Ecclesiastes chapter 1
All is vanity
1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
3 What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises, and the sun sets, and hurries back to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its circuits.
7 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full; to the place the streams come from, there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can say; the eye is never satisfied with seeing, nor the ear with hearing.
9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say, “Look, this is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.
11 There is no remembrance of things that were before, nor will there be remembrance of things to come among those who come after.
The Preacher's Experience
12 I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 I applied my heart to inquire and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven; this grievous task God has given to the sons of men to be occupied with.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is incomplete cannot be counted.
16 I said to myself, “Look, I have become great and have surpassed all those who were before me in Jerusalem; my mind has gained much wisdom and knowledge.”
17 I applied my heart to know wisdom, and also to understand folly and madness; I perceived that this too was a striving after wind.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 2
1 I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure, and you will enjoy good things.” But this also proved to be meaningless.
2 I said to laughter, “You are mad!” and to pleasure, “What good is it?”
3 I resolved to indulge my flesh with wine and to guide my mind with wisdom, even while retaining folly, until I saw what was best for humankind to do under heaven all the days of their lives.
4 I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards.
5 I made gardens and orchards and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them.
6 I also made reservoirs of water to irrigate the grove where the trees grew.
7 I bought male and female servants and had servants born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone who lived in Jerusalem before me.
8 I also amassed for myself silver and gold, and the treasures of kings and provinces; I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and all kinds of musical instruments.
9 I became greater and more numerous than all who were before me in Jerusalem; moreover, I retained my wisdom.
10 I did not deny my eyes anything they desired, nor did I withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart rejoiced in all my labor; and this was my reward for all my toil.
11 Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it; and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.
12 Afterward I looked again to see wisdom, and madness, and folly; for what can the man who comes after the king do? Nothing, except what has already been done.
13 And I saw that wisdom surpasses folly as light surpasses darkness.
14 The wise man has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness; yet I also perceived that the same fate befalls them both.
15 Then I said in my heart, “What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I labored so much to become wiser?” And I said in my heart, “This also is vanity.”
16 For neither the wise nor the fool will be remembered forever; in the days to come all will be forgotten, and the wise man will die just like the fool.
17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
18 I also hated all my toil that I had done under the sun, because I must leave it to someone who will come after me.
19 And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish, yet he will have authority over all my toil in which I have labored and used my wisdom under the sun? This also is meaningless.
20 So my heart melted again over all the toil in which I had labored and used my wisdom under the sun.
21 Let a man labor with wisdom, knowledge, and skill, and leave his possessions to someone who has not labored for them! This also is meaningless and a great evil.
22 For what does a man gain from all his labor and the effort of his heart with which he toils under the sun?
23 For all his days are pain, and his work is sorrow; even at night his heart finds no rest. This also is meaningless.
24 There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their work. This too, I see, is from God.
25 For who can eat and take care of themselves better than I?
26 To the one who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 3
Everything has its time.
1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What does the worker gain from his toil?
10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.
11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
12 I know that there is nothing better for them than to be happy and to do good while they live.
13 And that it is a gift of God that everyone should eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil.
14 I know that everything God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.
15 Whatever is, already is; whatever is to be, already has been; and God restores what has passed away.
Injustices of life
16 I saw something else under the sun: In the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of justice, iniquity was there.
17 And I said in my heart, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every deed.”
18 I said in my heart, “It is so for the sake of the sons of men, that God may test them, and that they may see that they themselves are like animals.”
19 For what happens to the sons of men happens to animals; one fate befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity.
20 All go to one place; all are from the dust, and to dust all return.
21 Who knows if the spirit of the sons of men ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward into the earth?
22 So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to rejoice in his toil, for this is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?
Ecclesiastes chapter 4
1 I turned around and saw all the oppression that is done under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, with no one to comfort them. Might was in the hand of their oppressors, but there was no one to comfort them.
