Ecclesiastes

The Word of Solomon the Preacher, Son of David, King of Israel in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity. What is the profit of man in all his labor which he labors from beneath the sun? A generation passes, a generation comes, and the earth endures forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and it enters its place; as it rises, so it enters in the south and turns to the north. The wind goes around and goes, and by its circuit the wind enters. And all the rivers go into the sea, and the sea is not filled, which fills into its place. And the rivers go there; again they are mixed to go. All speech of the flesh: man cannot speak it, and the eye is not satisfied with seeing, and the ear is not filled with hearing. And what is the deed from what was done, and what is that which was from what was, and there is nothing which was done under the sun?

One who reads and says: Behold, this is new, and behold, the world was made from the world which was from before us. There is no memory of the former with the latter, nor of the latter with that which will be made in the future. I, the Preacher, was king of Israel in Jerusalem. And I gave my heart to inquiry and to understanding in wisdom concerning all that was made beneath the sun, for evil is the work, and the Lord gave to the children of men that they might work it. I have seen all creation that was made beneath the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a chasing after the spirit. The blind cannot see, and the thirsty cannot drink. I spoke in my heart in abundance, and behold, I have multiplied and increased wisdom beyond those who were before me in Jerusalem, and my heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge. And I gave my heart to knowledge and to wisdom, wisdom and knowledge and parable and teaching I understood, for this also is vanity and a chasing after the spirit.

Because in much laughter there is much sorrow, and one who has scattered the mind has scattered the pain. Chapter 2 I said in my heart: Go, take pleasure in joy, and see what is good. And now I say: This too is vanity and a disturbance of the spirit. To the fool I say: Be patient; and to joy: What is its deed? And I thought in my heart: Wisdom drew it like wine for my body, and my heart taught me wisdom. And I hold this for joy until I see what is good for the children of men, who do under the sun in the number of the days of their life. I, the Preacher, increased my deeds and built for myself houses and planted vineyards. And I made for myself gardens and orchards, and I planted in them every tree that bears fruit in its season, and everything that does not bear fruit. And I made for myself pools of water, so that I might drink from them; and I cut down trees that bear fruit, and trees that do not bear fruit.

I acquired servants and maidservants, and a son of the house; I acquired a flock and herds, and a multitude of sheep and goats; I acquired more than all those who were before me in Jerusalem. And I amassed much silver and gold, and the tribute of the kingdom, and through the passage of time, possessions and administrators and tribute with the children of men. I increased plantings and vineyards, and I multiplied more than those who were before me in Jerusalem, and my wisdom stood for me. All that my eyes desired, I obtained, and I withheld nothing from my heart from all joy, for my heart rejoiced in all my labor, and this was my reward from all my toil. And I looked upon all my acquisition that my hands had made, and upon my toil that I had wrought for gain, and behold, all is vanity and a chasing of the wind, and there is no profit under the sun. And I looked, I, as one who sees wisdom and folly and pride: who is the man who will follow after counsel and all the parable that was made for her?

And I saw that I was like a fool to the wise man, more than a servant, like a fool to the light from darkness. For the wise man, his eyes are upon his head, and the servant walks in darkness; and I knew that I was like a single stone that crushes both of them. And then I said in my heart, "Just as it crushes the servant, so also it crushes me; and why did I become wise? For I have multiplied vanity, for this also is vanity." For there is no remembrance of the wise man with the servant forever, for behold, the times come and everything is forgotten; and how does the wise man die with the servant? And I hated all my life, for from evil creation there is upon me what has been done under the sun, for all is vanity and a chasing after the spirit. I hated all my labor that I labor under the sun, for I leave it to the man who will be born after me. And who knows whether the wise man will be, or whether not the servant, or whether not he will succeed in all my labor that I labored and became wise under the sun? And this also is vanity and a chasing after the spirit.

And I marvelled: I am like one who toils for my heart in all my labour which I have wrought under the sun. For there is a man who labours for himself with wisdom and understanding in strength and in counsel, and a man who has not laboured—to him is given his reward. And this is vanity and great evil. For a man cannot be in all his thirst and the desire of his heart, which is what labours under the sun. For all his days are pain and death, and there is no profit for him; and by night his heart does not sleep. And this is vanity and desire of the spirit. And there is no good for a man without that which he has eaten and drunk, and that which he sees as good for his soul. And this I have seen: that it is from the hand of God. And who is he who eats and drinks without Him? For a good man has before his face, and he has been given wisdom and understanding and joy. And for him who is poor, he has been given labour, that he may diminish and gather wealth, as he gives to the good man who is before the face of God. And this is vanity and desire of the spirit.

Chapter 3 There is a time for everything, and there is a season for every deed under the sun. A time for planting and a time for harvest. A time for life and a time for death; a time for sowing and a time for reaping what was sown; a time for uprooting and a time for healing; a time for breaking and a time for mending. A time for weeping and a time for laughing; a time for silence and a time for song. A time for throwing stones and a time for gathering stones; a time for embracing and a time for distancing from embrace. A time for destroying and a time for building; a time for storing and a time for spending. A time for tearing and a time for sewing; a time for silence and a time for speech. A time for loving and a time for hating; a time for war and a time for peace. What is the profit of one who acts in his own time and toils? I have seen all the labour that the Lord gave to the children of men; labour as they toil there. Everything good that he did in its time, and all that is hidden and given to the world within his heart, so that man may not find the deed that the Lord did from its beginning to its end.

