to myself,[fn] “If I also suffer the same fate as the fool,[fn] what advantage is my great wisdom?”[fn] So I said to myself,[fn] “This also is vanity!”

16 Certainly no one will remember the wise man or the fool in future generations.[fn] When future days come, both will have been forgotten already. How is it that the wise man dies the same as the fool? 17 So I hated life because the work done under the sun is grievous to me. For everything is vanity and chasing wind!

18 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. 19 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!

20 So I began to despair[fn] of all the toil with which I toiled under the sun. 21 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. 22 For what does a person receive for all his toil and in the longing of his heart with which he toils under the sun? 23 All his days are painful, his labor brings grief, and his heart cannot rest at night. This also is vanity!

It is Best to Simply Enjoy the Passing Pleasures of Life as Reward for Pleasing God

24 There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and find delight[fn] in his toil. For I also realized that this is from the hand of God! 25 For who can eat and drink, and who can enjoy life apart from him?[fn] 26 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!

God Has Ordained the Ebb and Flow of Human Activities

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

• 2 [fn] and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to root up what is planted;
• 3  a time to break down and a time to build up;
• 4  a time to mourn and a time to dance;
• 5  a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
• 6  a time to keep and a time to throw away;
• 7  a time to be silent and a time to speak;
• 8  a time for war and a time for peace.

9 What does the worker gain in his toil?

No One Understands God’s Mysterious Plan

10 I have seen the busyness God gives to humans[fn] to preoccupy[fn] them. 11 He has made everything suitable in its time. He also has put the past[fn] in their hearts, yet no one can grasp what God does from the beginning to the end. 12 So I realized that there is nothing better[fn] for them than to rejoice and enjoy themselves[fn] during their lives. 13 And for anyone to eat and drink, that is, to enjoy the fruit of all his toil,[fn] this also is a gift of God.

• 14 nothing can be added to it, and nothing can be taken from it,
  • for God so acts that humans[fn] might stand in awe before him.
• 15  and what will be—it already is,
  • for[fn]

God’s Mysterious Plan Allows Injustice to Exist in the World

16 I saw something else under the sun: instead of justice there was evil; instead of righteousness there was wickedness. 17 So I said to myself,[fn] “God will surely judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed[fn] a time of judgment for every deed and every work.”

18 I said to myself concerning humans,[fn] “God sifts[fn] them in order to show[fn] them that they are like beasts.” 19 For the fate of humans[fn] and the fate of the beast is the same.[fn] The death of the one is like the death of the other, for both are mortal.[fn] Man has no advantage over the beast, for both are fleeting. 20 Both go to one place—both came from dust and both return to dust. 21 For no one knows whether the spirit of a human ascends to heaven and whether the spirit of the beast descends to the ground!

22 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.[fn]

The Existence of Oppression in the World Makes Human Existence Miserable

• 4 I looked again, and I saw all the oppression that occurs under the sun. no one comforts them!
• Those who oppress them are powerful—
  • no one can comfort them[fn]
  • 2  more fortunate than the living who are still alive.
  • 3 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.

People Need Balance in Their Approach to Labor

4 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.[fn] This also is vanity and chasing wind!

• 5  so he has nothing to eat except his own skin[fn]
• 6 is one handful with peace than two fists full with toil and chasing wind.

Wealth without Someone with Which to Enjoy It is Futile

7 I turned again and saw another vanity under the sun. 8 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[fn] of pleasure?” This also is vanity—it is an unhappy business!

Friends and Family Can Help One Another in Life

9 Two are better than the one, for they enjoy a better reward for their toil. 10 For if one falls, his companion may help him up. But pity the one who falls and there is no one[fn] to help him up. 11 Also if two lie together, they can keep each other warm.[fn] But how can one person be warm? 12 Although an assailant may overpower one person, two may withstand him.[fn] A threefold cord is not easily broken![fn]

One Must Be Willing to Listen to Counsel

13 A poor but wise youth is better than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to receive advice.[fn] 14 For he came out of the prison house to reign, since he was born poor in his kingdom.[fn] 15 I saw all the living who move about under the sun with the youth; the second who will stand in his place. 16 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!

Listen to God Rather Than Uttering Rash Vows

• draw near to listen rather than to offer a sacrifice of fools,
  • for they do not know that they are doing evil.
• 2  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.
  • 3  and the voice of a fool with many words.
  • 4  do not delay in fulfilling it,
• for[fn] in fools.
  • Fulfill what you vow!
  • 5  than that you vow and not fulfill it.
  • 6  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?
  • 7 come vanities and numerous words. Therefore, fear God!

Powerful Bureaucrats Exploit the Helpless Poor

• 8 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!
  • 9  of the poor[fn]

There is Never Enough Money to Satisfy

• 10 with money, and whoever loves wealth is not satisfied with profit.
• This also is vanity!
  • 11  those who consume it increase.
  • except to see his wealth before it is spent[fn]
  • 12 is pleasant, whether he eats little or much, but the wealth of the rich man does not allow him to rest.