2 So I praised the dead, who are already dead, more than the living, who are still alive.
3 I considered him better than both, the one who is yet to be, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.
4 I also saw that all toil and all skillful work is the result of a person’s envy of their neighbor. This too is meaningless, a striving after wind.
5 A fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh.
6 Better is a handful of quietness than two handfuls of toil and a striving after wind.
7 I turned around again and saw the meaninglessness under the sun.
8 There is a man all alone, without successor, without son or brother; But he never stops working, nor are his eyes satisfied with his riches, nor does he ask, “For whom am I toiling, and depriving myself of good things?” This also is vanity and hard labor.
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
13 Better is a poor but wise youth than a foolish old king who cannot take advice,
14 for he came out of prison to reign, and though he was born poor in his kingdom.
15 I saw all who live under the sun walking with the young man who will succeed him, who will take his place.
16 There was no end to the multitude of the people who followed him; yet those who come after him will not be pleased with him either. This too is vanity and a striving after wind.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 5
The folly of making vows lightly
1 When you go to the house of God, guard your steps. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.
2 Do not be rash with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
3 For a dream comes when there is much activity, and a fool’s voice when there are many words.
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Fulfill what you vow.
5 It is better not to vow than to vow and not fulfill it.
6 Do not let your mouth cause you to sin, and do not say before the messenger of God, “It was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For in many dreams there is also much vanity and many words; But you, fear God.
The vanity of life
8 If you see the oppression of the poor and the perversion of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be surprised at it; for one higher than the other keeps watch over the high, and yet another is above them.
9 Moreover, the produce of the land is for everyone; even the king is subject to the fields.
10 Whoever loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor will he who loves abundance gain anything. This also is vanity.
11 When goods increase, those who consume them also increase. What benefit, then, is there to the owner except to see them with his eyes?
12 The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep.
13 There is a grievous evil that I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owners to their own hurt;
14 which is lost through evil endeavors, and the children they have fathered are left with nothing in their hands.
15 As he came from his mother’s womb, naked, so he will return, going just as he came; and he will take nothing from his labor with him.
16 This also is a great evil: that as he came, so he will return. And what profit was he in vain?
17 Besides all this, all the days of his life he will eat in darkness, with much toil and sorrow and misery.
18 Here is what I have seen to be good: it is good for one to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all one’s toil at which one toils under the sun the few days of life God has given him, for this is his lot.
19 Likewise, to every man to whom God gives wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his labor—this is a gift of God.
20 For he will not dwell unduly on the days of his life, because God fills his heart with gladness.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 6
1 There is an evil I have seen under heaven, and it is very common among men:
2 A man to whom God gives riches, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all his soul’s desires; yet God does not grant him the power to enjoy them, but others enjoy them. This is vanity and a grievous evil.
3 Even if a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, yet his soul is not satisfied with good things, and he also lacks a burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.
4 For he comes in vain; he goes into darkness, and his name is covered with darkness.
5 Moreover, he has neither seen the sun nor known it; he has more rest than he.
6 For if he lives a thousand years twice over, without enjoying good things, do not all go to the same place?
7 All a man’s labor is for his mouth, yet for all that he is not satisfied.
8 For what advantage does the wise have over the foolish? What advantage does the poor have who knows how to walk among the living?
9 Better is the sight of the eyes than the desire that passes away. This too is vanity and a striving after wind.
10 As for what he is, he has long had a name, and it is known that he is a man and cannot contend with Him who is mightier than he.
11 Surely, many words multiply vanity. What more does man have?
12 For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will happen after him under the sun?
Ecclesiastes Chapter 7
Contrast between wisdom and folly
1 A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to a house of feasting, for mourning is the destiny of all people, and the living will take this to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for by the sadness of one’s countenance the heart is made better.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 It is better to heed the rebuke of the wise than the song of fools.
6 For the laughter of fools is like the rustling of thorns under a pot—this also is meaningless.
7 Surely oppression makes a wise person foolish, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and a patient spirit better than a proud spirit.
9 Do not be quick-tempered in your spirit; For anger resides in the heart of fools.
10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to inquire about such things.