I have understood that there is no good among them without one who rejoiced and did good in his life. And everything that he ate and drank and saw good, all of his labor—this is the gift of the Lord. I have understood that everything that the Lord has done, it is he who exists forever, and among them it is not possible to diminish, and among them it is not possible to add; and the Lord has done so that they may fear before his face. And what he has done, now it is he who is, and everything is from what he has done; now it is done, and the Lord desires the one who follows him. And again, I have seen this under the sun: in the place of the righteous, there is the wicked, and in the place of the wicked, there is the righteous. And there I say in my heart: together the righteous and the wicked will be judged by the Lord, for there is a time for every deed. And there I say in my heart: concerning the matter of the children of men, how the Lord will judge them; and thus I have seen that they are like beasts.

And their righteousness is for the children of man, and their iniquity is for the beast; one righteousness is for them, like death, this is like his death for this one; and one spirit is for all of them. What is the difference of man from beast? And nothing, for everything is vanity. Everything goes into one place; everything came from the earth, and everything returns into the earth. Who knows the spirit of the children of man, that it ascends above, and the spirit of the beast, that it descends below into the earth? And I have seen that there is no good without one who rejoiced, a man in his labor, for it is his reward; and who will bring it about that he may see what will be after him? Chapter 4 And I have pondered and I have seen all the patience together that is exercised under heaven. And now I weep over those who are patient, and there is none who rebukes them from those who oppress them by force. And I have lamented those who died together, those who found death better than the living, and those who are the living until now.

And of the two, it is better to be a poor man, and again, his nature which does not know all the evil deeds that were done under the sun. And I have seen all the labor together and all the power of action, that it is envy for a man from his neighbor, and this is vanity and lust of the spirit. A slave stole his hand and ate his flesh. A good handful of righteousness is better than two handfuls of iniquity, and this is vanity and lust of the spirit. And I have wondered and seen vanity under the sun. And there is one and there is no second, and there is no son and no brother, and there is no end to all his labor, and his eye does not fill with abundance, and he does not say to anyone, "I labor and I provide for my soul from abundance," and this is vanity and evil labor. The two are better than the one, for they have good grass in their mouths. For if one falls, the other raises him; woe to the one if he falls and there is no other to raise him.

For if the two of them are known, and one of them is known. And if the two of them are strong, they will be compared, and a third thread is quickly broken. Better a poor wise man than a foolish king and a servant who does not know how to look, as from a house of prison he goes out to be king, because in his kingdom he was poor. And I have seen all the company of those who are alive, who move about under the sun, like a second shadow and a dream; after that he rises. And there is no end for all the people, for all those who were before me, because the latter also do not rejoice there, because this also is vanity and a desire of the spirit. Chapter 5 Guard your foot when you walk within the house of God, and approach to hear the teaching of the wise; also guard yourself from the gifts of the servants of the sacrifice, because they are not wise for doing good. And also guard yourself that you do not err with your mouth, and in your heart also do not err to bring forth a word before the face of God, because God is in heaven above, and you are on earth below; and because of this, your speech will be lacking.

If a dream comes through many tribulations, and a word of destruction through many things. As you prayed the prayer of the one who is hidden, its end, for it was his will; but you, as you prayed, give the prayer. It is better that your prayer be hidden than your prayer that is given. Do not give your mouth to sin, your body, and do not speak before the Lord without understanding; it is he who will not be pleased, the Lord, over you because of your word, and he will not accept the deed of your enemy. For many dreams are vanity, and much speech is vanity, and the fear of the Lord is like the first. If you see the patience of a poor man and the way of a rich man in the land, open righteousness and do not deny his deed, for the High One above the high ones will watch over you, and the High One over them is higher than the earth and above all. And a king over the fruit of the field. He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver, and he who loved much grain, he also is vanity.

For many tribulations, many will consume it; and what is the strength of one who approaches without the sight of the eye? The sweet sleep of a man: if he eats little, and if he eats much, and for one who has increased, there is no excess that will leave him; he sleeps. There is a disease which I have seen under the sun: excess that is stored up with one who has acquired it through evil. And that excess is consumed in evil pleasure, and he has begotten a son; there is nothing in his hand, nor anything at all. As he came forth from his mother's womb, naked, he will be buried; as he came forth, and there is none who will take from his fasting, as he will go with him. And this is an evil disease, for as he came forth, so he will go. What is the profit of one who fasts for his soul? For all his days are in darkness and lamentation, and much affliction, disease, and sorrow. But only this I have seen: the good thing, which is the good consumption, drink, and the sight of joy in all his labor which he has done under the sun, in the measure of his days which the Lord has given him, for it is his reward.

And all that God has given to a man—wealth and tribulation—and he has not caused him to taste it, as though he might eat from it and take his portion and rejoice in his fasting; this also is a gift of God. For it is not many who remember throughout all the days of his life, for God has hidden it from him by the desire of his heart. Chapter 6 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it is great above all men. A man to whom God has given wealth and tribulation and honor, and there is none who can restrain his soul from all that it desires, and God has not caused him to taste it, as though he might eat from it; for a man is a merchant, and his merchandise consumes him, and this is vanity and an evil disease. And if a man should beget a hundred and many years of life, and many days of his years should be, and his soul should not be satisfied with good things, and his treasure should not be in my house, I would be more wretched than he. For he came in vain, and he goes into darkness, and in darkness his name is hidden.

And the sun has seen, and it does not know its own rest from this. And when it had lived ten hundred circuits of years, and the good and the bad have seen, is it not that in one place all passes? And all the labor of man, by his mouth and his soul, is not filled with wealth. What is the difference between the wise and the fool, by what does the poor know the way before life? Better is the sight of the eye than the journey of the soul, and vanity and desire of the soul. All that has happened, now its name is heard, and it is a wonder that it is man, and he cannot compare himself with one who is stronger than he. For this is vanity, the word that multiplies; what is the difference for man? Who is he who knows what is good for man in his life, while the days of his life are counted? Vanity is his work like a shadow; who will tell man what will be after him under the sun? Chapter 7 Better is a good name than the scent of oil, and the day of death than the day of birth.

