Prædikeren 8
1 Hvo er som den vise? og hvo forstaar Sagens Udtydning? Menneskens Visdom opklarer hans Ansigt, og hans Ansigts Haardhed forandres.
Who is like the wise man, and who knoweth the explanation of a thing? A man's wisdom brighteneth his countenance, and the harshness of his face is changed.
2 Jeg siger: Agt paa Kongens Mund, og det formedelst Eden til Gud.
I counsel thee to keep the king's commandment, and that on account of the oath of God.
3 Vær ikke hastig til at gaa bort fra hans Ansigt, bliv ikke staaende ved en slet Sag; thi han kan gøre alt, hvad han har Lyst til,
Be not in haste to depart from his presence; persist not in an evil thing; for whatever pleaseth him, that he doeth.
4 efterdi Kongens Ord er et Magtsprog; og hvo tør sige til ham: Hvad gør du?
For the word of the king is powerful; and who can say to him, “What doest thou?”
5 Hvo som holder Budet, skal intet ondt forfare, og den vises Hjerte kender Tid og Ret.
He that keepeth the commandment shall experience no evil; and the heart of the wise man hath regard to time and judgment.
6 Thi for enhver Idræt er der Tid og Ret; thi Menneskets Ulykke hviler svar over ham.
For to every thing there is a time and judgment. For the misery of man is great upon him.
7 Thi han ved ikke, hvad der skal ske: Thi hvo kan tilkendegive ham, hvorledes det skal vorde?
For no one knoweth what shall be; for who can tell him how it shall be?
8 Mennesket har ikke Magt over Aanden til at holde Aanden tilbage og ingen Magt over Dødens Dag og kan i Striden ikke undslippe, og Ugudelighed kan ikke redde sin Ejermand.
No man hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit, and no man hath power over the day of death; and there is no discharge in that war; and wickedness shall not deliver those that are guilty of it.
9 Alt dette har jeg set, og jeg har lagt Mærke til al den Gerning, som gøres under Solen; der er en Tid, da Mennesket hersker over et Menneske til dettes Ulykke.
All this have I seen, and I have given heed to all things that are done under the sun. There is a time when man ruleth over man to his hurt.
10 Og da saa jeg de ugudelige at begraves og komme hjem og at gaa bort fra den Helliges Sted og at glemmes i Staden efter at have gjort saaledes; ogsaa dette er Forfængelighed.
And so I saw the wicked buried, while the righteous came and went from the holy place, and were forgotten in the city. This also is vanity.
11 Efterdi der ikke fældes en Dom, haster Ondskabens Gerning; derfor er Menneskenes Børns Hjerte inden i dem fuldt af at gøre ondt.
Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore doth the heart of the sons of men become bold within them to do evil.
12 Lad endog en Synder gøre hundrede Gange ondt og leve længe! thi jeg ved dog, at det skal gaa dem vel, som frygte Gud, og som frygte for hans Ansigt.
But though a sinner do evil a hundred times, and have his days prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, that fear before him.
13 Men det skal ikke gaa den ugudelige vel, og han skal ikke leve længe, han skal gaa bort ligesom en Skygge, fordi han ikke frygter for Guds Ansigt.
But it shall not be well with the wicked: he shall be like a shadow, and shall not prolong his days, because he feareth not before God.
14 Der er en Forfængelighed, som sker paa Jorden: At der er retfærdige, hvem det rammer efter de ugudeliges Gerning, og at der er ugudelige, hvem det rammer efter de retfærdiges Gerning; jeg sagde, at ogsaa dette er Forfængelighed.
There is a vanity which taketh place upon the earth, that there are righteous men to whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked, and that there are wicked men to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous. I said, “This also is vanity!”
15 Og jeg prisede Glæden, efterdi et Menneske intet bedre har under Solen end at æde og at drikke og at være glad; og saadant følger ham for hans Arbejde i hans Livsdage, som Gud har givet ham under Solen.
Then I commended joy; because nothing is good for a man under the sun, except to eat and to drink and to be joyful; for it is this that abideth with him for his labor during the days of his life which God giveth him under the sun.
16 Eftersom jeg gav mit Hjerte hen til at forstaa Visdom og til at se den Møje, som man gør sig paa Jorden, at der er den, som hverken Dag eller Nat ser Søvn i sine Øjne:
When I applied my mind to know wisdom, and to see the business which is done upon the earth, —that one seeth no sleep with his eyes by day or by night, —
17 Da saa jeg al Guds Gerning, at et Menneske ikke kan udfinde den Gerning, som sker under Solen, idet Mennesket arbejder paa at udgranske den uden at kunne finde den; og selv om den vise vilde sige sig at forstaa den, kan han dog ikke finde den.
then I saw the whole work of God, that a man cannot comprehend that which is done under the sun; how much soever he labor to search it out, yet shall he not comprehend it; yea, though a wise man resolve to know it, yet shall he not be able to comprehend it.