11 Knowledge is good with an inheritance, and profitable to those who see the sun.
12 For knowledge is a shield, and money is a shield, but wisdom is superior because it gives life to its possessor.
13 Consider the work of God; for who can straighten what he has made crooked?
14 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 may find out nothing that will be after him.
15 All this I have seen in the days of my vanity: There is a righteous person who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked person who prolongs his days in his wickedness.
16 Do not be overly righteous, nor be overly wise; why should you destroy yourself?
17 Do not do much wrong, nor be foolish; Why should you die before your time?
18 It is good for you to take hold of this, and also not to let go of that; for he who fears God will prosper in all things.
19 Wisdom gives the wise more strength than ten mighty men in a city.
20 Surely there is no one on earth who is righteous, who does good and never sins.
21 Do not pay attention to everything people say, or you will hear your servant speaking evil of you.
22 For your heart knows that you too have spoken ill of others many times.
23 All these things I tested by wisdom, saying, “I will be wise”; but wisdom was far from me.
24 That which has been is far off; and that which is very deep, who can find it out?
25 I turned and set my heart to know, to search out, and to seek wisdom and the reason for it, and to know the wickedness of folly and the madness of error.
26 And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God will escape from her, but the sinner will be taken captive by her.
27 Behold, this I have found, says the Preacher, weighing things one by one to find the reason;
28 that which my soul still seeks, and finds not: one man among a thousand I have found, but a woman among all these I have not found.
29 Behold, this only have I found: that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 8
1 Who is like the wise person? Who is like one who understands the interpretation of things? A person’s wisdom makes their face bright, and the harshness of their countenance is changed.
2 I advise you to keep the king’s command and the word of God’s oath.
3 Do not be hasty to leave his presence, nor persist in any evil, for he will do whatever he pleases.
4 For the king’s word is commandable, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
5 Whoever keeps the commandment will experience no harm, and the heart of the wise discerns the time and the judgment.
6 For there is a time and a judgment for every matter, though a person’s troubles are great upon them.
7 For they do not know what will happen, and who can tell them when it will happen?
8 No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, nor power over the day of death; And weapons are of no use in such a war, nor will wickedness deliver those who possess it.
9 All this I have seen, and I have applied my heart to all that is done under the sun; there is a time when man rules over man to his own harm.
Inequalities of life
10 I have also seen the wicked buried with honor, while those who frequented the holy place were soon forgotten in the city where they had acted righteously. This also is meaningless.
11 Because judgment against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the hearts of the sons of men are fully set to do evil.
12 Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his days, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before him.
13 But it will not be well with the wicked, nor will his days be prolonged, for they are like a shadow, because he does not fear before God.
14 There is a vanity that is done on earth: There are righteous people to whom things happen as if they had done the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people to whom things happen as if they had done the deeds of the righteous. I say that this also is meaningless.
15 Therefore I commended happiness, for there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be merry, and that this may be their reward from their toil during the days of their life that God has given them under the sun.
16 So I applied my heart to understand wisdom and to see the work that is done on earth (for there are those who neither sleep night nor day);
17 and I have seen all the works of God, that man cannot fathom the work that is done under the sun; though man labors and seeks it, he will not find it; though a wise man claims to know it, he will not thereby attain it.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 9
1 I have indeed given my heart to all these things, to declare all this: that the righteous and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hate, no one knows; all is before them.
2 All things happen the same way to everyone; the same fate befalls the righteous and the wicked, the good and the clean and the unclean, the one who sacrifices and the one who does not sacrifice; as with the good, so with the sinner; the one who swears, as with the one who fears an oath.
3 This is the evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same fate befalls everyone, and also that the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and folly in their hearts during their lives; and after that they go to the dead.
4 There is still hope for all who are among the living, for a live dog is better than a dead lion.
5 For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no further reward. because their memory is forgotten.
6 Their love, their hate, and their envy have already perished; and they will never again have a share in anything done under the sun.