Alas, the going into the house of Lah is better than the going into the house of Geʿez, for it is the end of every man, and the living one has good in his heart. Alas, death is better than laughter, for by an evil face the heart is changed. The heart of the wise is in the house of Lah, but the heart of servants is in the house of joy. Alas, hearing the admonition of a wise man is better than a man who hears the song of a servant. As the word of a physician is under the sun, so is the laughter of servants, and it is a vain thing. For patience strengthens the wise and restrains the agitation of his heart. Alas, the last word is better than its first, and alas, the moderate is better than the arrogant spirit. Strengthen yourself in your spirit for understanding, for death in the bosom of servants is a dwelling. Say, "What has happened?" for the days of bitterness are better than these, for it is not by wisdom that you have asked. And because of this, good wisdom is with patience, and diligence is for those who see the sun.

For the shadow of wisdom is better than the shadow of silver, and the abundance of the understanding of wisdom is more excellent, and it saves him who has acquired it. Behold the works of the Lord, and who is he that can correct what the Lord has made crooked? In a good time, be joyful and see; in a day of evil, this too is now, and it is like that which is the work of the Lord. Concerning the matter of the children of men: as no man can find what is after him, and nothing of all that is hidden have I seen in the time of my youth; there is a righteous one who is adorned in his righteousness, and there is a wicked one who lives in his wickedness. Be not exceedingly righteous, and be not exceedingly wise, lest you be proud, and be not exceedingly sinful. And be not exceedingly rich, lest you die before your time. It is better for you to be in this state than that, and do not let your hand be slack from the fear of the Lord, for he who fears the Lord will escape from everything. Wisdom guides the wise man more than ten hundred princes who are in the city.

There is no righteous man on earth who does good and does not err. And in every matter of which they speak, let your heart be silent, as though you did not hear your companion while he reviles you; for your heart will be greatly troubled, and in the end it will cause your heart much grief, as though you also had reviled another. And all this I have counseled you with wisdom, and I say, beware. And she is far from me, distant while she exists, and deep, deep—who can find her? I have grown weary in the heart of understanding, as one who seeks and desires wisdom and thought, and as one who knows the greatness of the wicked and the errors of the foolish. And I have found her, I myself, a bitter thing: a woman who is a snare and a trap, her heart a fetter and a chain in her hand, good before the Lord, but he who is deceived by her and errs is ensnared by her. Behold, this I have found, says the Preacher, one by one for the finding of the wisdom which my soul desired.

And I did not find one man out of a hundred; I found one woman out of all these, I did not find. Only this I found, which the Lord did in his time: a man of righteous heart, and he is one who thinks much. Chapter 8 Who will believe the wise, and who will understand the interpretation of their words? The wisdom of a man illuminates his face, and he who has no shame in his face is hateful. My son, guard the mouth of a king, and do not be hasty with the word of an oath. Pass before his face, and do not stand in an evil matter, for he does all that he desires. And as a king speaks with authority, who will say to him, "What have you done?" He who keeps his command does not understand the word of evil, and at the time of judgment the heart of the wise understands. For every deed has a time and a judgment, for the understanding of a man is strong over him. For there is no one who knows what has been, and who will tell what will be?

And there is no man who can escape in his spirit from the whole spirit together, and there is no one who can escape on the day of death, and there is no messenger on the day of killing, and wickedness does not save what it has hidden. I have seen everything together, and I have given my heart into all of creation that was created beneath the sun, where man has been able to escape from the wickedness of man. Then I saw wickedness in the holy tomb while they were burying him, and those who were holy went and boasted in the city, for they did this also in vain. For there is no one who can become a bow from those who did evil quickly, because of this the heart of the children of man is troubled for the doer of evil who has sinned and committed sin from his beginning and from before him. For I know that there is goodness for those who fear the Lord, as they fear before his face. And there is no goodness for the wicked, and the days of his shadow are not long, for he does not fear before the face of the Lord.

And there is vanity which is done under the sun in the earth, until the righteous attain the deeds of the wicked upon them, and there are the wicked who attain the deeds of the righteous upon them, and I say this also is vanity. And I despise all, for there is no good for man under the sun without what he has eaten and drunk and rejoiced, and that which is his from his labor in the days of his life, which the Lord has given him from under the sun. For I have given my heart to the understanding of wisdom, and as I see the multitude of what is done upon the earth, for by day and by night there is no sleep in his eyes that he may see. And I have seen all the works of the Lord, how man cannot find a companion who has done under the sun, if how much the wise man says he knows, man cannot find a companion, and if how much he desires, man cannot find a companion. Chapter 9 For this companion of all, I have given my heart, and my heart has seen all this, that for the righteous and the wise, their deeds are in the hand of the Lord; love and hatred have no one who knows man, all before their faces, and it is vanity in all.

And one vanity for the righteous and for the wicked, for the good and for the evil, for the unclean and for the pure, for one who errs and for one who does not err, for the good and for one who sins, for one who curses and for one who fears an oath. This is all that was done under the sun, for one vanity for all, and the hearts of the children of men are filled with evil, and in the distress of their hearts is their life, and after them, to the place of the dead. For who is it that dwells with the living? In hope, a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living hope that they will die, but the dead do not hope, and there is nothing, and they have no thought at all. For their memory and their love and their hatred and their envy—behold, they are ended, and they have no portion at all in the world, in all that was done under the sun. Come, eat your bread with joy, and drink your good wine with a glad heart, for the Lord has approved your deeds. At all times, let your garments be clean, and a crown on your head, and do not be far.