Hoarding Wealth Can Backfire

13 There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded[fn] by its owner to his harm. 14 That wealth was lost in a bad venture. Although he has borne a child, he has nothing to leave to him.[fn] 15 Just as he came from his mother’s womb naked, he will depart[fn] just as he came; he will take nothing with him for his toil. 16 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? 17 Also, he eats in darkness all his days; he is frustrated in much sickness and resentment.

If You Have Wealth, Enjoy It as God Enables

18 Look! I have discovered what is good and fitting: to eat and to drink and to enjoy[fn] 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.[fn] 19 This indeed is a gift of God: everyone to whom God gives wealth and possessions, he also empowers him to enjoy them,[fn] to accept his lot, and to rejoice in the fruit of his toil. For he does not remember the brief days of his life, for God keeps his heart preoccupied with enjoyment of life.

Those Who Have Wealth but Do Not Enjoy It Are Pitiful

6 Here is another misfortune that I have seen under the sun, and it is prevalent among humankind. 2 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!

3 Even if a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years so that the days of his years are many, if his heart[fn] is not satisfied with his prosperity[fn] and he does not receive a proper burial,[fn] I deem the stillborn better than him. 4 For he comes into vanity and departs into darkness, and his name is shrouded in darkness. 5 He has neither seen nor known the sun, yet he has more rest than him. 6 Even if a man[fn] lives a thousand years twice, if he[fn] does not enjoy prosperity,[fn] both suffer the same fate![fn]

One Must Learn to Be Content with What One Has

• 7 is for his mouth— yet his appetite is never satisfied.
• 8 really have an advantage over fools? really gain anything by knowing how to act in front of others[fn]
• 9  than for your soul to constantly crave more[fn]
• This also is vanity and chasing wind!

It is Futile for Humans to Complain about God’s Irresistible Will

• 10 [fn]
• As for man, he cannot argue
  • against what is more powerful than him.
  • 11 [fn] how does that profit anyone?

The Future is Inscrutable to Humans

12 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[fn] under the sun?

People Generally Do Not Know What is Best for Them

• and the day of death is better than the day of one’s birth.
• 2  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.
  • 3 is better than laughter, for by sadness of countenance the heart is made good.
  • 4 is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
  • 5 the rebuke of the wise than for a man to listen to the song of fools.
  • 6  so also the laughter of fools.
• This also is vanity!

Wisdom—Although Vulnerable—is Beneficial

• 7 and a bribe corrupts the heart.
• 8 is better than its beginning;[fn]
• 9  for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.
• 10  For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.
• 11 is good with an inheritance;[fn]
• 12 [fn] But knowledge has an advantage—wisdom restores life to its possessor.

Humans Must Accept God’s Will and Make the Best of It

• 13 For who is able to make straight what he made crooked?
• 14  But in the day of adversity, consider!
• For God made one in place of another
  • so that mortals cannot find out what will happen[fn]

The Law of Retribution Does Not Always Work—but It Does Sometimes

• 15 Sometimes a righteous man perishes in spite of his righteousness,
  • and sometimes a wicked man lives a long life in spite of his evil.
• 16 [fn] righteous, and do not act excessively wise, lest you destroy yourself.
• 17  and do not be a fool, lest you die before your time.
• 18 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.

Wisdom is Valuable, but No One is Completely Righteous

• 19 than ten rulers who are in the city.
• 20  who continually does good and never sins.
• 21  lest you hear your own servant curse you.
• 22  that you also have cursed others many times.

Absolute Wisdom is Unattainable

23 All this I have tested with wisdom. I said, “I will be wise!” but it was beyond my grasp.[fn] 24 Whatever is—it is far beyond comprehension.[fn] Who can discover it?

25 I set my mind to try to seek wisdom and the plan, and to know that wickedness is foolishness and that folly is delusion. 26 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. 27 “Look! I found this,” said the Teacher,[fn] “while trying to find how the plan fits together. 28 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. 29 Look! This alone I found: God made mankind upright, but they have devised many schemes.”

Wisdom is Valuable

• Who knows the interpretation of a thing?
• A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,
  • and the hardness of his face is changed.
  • 2 the command of the king[fn] [fn]
  • 3  Go at once and do not delay when a matter is unpleasant,
• for he can do anything that he desires.
  • 4 is supreme, no one can say to him, “What are you doing?”
  • 5 his command will not suffer disaster. The wise mind knows the proper time and the right procedure.
  • 6 proper time and right procedure for every matter, even though the trouble of man weighs heavy upon him.

No One Knows the Future

• 7 so who can tell anyone what will happen?
• 8  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.

