傳道書 7
1 良好的聲譽勝於名貴的香液；死日勝於生日。
A good name is better than fine perfume; and the day of death better than the day of one’s birth.
2 往居喪的家去，勝於往宴會的家去，因為喪事是人人的結局，活人應將此事放在心上。
It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting; for that is the end of all men, and the living should take this to heart.
3 悲哀勝於歡笑，因為愁容能使心靈舒暢。
Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made good.
4 智者的心是在居喪的家中，愚人的心是在歡笑的家中。
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 聽智者斥責，勝過聽愚人歌唱。
It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools.
6 愚人的歡笑，就像斧底荊棘的爆炸聲，但這也是空虛。
For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.
7 實在，壓榨使智者昏愚，賄賂能敗壞人心。
Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
8 事情的結局勝過事情的開端；居心寬容，勝過存心傲慢。
Better is the end of a thing than its beginning. The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
9 你心裏不要輕易動怒，因為憤怒只停留在愚人胸中。
Don’t be hasty in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools.
10 你不要問：「為什麼昔日勝於今日﹖」因為這樣的詰問，不是出於智慧。
Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not ask wisely about this.
11 智慧與家產都好，對看見天日的人都有益，
Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
12 因為受智慧的蔭庇與受金錢的蔭庇無異；但認識智慧的好處，是在於智慧賦與有智慧者生命。
For wisdom is a defence, even as money is a defence; but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
13 你應觀察天主的作為：他所彎曲的，誰能使之正直﹖
Consider the work of God, for who can make that straight which he has made crooked?
14 幸福之日，你應歡樂，不幸之日，你應思慮：幸與不幸，都是天主所為；其目的是叫人不能察覺自己將來的事。
In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider; yes, God has made the one side by side with the other, to the end that man should not find out anything after him.
15 在我虛度的歲月內，我見了許多事：義人在正義中夭亡，惡人在邪惡中反而長壽。
All this I have seen in my days of vanity: there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who lives long in his evildoing.
16 不要過於正義，也不要自作聰明，免得自趨滅亡。
Don’t be overly righteous, neither make yourself overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself?
17 不要作惡無度，也不要糊塗太甚，免得你死非其時。
Don’t be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?
18 你的手最好把持這個，也不要放棄那個，因為敬畏天主的人，二者兼顧並重。
It is good that you should take hold of this. Yes, also don’t withdraw your hand from that; for he who fears God will come out of them all.
19 智慧使智者的權勢，勝過本城十個有權勢的人。
Wisdom is a strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
20 世上沒有一個只行善，而不犯罪的義人。
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and doesn’t sin.
21 你不要傾心去聽人說的一切閒話，免得你聽到你的僕人詛咒你；
Also don’t take heed to all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you;
22 因為你心裏知道，你許多次也詛咒過別人。
for often your own heart knows that you yourself have likewise cursed others.
23 這一切我都用智慧追究過；我宣稱我將成個智者，然而智慧仍離我很遠。
All this I have proved in wisdom. I said, “I will be wise;” but it was far from me.
24 所有的事，既深遠，又玄奧，誰能窮究﹖
That which is, is far off and exceedingly deep. Who can find it out?
25 我又專心致力於認識、考察事物，尋求智慧和事理，得知邪惡就是昏愚，昏愚就是狂妄。
I turned around, and my heart sought to know and to search out, and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity, and that foolishness is madness.
26 我發覺女人比死亡還苦，她一身是羅網：她的心是陷阱，她的手是鎖鏈；凡博天主歡心的，必逃避她；但罪人卻被她纏住。
I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and traps, whose hands are chains. Whoever pleases God shall escape from her; but the sinner will be ensnared by her.
27 訓道者說：看，這是我所發現的，一一加以比較，好探知事物的原理，
“Behold, I have found this,” says Kohelet, “to one another, to find an explanation
28 對此我的心還在追求，但尚未找到：在一千男人中，我發現了一個；在所有的女人中，卻沒有發現一個。
which my soul still seeks, but I have not found. I have found one man amongst a thousand, but I have not found a woman amongst all those.
29 我發現的只有這一件事：天主造人原很正直，但人卻發明了許多詭計。
Behold, I have only found this: that God made mankind upright; but they search for many inventions.”