And behold the life with your wife whom you loved, all the days of your life which were given to you from under the sun, all the days which were for you, for it is your portion in your life. And in your labor, what you labor from under the sun, all that your hand can plant, do according to the measure of your strength, for there is no work, nor thought, nor wisdom, nor knowledge in Gehenna where you will go, you there. And I marveled and saw under the sun that it is not for the weak to pasture, nor for the strong to kill, nor for the wise to eat, nor for the knowledgeable to be rich, nor for those who count grace, for when the time of fall comes, it casts them all down. For man does not know his time, like fish which are caught in a bad net, and like birds which are taken in a snare; likewise the children of men are caught in a time of evil when a calamity falls upon them. And now this also I have seen: wisdom under the sun.

And behold, a great city in my vicinity, a city of men and people who are within it, few. And when a great king came upon it, he besieged it and built a great fortress upon it. And he found within it a wise and poor man, and he saved the city, that one, by his wisdom, and there is no one who remembered him, the people together, for that man. And I say, I, that wisdom is better than strength, and the wisdom of the poor man, which is despised, and his counsel, how are those who hear it? And the counsel of the wise is heard in peace more than the clamor of those who rule in greatness. Wisdom is better than the labor of the field, which sins; one who sins produces many. Chapter 10 A dead fly makes the oil of balm stink; a little wisdom is more honorable than great honor in greatness. The heart of the wise is at his right, and the heart of the fool is at his left. And when the fool walks in greatness, his heart is in gluttony, and by the desire of his heart he destroys understanding, and he who thinks he knows everything is a fool.

For his spirit, when he rules, ascends above you, your place, and does not leave, for wealth leaves great sins. There is evil that I have seen under the sun. As one who, by understanding, went out before he ruled, a servant was given to a great lord, and nobles dwell beneath. And I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking on foot like servants. He who builds a pit for his neighbor falls into it, and he who lifts a stone is bitten by a serpent of the earth. And he who polishes a stone is wounded by it, and he who cuts wood is struck by it. If a wise man is silent, and he himself turns his face away, and strength weakens, and his firmness is dissolved by wisdom. If a serpent of the earth bites and does not kill it, and does not heal it, there is no healer who can cure it. The speech of the wise man's mouth is his grace, and the lips of a servant cause him to thirst. First, the speech of his mouth is lost, and at last, it is scattered. A servant multiplies words, and a man does not know what has happened and what will happen, for after him, who will remember him?

Now your servant is weary, for he does not know how to go into the city. Woe to you, O city whose king and nobles and princes eat in the morning. Blessed are you, O land whose king, the son of the Lord, and whose princes eat in strength and are not ashamed in the fields. And with the labor of hands, a house is built. Hands of servants give bread and wine to the wicked, they make the living rejoice, and for gold everything is stirred together. You also, with your mind, do not judge the king, and within your house do not judge the wealthy, for a bird of the sky will bring out your word, and what has a wing will tell your speech. Chapter 11 Cast your bread upon the face of the water, for after many days you will find it. Give a portion to seven and to eight, for you do not know what evil will happen in the land. If the cloud is full, it will pour rain upon the land; and if a tree falls to the south, and if to the north, where the tree falls, there it will be.

He who sows the wind will not reap, and he who watches the clouds will not harvest. For there is no one who knows what the path of the wind is, like the bones in the womb of a pregnant woman; likewise, the works of the Lord, the measure of the servant of God, all are hidden. In the morning, sow your seed, and in the evening, do not let your hand rest, for you do not know what will happen from this time or that; and if both are together, it is good. Sweet is the light, and good for the eyes to see the sun together. For if a man has lived many years, in all of them he rejoices and does not remember the days of darkness, just as many things will come to pass; all that comes is vanity. Rejoice, O man, in your youth. And let your heart be glad in the days of your youth, and walk in the path of your heart that is pure, and do not let your eye see, for know that because of all this, the Lord will bring you to judgment. And remove anger from your heart, and banish evil from your body, for youth and dark ignorance without knowledge are vanity.

Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years of old age arrive, for this is my will. Before the sun and the light of the moon and the stars grow dim, and before the clouds are dispersed after the rains. When the day comes that the doorposts of the house are shaken and people who are idle and lazy and those who are barren are troubled, for they are the barren ones, and those who see in the shadow grow dim. And the windows are darkened with dust, with a faint voice that is hidden, and it rises with the voice of a bird, and it destroys all the children of the choir. For the lofty ones see stumbling blocks in the path, and the thistle is cut down, and the thorn bush is cut down, and the reed is stripped when a man enters the house of his world, and again the thorns of those who fight. Before the silver is broken, and the appearance of gold is changed, and the lamp is extinguished in the thicket.

and the sight of the eyes that gaze through the window, and the faces of the multitudes are troubled by the thunder of voices that pass by, rising from the voice of the enemy. Woe upon all the children of Adam, and they see what is above, and fear shall be in their paths, and fire shall appear when it wills to consume. And the lamentation shall resound in the multitudes before the pure crystal is shattered, and the beauty of gold shall be defiled, and the crown shall be cast down for those who do not crown themselves in the depths. And earth shall enter into earth as it was, and the spirit shall enter unto the Lord who gave it, and it shall render an account for all that it did to me while it was in the flesh, whether it was good or evil. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, all is vanity. And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he teaches understanding to all people and examines the web of parable. The Preacher desired to find the matter of his will, and he wrote righteousness and read justice.