7 Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for your works are already pleasing to God.
8 Let your garments always be white, and let your head never lack oil.
9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your fleeting life that God has given you under the sun, all your fleeting days; for this is your portion in life and in your toil at which you labor under the sun.
10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
11 I returned and saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the skillful; but time and chance happen to them all.
12 For man does not know his time; like fish caught in a cruel net, or like birds caught in a snare, so are the sons of men ensnared in an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.
13 Also I saw this wisdom under the sun, and it seemed great to me:
14 A small city with few men in it; and a great king comes against it, besieges it, and builds great siege works against it.
15 And there is found in it a poor wise man, and by his wisdom he delivers the city; yet no one remembers that poor man.
16 Then I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, though the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heeded.”
17 The words of the wise, heard quietly, are better than the shout of a ruler among fools.
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 10
Excellence of wisdom
1 Dead flies cause the perfumer’s ointment to send forth a stinking savor; so does a little folly to one who is considered wise and honorable.
2 The heart of the wise is at his right hand, but the heart of the fool at his left.
3 Even as a fool goes along the way, his senses fail him, and he proclaims to everyone that he is a fool.
4 If the prince’s anger rises against you, do not leave your post, for gentleness can appease great offenses.
5 There is an evil I have seen under the sun, like the error of a ruler:
6 Folly is set on high, and the rich sit in low places.
7 I have seen servants on horses, and princes walking like servants on the earth.
8 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and whoever breaks down a wall will be bitten by a snake.
9 Whoever cuts stones will be injured by them, and whoever splits wood will be endangered by it.
10 If the iron is blunt, and its edge is not sharpened, then more strength must be added; but wisdom is profitable for guidance.
11 If a snake bites before it is charmed, the charmer is of no use.
12 The words of the wise are gracious, but the lips of a fool bring ruin upon himself.
13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is folly, and the end of his talk is harmful madness.
14 A fool multiplies words, though no one knows what will happen; and who can tell him what will be after him?
15 The toil of fools wearies them, for they do not know the way to the city.
16 Woe to you, land, when your king is a child, and your princes feast in the morning!
17 Blessed are you, land, when your king is the son of nobles, and your princes eat at the proper time, to strengthen their bodies and not to drink too much!
18 Through laziness the roof caves in, and through idleness the house leaks.
19 A feast is made by pleasure, and wine makes life merry, and money is good for everything.
20 Do not even in your thoughts speak evil of the king, nor in the secret of your chamber speak evil of the rich, for a bird of the air will carry your voice, and a winged creature will proclaim your words.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 11
1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.
2 Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.
3 If the clouds are full of rain, they will pour it on the earth; and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.
4 Whoever observes the wind will not sow, and whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.
5 As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones grow in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God, who makes all things.
6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening do not let your hand rest, for you do not know which will succeed, this or that, or whether both will be equally good.
7 Surely the light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun;
8 But even if a man lives many years, and rejoices in them all, let him remember yet that the days of darkness will be many. All that is to come is vanity.
Tips for young people
9 Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
10 Remove vexation from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh, for youth and the dawn of life are fleeting.
Ecclesiastes Chapter 12
1 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;
2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;
3 when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows grow dim;
4 and the doors on the street are shut because the grinding is so low; when one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low;
5 when they are afraid of heights, and terrors are in the way; and the almond tree blossoms, and the locust is a burden, and desire fails; for man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets;
6 Before the silver cord is severed, and the golden bowl is broken, and the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the wheel is broken at the well;
7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
8 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, all is vanity.
Summary of man's duty
9 The more the Preacher was wise, the more he taught the people wisdom; he instructed them, searched out their thoughts, and composed many proverbs.
10 The Preacher sought to find pleasing words and to write uprightly, words of truth.
11 The words of the wise are like goads, and like firmly driven nails are the words of the masters of the congregations, given by one Shepherd.
12 Now, my son, be warned: There is no end to the writing of many books, and much study wearies the body.
13 The conclusion, when all has been heard, is this: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.