Prædikeren 7
1 Bedre er et godt Navn end en god Salve og Dødens Dag end ens Fødselsdag.
A good name is better than oil of great price, and the day of death than the day of birth.
2 Det er bedre at gaa til Sørgehuset end at gaa til Gæstebudshuset, fordi hint er hvert Menneskes Endeligt; og den levende skal lægge sig det paa Hjerte.
It is better to go to the house of weeping, than to go to the house of feasting; because that is the end of every man, and the living will take it to their hearts.
3 Græmmelse er bedre end Latter; thi, naar Ansigtet ser ilde ud, kan Hjertet have det godt.
Sorrow is better than joy; when the face is sad the mind gets better.
4 De vises Hjerte er i Sorrigs Hus; men Daarernes Hjerte er i Glædes Hus.
The hearts of the wise are in the house of weeping; but the hearts of the foolish are in the house of joy.
5 Det er bedre at høre Skænd af den vise, end at man hører Sang af Daarer.
It is better to take note of the protest of the wise, than for a man to give ear to the song of the foolish.
6 Thi som Tjørne sprage under Gryden, saa er Daarers Latter; ogsaa dette er Forfængelighed.
Like the cracking of thorns under a pot, so is the laugh of a foolish man; and this again is to no purpose.
7 Thi Fortrykkelse kan gøre en viis gal, og Gave kan fordærve et Hjerte.
The wise are troubled by the ways of the cruel, and the giving of money is the destruction of the heart.
8 Enden paa en Ting er bedre end Begyndelsen derpaa; bedre langmodig end hovmodig.
The end of a thing is better than its start, and a gentle spirit is better than pride.
9 Vær ikke hastig i dit Sind til at fortørnes; thi Fortørnelse hviler i Daarers Barm.
Be not quick to let your spirit be angry; because wrath is in the heart of the foolish.
10 Sig ikke: Hvoraf kom det, at de forrige Dage vare bedre end disse? thi du spørger ikke om saadant af Visdom.
Say not, Why were the days which have gone by better than these? Such a question comes not from wisdom.
11 Visdom er god som et Arvegods, ja bedre for dem, som skue Solen;
Wisdom together with a heritage is good, and a profit to those who see the sun.
12 thi at være under Visdoms Skygge, er at være under Penges Skygge; og Kundskabs Fortrin er: At Visdommen giver dem Livet, som eje den.
Wisdom keeps a man from danger even as money does; but the value of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to its owner.
13 Se Guds Gerning; thi hvo kan gøre det lige, som han gør kroget?
Give thought to the work of God. Who will make straight what he has made bent?
14 Vær ved et godt Mod paa en god Dag, men betænk paa en ond Dag, at Gud har gjort denne ved Siden af den anden, for at Mennesket ikke skal finde noget, som skal ske efter ham.
In the day of wealth have joy, but in the day of evil take thought: God has put the one against the other, so that man may not be certain what will be after him.
15 Alt det har jeg set i min Forfængeligheds Dage: Der er en retfærdig, som omkommer i sin Retfærdighed, og der er en ugudelig, som lever længe i sin Ondskab.
These two have I seen in my life which is to no purpose: a good man coming to his end in his righteousness, and an evil man whose days are long in his evil-doing.
16 Vær ikke alt for retfærdig, og te dig ikke overvættes viis; hvorfor vil du ødelægge dig selv?
Be not given overmuch to righteousness and be not over-wise. Why let destruction come on you?
17 Vær ikke alt for uretfærdig, og vær ikke en Daare; hvorfor skulde du dø i Utide?
Be not evil overmuch, and be not foolish. Why come to your end before your time?
18 Det er godt, at du holder fast ved det ene, men du skal og ikke lade din Haand af fra det andet; thi den, som frygter Gud, undgaar det alt.
It is good to take this in your hand and not to keep your hand from that; he who has the fear of God will be free of the two.
19 Visdom styrker en viis mere end ti vældige, som ere i en Stad.
Wisdom makes a wise man stronger than ten rulers in a town.
20 Thi der er ikke et Menneske retfærdigt paa Jorden, som gør godt og ikke synder.
There is no man on earth of such righteousness that he does good and is free from sin all his days.
21 Læg ikke heller paa dit Hjerte alle de Ord, som man siger, at du ikke skal høre din Tjener forbande dig.
Do not give ear to all the words which men say, for fear of hearing the curses of your servant.
22 Thi dit Hjerte ved ogsaa de mange Gange, da du selv har forbandet andre.
Your heart has knowledge how frequently others have been cursed by you.
23 Alt det har jeg forsøgt med Visdommen; jeg sagde: Jeg vil opnaa Visdom, men den forblev langt fra mig.
All this I have put to the test by wisdom; I said, I will be wise, but it was far from me.
24 Det, som er til, er langt borte og dybt, dybt! hvo kan finde det?
Far off is true existence, and very deep; who may have knowledge of it?
25 Jeg vendte mig om med mit Hjerte, for at forstaa og at udgranske og at søge Visdom og Fornuftighed og for at forstaa, at Ugudelighed er Daarskab, og at Daarskab er Vanvid.
I gave my mind to knowledge and to searching for wisdom and the reason of things, and to the discovery that sin is foolish, and that to be foolish is to be without one's senses.
26 Og jeg fandt, hvad der var beskere end Døden: Den Kvinde, hvis Hjerte var Snarer og Garn, og hvis Hænder vare Baand; den, som er velbehagelig for Guds Ansigt, skal undkomme fra hende, men en Synder skal fanges ved hende.
And I saw a thing more bitter than death, even the woman whose heart is full of tricks and nets, and whose hands are as bands. He with whom God is pleased will get free from her, but the sinner will be taken by her.
27 Se, dette har jeg fundet, sagde Prædikeren, det ene efter det andet, idet jeg vilde finde Fornuftighed,
Look! this I have seen, said the Preacher, taking one thing after another to get the true account,
28 hvilken min Sjæl endnu søger, men jeg ikke har fundet; iblandt tusinde fandt jeg een Mand, men fandt ikke en Kvinde iblandt dem alle.
For which my soul is still searching, but I have it not; one man among a thousand have I seen; but a woman among all these I have not seen.
29 Dog se, dette har jeg fundet, at Gud skabte Mennesket ret; men de søge mange Spidsfindigheder.
This only have I seen, that God made men upright, but they have been searching out all sorts of inventions.