And the wise man said, like the crashing of the sea and like the thunder of the abyss, those who from the place of learning were given from one teacher. And moreover, from among them, my son, do not make many books that have no end, and much learning is a burden to the body. Hear the speech of every matter, and fear the Lord and keep his commandments, for that is everything for a man. For the Lord brings all creation to judgment, everything that is revealed and everything that is not revealed, whether good or evil, it is he. Chapter 1 The word of Ecclesiastes, son of David, king of Israel in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, says Ecclesiastes, vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What is the advantage for a man in all his labor that he labors under the sun?

A generation passes, and a generation comes, but the earth endures forever. The sun rises, and the sun sets, and it enters into its chamber while it is the same that rises. It enters from the right and goes out to the north; it goes out and the wind travels, and by its passing the spirit enters. All the rivers flow into the sea, and the sea is a reservoir that fills the place; the rivers flow there, and again they are mixed in their course. Every word that is in pain: a man cannot speak it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. What is it that has been done? It is what has been done. What is it that has become? It is as it has become. And there is nothing that has been done under the sun. He who reads and says, "Behold, it is new," it is what has been made from the world that has been from before us. There is no memory of the ancients, and for those who are later, they have been made; there is no memory of them, a proverb that is made in later times.

I, Ecclesiastes, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I gave my heart to inquiry and to investigation with wisdom concerning all that was done under heaven, for evil is the work, and the Lord gave the land to the children of men that they might work it. I have seen all creation that was made under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and like the breath of the wind. The straight cannot be bent, and the crooked cannot be straightened. I spoke within my heart, saying: Behold, I have grown great and have increased wisdom above all who were before me in Jerusalem, and my heart has seen much wisdom and understanding. And I gave my heart to understanding and wisdom, to parable and teaching; I knew that this also is the desire of the spirit. For with much wisdom comes much understanding, and he who increases understanding increases sorrow. Chapter 2 I said in my heart: Come, let me rejoice in pleasure and see in goodness, and behold, this also is vanity.

And I laughed, saying, "I have labored and toiled, and what is the profit of this deed?" And I thought in my heart, and I laughed, for wine was for my body, and my heart led me to wisdom, and I said, "I will take hold of joy until I see what is good for the children of men, who do under the sun in the number of the days of their lives." I magnified my deeds; I built for myself houses, and I planted for myself vineyards. And I made for myself gardens of herbs and orchards, and I planted among them trees of every fruit. I made for myself reservoirs of water, so that I might drink from them, and trees that bear fruit. And I acquired servants and maidservants; I acquired a house-born child, and I acquired a female slave, a concubine, and a shepherd of sheep in abundance; I acquired more than all those who were before me in Jerusalem. I gathered for myself silver and gold, the treasure of the kingdom, and with caravans I made for myself merchants and merchant women, and I mingled with the children of men in trade and in commerce.

I was great and I multiplied more than all who were before me in Jerusalem, and wisdom stood me up. And all that my eyes asked of me, I was bent and I restrained my heart from all joy, for my heart rejoiced more than all my thirst, and this was my reward from all my labor. And I looked, I, upon all the work of my hands and the labor which I labored for the work, and behold, all is vanity and emptiness of spirit, and there is no profit under the sun. And I looked, I, as if to see wisdom, and it was scattered and lost. Who is the man who follows after her counsel, all the parable which he made for her? And I saw, I, that the profit of the wise is more than the loss, as profit is light more than darkness. For the wise, his eyes are upon his head, and the fool walks in darkness, and I knew that one small thing reconciles them both. And I said in my heart, that it reconciles the fool as it reconciles me. And why did I wait? Then, in that I multiplied, I spoke in my heart, for this is vanity: the fool, in that he multiplies, speaks, for

For there is no remembrance of the wise man together with the fool forever, for now the times will come, and everything will be forgotten; and how does the wise man die together with the fool? And I loathed all life, for evil is upon me—the creation that was made under the sun, for all is vanity and a striving of the spirit. And I loathed all my works which I perform under the sun, for I leave them behind for man who will be born after me. And who knows whether the wise man will be or the fool, and whether he will succeed in all my works which I have done and in which I have been wise under the sun? And this too is vanity. And I was troubled, as if my heart were troubled in all the works which I did under the sun. For the man who has not worked for himself with wisdom and understanding and strength, and the man who has not worked for himself—he gives himself to his punishment; and this is vanity and great evil. For it happens to a man in all his labor and the striving of his heart, which is what he does under the sun.

For all his times are pain and death, and mourning is for him, and woe is me, for my heart is also troubled, and this too is vanity. There is no good for man except what he eats and drinks, and what shows good for his soul, and this I have seen: that he is like a bird from the hand of the Lord of the land. Who is he who eats and drinks without him? For to a good man before his face he gave wisdom and understanding and joy, and to one who is poor he gave labor, that he might gather and accumulate, that he might give to the good before the face of the Lord of the land, for this too is vanity and emptiness of spirit. Chapter 3 There is a time and a season for everything under the sun. A time for birth and a time for death, a time for planting and a time for uprooting what was planted. A time for killing and a time for healing, a time for destroying and a time for building. A time for weeping and a time for laughing, a time for mourning and a time for dancing. A time for throwing stones and a time for gathering stones, a time for embracing and a time for distancing from the embrace.

Time for planting, and time for hoeing; time for weeding, and time for harvesting. Time for plowing, and time for resting; time for sowing, and time for reaping. Time for loving, and time for hating; time for enmity, and time for peace. What profit is there for one who does in one season what he should do in another? I have seen all the work that the Lord of the land gave to the children of men, that they might work it. All that he did was good in its time, and all that is hidden and given to the world in their hearts, so that man may not find the work that the Lord of the land did from its beginning to its end. I have understood that there is no good among them without joy and doing good in his life. And every man who has eaten and drunk and seen good from all his labor—that is the gift of the Lord of the land. I have understood that all that the Lord of the land did is that which endures forever, and they cannot be moved or shaken, and from among them it is not possible to remove, and the Lord of the land made it so that they might fear before his face.