The World Marred by Oppression and Injustice

9 I saw all this as I applied my heart to all the deeds done under the sun: sometimes those in authority harm others.[fn] 10 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!

Although Evil is Not Punished Swiftly, God Does Eventually Punish Sinners

11 Because sentence against an evil deed is not carried out quickly, the heart of humans[fn] fills up within them to do evil. 12 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.[fn] 13 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.[fn] 14 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!”

Humans Should Enjoy the Life That God Gives to Them

15 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.

No One Can Discover the Rhyme and Reason for Things

16 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. 17 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.

The Same Fate—Death—Awaits Everyone

9 So all this I laid to my heart, and I concluded[fn] 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.

• 2 The same fate comes to everyone:to the righteous and to the wicked,
  • to the good and to the wicked,[fn]
• 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.
  • 3 is the[fn] that is done under the sun: the same fate comes to everyone.
• Also the hearts of[fn] are full of evil;
  • delusion is in their hearts during their lives, and then they die.

Death Deprives Humans of Everything in Life

4 Whoever is joined[fn] to all the living has hope. After all, even a live dog is better than a dead lion! 5 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. 6 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.

Enjoy Life While It Lasts

7 Go—eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart! For God already has approved your deeds. 8 Always be clothed in white garments, and never let your head lack oil! 9 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. 10 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.

The Injustice of Time and Chance

11 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[fn] does not belong to the skillful, for time and chance befalls all of them. 12 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[fn] are ensnared at a cruel time when it falls suddenly upon them.

Wisdom—Although Vulnerable—is Superior to Power

13 I have also seen this example of wisdom under the sun, and it seemed great to me. 14 There was a small city with few people in it. A great king came and besieged it, building great siege works against it. 15 Now, a poor wise man was found in it, and he delivered the city by his wisdom. 16 So I concluded that wisdom is better than might, yet the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heard.

Wisdom—Although Vulnerable—is Superior to Folly

• 17 more than the shouting of a ruler is heard among the fools.
• 18 is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
• So also a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
• 2 inclines to his right, but the heart of the fool inclines to his left.
• 3  he tells everyone that he is a fool.
• 4  do not leave your post,
• for calmness can undo great offenses.
• 5  it is an error that proceeds from a ruler!
• 6  but the rich sit in lowly places.
• 7 riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the earth!

Accidents Happen—Even to Professionals

• 8 Whoever breaks through a wall, a snake will bite him.
• 9 [fn] stones will be wounded by them. Whoever splits logs will be endangered by them.

Hard Work and Skill Alone Cannot Succeed—Wisdom is Necessary

• 10 [fn]
• but the advantage of wisdom is it brings success.
  • 11 [fn]

The Consequences of Foolishness

• 12 wins favor by the words of his mouth, but the fool is devoured by his own lips.
• 13  and ends by uttering what is wicked delusion.
• 14 [fn] for no one knows what will be.
  • Who can tell anyone what will happen[fn]
• 15 [fn]
• 16  and your princes feast in the morning.
• 17  and your princes feast at the proper time—
  • to gain strength and not to get drunk.
• 18  and through idleness of hands the house leaks.
• 19 [fn] wine cheers the living,
  • and money answers everything.
• 20  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.

Living in the Light of the Limits of Human Knowledge

• for in many days you will find it.
• 2  for you do not know what disaster will happen on the earth.
• 3  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.
  • 4  whoever watches the clouds will not reap.
  • 5 [fn] 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.
  • 6  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.

Enjoy Life to the Fullest within the Auspices of the Fear of God

• 7 and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.
• 8  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!
  • 9  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.
  • 10  and put away pain from your body,
• for youth and vigor are vanity.

Advice to the Young: Life is Short and Then You Die

• before the days of trouble come
• and the years draw near when you will say,
  • “I find no pleasure in them!”
  • 2  and the clouds return after the rain.
  • 3  and the men of strength are bent;
• the grinders cease because they are few,
  • and those looking through the windows see dimly.
  • 4  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.
  • 5  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.
  • 6  and the golden bowl is broken;
• and the jar at the foundation is broken,
  • and the wheel at the cistern is broken.
  • 7  and the breath returns to God who gave it.

Motto Restated

• 8 [fn] “Everything is vanity!”

Epilogue

9 The Teacher[fn] was full of wisdom, and he taught the people with knowledge. He carefully considered many proverbs and carefully arranged them. 10 The Teacher[fn] sought to find delightful words,[fn] and he wrote[fn] what is upright—truthful words.

11 The words of the wise are like cattle goads; the collections of the sages are like pricks inflicted by one shepherd.[fn] 12 My son, be careful about anything beyond these things.[fn] For the writing of books is endless, and too much study is wearisome.[fn]

• 13 Fear God and obey his commandments,
  • for this is the whole duty of man.
• 14  including every secret thing, whether good or evil.