And as for the work, now it exists, and everything that is from the work, now it is done. And the Lord of the land will judge him who sows. And I have seen that beneath the sun, in the place of the righteous, there is the wicked, and in the place of the wicked, there is the righteous. And I said in my heart, "Together the righteous and the wicked will the Lord of the land judge, for there is a time for every deed, and in every deed, there is a place." Ah, I said in my heart concerning the matter, "It is the children of men, how the Lord of the land judges them, and how he shows that they are like beasts." And for them, dust for the children of men, and dust for the beasts; one dust for them, as they die, so die these and those; and one spirit for all of them. And what distinguishes men from beasts? Nothing, for everything is vanity. Everything that moves goes into one place; everything came from the earth, and everything returns to the earth. Who knows the spirit of the children of men, whether it ascends, it is above, and the spirit of the beasts, whether it descends, it is below, into the earth?

And I have seen that there is no good without one who rejoices in his work, for his reward is that which he himself brings, that he may see what will be after him. Chapter 4 And I have considered and I have seen all the oppression that is done together under the sun, and now I have pitied those who are oppressed, and there is none who delivers them from the hand of those who oppress them, and they have no strength to deliver them. And I have mourned for them together, for those who have died, these are better off, for they have died, than the living, these who are living until today. And of these two, it is better still: he who has not been born, who does not know all the evil deed that has been done under the sun. And I have seen all the labor together, and all the power of action, that it is envy for a man before the face of the wind, and this is vanity and emptiness of spirit. He has opened the palm of his hand and eaten his flesh. Good is the fullness of the hand in rest, rather than the two of iniquity and emptiness of spirit.

And I marvelled, I, and I saw the truth beneath the sun: there is one and there is no second, and a son, and I have nothing, and there is no end to all his work, and his eye also is not filled with wealth, and for whom am I to work and to provide for my soul from want? And this is truth, and work is evil. Two are better than one, for they have counsel for good in their thirst. For if one falls, the other raises him, and there is no one for the one if he falls and there is no second to raise him. For if both live, they die, and one alone, how shall he be mourned? And if one is strong, both support him, and a third rope is quickly not broken. A wise poor man is better than a foolish rich king, and a fool who knows not how to see further. As from a house of mourning a king goes forth, for in his kingdom he became poor. And I saw all the living creatures that move beneath the sun: a parable and a shadow; a second arises in his place.

There is no end for all the people, for all those who were before him, for even the latter ones will not rejoice, for this also is vanity and a snare of the spirit. Guard your foot when you go to the house of the Lord of the land, and bring your offering near to the hearing more than their wealth, for the destroyers are not wise in doing good. Chapter 5 Do not multiply with your mouth and your heart; do not multiply to bring forth a word before the face of the Lord of the land, for the Lord of the land is in heaven above, and you are on the earth; because of this, your speech will be deficient. For a dream comes with much trouble, and a word of the desert comes with many things. As you have prayed a prayer to the Lord of the land, do not be anxious about the giving, for there is no will for the destroyers; you, as you have prayed, give. It is better that your prayer be from your prayer, and not give. Do not give your mouth to the sin of your flesh, and do not speak before the face of the Lord of the land without knowledge; it is as if the Lord of the land is not pleased with your word, and he will test the work of your hands.

Because of many dreams and vanities and many words, and because the Lord of the land is fearful. If you see the foot of the poor and the way of opening justice in the land, you will be amazed at the deed, for the high one watches over the high ones, and the high ones are above them. And the earth is a bed over everything; it is a king over the fruit of the field. He who loves silver is not satisfied with silver, and he who loved much grain—this also is vanity. With much wealth, many are those who consume it, and what strength has he who approaches? For he judges until the eye sees. Sweet sleep for a man, whether little or much, he has eaten; and for him who has eaten much, there is none who leaves him to sleep. There is a disease that I have seen under the sun: wealth that is awaited by him who has prepared it for evil. And wealth itself is turned into evil, and he has begotten a son, and there is nothing in his hand, nor anything at all. As he came forth from his mother's womb naked, so he goes in; as he came, and there is none who takes from his burden, as he goes with him.

And this is an evil disease, for as it came, so it goes, and what are its remedies that it may be healed for his soul? For all his days are in darkness and emptiness, and in affliction, much weeping and sorrow and grief. But only this I have seen: good, that which brings good things, eating and drinking, and seeing the light of the sun in all his labor which he has wrought under the sun, the number of the days of life which the Lord has given him, for it is his portion. And every man to whom the Lord has given wealth and abundance and has allowed him to eat from it and to take his portion, and to rejoice from his labor, it is the gift of the Lord. For it is not many who remember the days of his life, for the Lord has made him according to the desire of his heart. Chapter 6 There is evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is great over man. A man to whom the Lord has given wealth and abundance and honor, and there is none who can restrain his soul from all that it desires, and the Lord has not allowed him to eat from it, for a man of business consumes it, and this is vanity and an evil disease.

If a man lives a hundred years and many years, he lives many days and many years of his life, and his soul is not satisfied with good things, and his funeral is not like that which is fitting for him, but is more miserable than that of a poor man. For he came in vain, and in darkness he passes, and in darkness his name is hidden. And the sun does not see, and does not know his rest, this one from that one. And when he lived a hundred and ten circuits of years, he did not see good things, nor does he go in one place at all. All the work of man is in his mouth, and his soul is not filled. What is the difference for the wise man from the fool, concerning the poor man who knows how to pass before life? It is better to see with the eye than to pass with the soul, and this is vain and a desire of the spirit. All that has happened, now his name is heard, and the wonder of what man is, and he cannot compare himself with one who is stronger than he. For there is much talk that increases vanity. Chapter 7

What is the multitude of men? Who is he who knows what is good for a man in his life, while he counts the days of his life? Vanity, and his deeds are in shadow. Who knows for a man what will be after him under the sun? Better a good name than fine oil, and a day of death than a day of birth. Better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for that is the end of every man, and he who lives gives good in his heart. Better weeping than laughter, for by an evil face the heart is taught. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, and the heart of fools is in the house of joy. Better one who hears the admonition of the wise than a man who hears the song of a fool. As the word of a thorn under a pot, so are the words of fools, and their ear is vanity. For affliction humbles the wise and causes the joy of his heart to cease. Better the last word than the first; better the patient than the proud of spirit.

Do not go out in your spirit to the multitude, for a hundred are in the bosom of destruction, they pass away. Do not say, "What has happened?" for the days of the multitude are better than those, for it is not in wisdom that you have asked concerning this. Good wisdom is with the aged, and friendship is with those who see the sun. For the shadow of wisdom is like the shadow of a mirror, and friendship is the understanding of wisdom, and it preserves the one who has acquired it. See the work of the Lord of the land: who is he who can make equal to the one whom the Lord of the land has made? In good days, live in joy, and see in a bad day; and this now is with this: he is the servant of the Lord of the land, because of the matter that a man will not find what is after him, nor anything. All together I have seen in the days of my labor: the righteous one who walks in his righteousness, and the wicked one who lives in his evil. And do not be righteous with a friend, and do not be wise with a friend, as if you were mocking.

And do not err one after another, and do not become a slave like one who dies before your time. Your existence is bitter in this, and moreover, do not stretch out your hand, for he who fears the Lord of the land will come forth from everything. Wisdom guides the wise man more than the ten governors who are in the city. For there is no righteous person on earth who does good and does not wither. And in all the discourse that is spoken, do not let your heart be led astray, so that you do not hear your servant while he curses you. For many will flatter you, and in the end many will weary your heart, for you too have cursed another. All this I have considered in wisdom; would that I were wise, but she is far from me. Far away while she exists, and deep, profound—who can find her? I have humbled myself and my heart in understanding, and like one who desires and longs for wisdom and thought, and like one who knows the wicked, I hate them and have silenced their falsehoods. And I myself have found a bitter death: a woman who is a harlot and a procuress, her heart a fetter in her hand, good before the Lord of the land, who is boastful because of her, and he who withers will be imprisoned by her.

Now this I have found, says Ecclesiastes: one thing from another for one who has found wisdom. What my soul desired, I did not find. And one man out of a hundred I found, and a woman among all of them I did not find. Only this I have found: what the Lord of the land has done, and in his time a man is righteous, and the faithful will be silent. Wisdom is abundant; who will understand the wise, and who will understand the interpretation of their words? Chapter 8 The wisdom of a man brightens his face, and one who has no shame in his face is hateful. Guard the mouth of a king and the word of an oath. Do not be hasty, and before his face pass by; do not stand in an evil matter, for everyone does what he wills. And like a king, speak with authority, and who will say to you, "What have you done?" He who keeps a command does not know an evil word, and at the time of judgment, the heart of the wise knows. For every deed has a time of judgment, for the understanding of a man is strong over him.

For there is no one who knows what will happen, for who can tell what will be? There is no one who can rule over another spirit in union with his own spirit, and there is no one who can rule on the day of his death, and there is no messenger on the day of slaughter, and the maiden does not save what is with her. And all this I have seen in union, and I have given my heart into all creation that was created under the sun, for man has been found to be perfected for the wickedness of man. Then I saw our maiden while they were weeping in the holy tomb, and those from among the saints went and were glorified in the city, for they did as such, and this is vanity. For there is no one who can be a bow against those who do evil with swiftness, because of this the heart of the children of man rests in them for the doing of evil. He who has done a sin has done more than a worm and than his own face, for I know that there is good for those who fear the Lord of the land, as they fear before his face.

And there is no good for the wicked, and the days of his shadow do not last for one who does not fear before the face of the Lord. Vanity is what is done in the world, for there are the righteous who attain the deeds of the wicked, and there are the wicked who attain the deeds of the righteous; and I say this also is vanity. And I have praised all that is perfect, for there is no good for man under the sun except what he eats and drinks and rejoices, and that is what he has in his lifetime, which the Lord has given him under the sun. As I have given my heart to the understanding of wisdom, and as I have seen the work that is done upon the earth, for by day and by night there is no one who sleeps in his eyes who sees. And I have seen all the works of the Lord, that man cannot find the secret of what is done under the sun; if man desires as much as he can, he cannot find it; and if the wise man says that he knows, he cannot find it, for the secret of all this I have given my heart, and my heart has seen all this.

Chapter 9 As for the righteous, the wise, and their deeds, they are in the hand of the Lord; love and hate have no one who knows them, all men, before their faces. And the same is for all: one grave for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the evil, for the pure and the defiled, for the one who offers sacrifice and for the one who does not offer sacrifice, as for the good, and for the one who sins as for the one who swears an oath, and as for the one who fears an oath. This is all that was done under the sun, for there is one grave for all, and the hearts of the children of men have ended thus, and in the confusion of their hearts is their life, and after them, to the place of the dead. For who is it that associates with all the living in hope? As a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything, and they have no consciousness, for their memory has been forgotten. And their love and their hate and their envy—now they have passed away, and they have no portion or share at all in the world, in all that was done under the sun.

Come, eat your bread with joy, and drink your good wine with your heart, for the Lord has approved your deeds. At all times, let your garments be clean, and let the crown on your head not be removed. And behold the life with your wife, whom you have loved, all the days of your life, which were given to you from beneath the sun, all the times of times which were for you, for it is your portion in your life and in your old age, which you spend beneath the sun. All that your hand can plant, do according to the measure of your strength, for there is no deed or thought or wisdom or knowledge in Gehenna, where you will go. I have examined and seen beneath the sun that it is not for the swift to flee, nor for the strong to kill, nor for the wise to eat, nor for the intelligent to be satiated, nor for those who wear grace, for when the time of the net falls, it catches them all. For they do not know their time, like fish that are caught in a bad net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, and likewise the children of men are caught in a bad time when misfortune falls upon them.

And behold, I have seen this wisdom under the sun, and it is great in my sight. A small city, and the people within it are few. And when a great king came against it, he besieged it and built a great rampart against it. He found within it a poor man, wise, who saved the city. That poor man, by his wisdom, and there is no one among the people who remembered that man. And I say, wisdom is better than strength, and the wisdom of the poor, which is despised, and their story, how those who hear it! The word of the wise is heard in rest more than the shouting of those who rule with folly. Wisdom is better than the noise of a field, and while one sins, another cultivates a great blessing. Chapter 10 A dead fly spoils the taste of sweet oil. A little wisdom is more honorable than great glory in folly. The heart of the wise is on his right, and the heart of the fool is on his left. And when the fool walks on the road, his heart is troubled, and everything that is beautiful is the fool himself.

If the spirit of one who climbs a wall goes up over you, your place will be abandoned, for a serpent abandons its great sin. In evil I have seen under the sun, as from folly it went out before the wall. A servant was given to a great master, and maidservants dwell beneath. I have seen servants upon horses and governors while they walk upon the earth like servants. He who throws a stone into it falls, and he who lifts a spear is bitten by a serpent of the earth. He who rolls a stone is pained by it, and he who cuts wood is broken by it. When the wise man is angry, even he is troubled, and strength is weakened, and his subtlety is for the strong wisdom. If a serpent of the earth bites you and there is no healer, there is no one who heals, no one who cures. The speech of the mouth of the wise is grace, and the lips of the servant cause him to drink. First, the speech of his mouth is loss, and last, his mouth is a liar. A servant multiplies words; a man does not know what was and what will be, for after him who will remember him?

His servant is silent, for he does not know how to go into the city. Woe to you, O city whose king and nobles eat in the morning. Blessed is the land whose king and the son of Agʿazi and your nobles eat at the proper time by force and are not ashamed. By deceit and by the sowing of hands, a house falls, and a house is brought out by the hands of sorcerers. To Isaac they bequeath bread and wine; they make the living rejoice; for gold, all is troubled. And you, in your wisdom, do not judge the king, and in the midst of your house, do not judge the elders, for a bird of the sky will carry forth your voice, and one who has a wing will tell your speech. Chapter 11 Send your bread upon the face of the water, for after many days you will find it. Give a portion to seven and eight, for you do not know what evil will happen in the land. If the clouds are full, rain will fall upon the land; and if a tree falls, whether to the south or to the north, where the tree falls, there it will lie.

He who restrains the wind does not sow, and he who watches the clouds does not reap. For there is no one who knows what the path of the wind is, like the bones in the womb of a pregnant woman. Likewise, you do not know the work of God, as much as the work of a companion of a loaf. In the morning, sow your seed, and in the evening, do not let your hand rest, for you do not know what will be from this or from both together, good. Sweet is the light and good for the eyes to see the companion of the sun. For if a man has lived many years, in all of them he rejoices and remembers the days of darkness, as if many things will be, everything that comes, vain. Rejoice in your youth with your mouth, and strengthen your heart in the days of your youth, and walk on the path of your heart that is pure, and do not see with your eye, and know that because of this, everything that brings you near to God, the land, for judgment. And remove anger from your heart, and cleanse evil from your body, for youth and ignorance are vain.

Chapter 12 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil day comes and the years arrive when you will say, "It is not my will." Before the sun and the light of the moon and the stars grow dim, and before the clouds are scattered after the rains. When the day dawns, the guardians of the house are troubled; men of strength and of sowing are those who hasten, because of the one who is alone, and those who see in the shadow grow dark. And they close the windows with bolts, with a hidden voice that is concealed and rises with the voice of a bird, and they diminish all the children of the choir. For the lofty see and stumble on the path, and the frog leaps, and the locust flies, and the lamb is terrified, because a man has entered the house of his world, and those who weave have given their reward. Until, without the crystal being shattered, and the gold's appearance being shaken, and the sieve being shaken in the well, and the wheel rolling in the well.

And the body enters the earth, as it was, and the spirit enters to the Lord of the land who gave it. Vanity, vanity, says the Preacher; all is vanity. And moreover, because the Preacher became wise, and because he teaches knowledge to all people, and the ear tests the hidden proverb. The Preacher desired much, as one who finds the word of will, and the upright reading of righteousness. The word of the wise is like a soothing medicine and like a healing incision for those who, from the place of learning, were given by one teacher. And moreover, from among them, my son, do not make many books that have no end, and much learning is a thirst for the body. Hear every word, and fear the Lord of the land, and keep his commandments, for he is the whole man. For all creation keeps the Lord of the land for all that is not revealed, whether good or evil. The Sabbath of Sabbaths, which is called Sardsarin, is completed: the word of the Preacher, son of David.