Prædikeren 7
1 Godt Navn er bedre end ypperlig Salve, Dødsdag bedre end Fødselsdag;
A good name is better than fine perfume; and the day of death better than the day of one’s birth.
2 bedre at gaa til et Sørgehus end at gaa til et Gildehus; thi hist er alle Menneskers Ende, og de levende bør tage det til Hjerte.
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 Bedre Græmmelse end Latter, thi er Minerne mørke, har Hjertet det godt.
Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made good.
4 De vises Hjerte er i Sørgehuset. Taabernes Hjerte i Glædeshuset.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 Bedre at høre paa Vismands Skænd end at høre paa Taabers Sang.
It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools.
6 Som Tjørnekvistes Knitren under Gryden er Taabers Latter; ogsaa det er Tomhed.
For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.
7 Thi uredelig Vinding gør Vismand til Daare, og Stikpenge ødelægger Hjertet.
Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
8 En Sags Udgang er bedre end dens Indgang, Taalmod er bedre end Hovmod.
Better is the end of a thing than its beginning. The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
9 Vær ikke hastig i dit Sind til at græmmes, thi Græmmelse bor i Taabers Bryst.
Don’t be hasty in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools.
10 Spørg ikke: »Hvoraf kommer det, at de gamle Dage var bedre end vore?« Thi saaledes spørger du ikke med Visdom.
Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not ask wisely about this.
11 Bedre er Visdom end Arv, en Fordel for dem, som skuer Solen;
Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
12 thi Visdom skygger, som Penge skygger, men Kundskabs Fortrin er dette, at Visdom holder sin Mand i Live.
For wisdom is a defense, even as money is a defense; but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
13 Se paa Guds Værk! Hvo kan rette, hvad han har gjort kroget?
Consider the work of God, for who can make that straight which he has made crooked?
14 Vær ved godt Mod paa den gode Dag og indse paa den onde Dag, at Gud skabte denne saavel som hin, for at Mennesket ikke skal finde noget efter sig.
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 Begge Dele saa jeg i mine tomme Dage: Der er retfærdige, som omkommer i deres Retfærdighed, og der er gudløse, som lever længe i deres Ondskab.
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 Vær ikke alt for retfærdig og te dig ikke overvættes viis; hvorfor vil du ødelægge dig selv?
Don’t be overly righteous, neither make yourself overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself?
17 Vær ikke alt for gudløs og vær ingen Daare; hvorfor vil du dø i Utide?
Don’t be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?
18 Det bedste er, at du fastholder det ene og ikke slipper det andet; thi den, der frygter Gud, vil undgaa begge Farer.
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 Visdom gør Vismand stærkere end ti Magthavere i Byen.
Wisdom is a strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
20 Thi intet Menneske er saa retfærdigt paa Jorden, at han kun gør gode Gerninger og aldrig synder.
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and doesn’t sin.
21 Giv ikke Agt paa alle de Ord, Folk siger, at du ikke skal høre din Træl forbande dig;
Also don’t take heed to all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you;
22 thi du ved med dig selv, at ogsaa du mange Gange har forbandet andre.
for often your own heart knows that you yourself have likewise cursed others.
23 Alt dette ransagede jeg med Visdom; jeg tænkte: »Jeg vil vorde viis.« Men Visdom holdt sig langt fra mig;
All this I have proved in wisdom. I said, “I will be wise;” but it was far from me.
24 Tingenes Grund er langt borte, saa dyb, saa dyb; hvem kan finde den?
That which is, is far off and exceedingly deep. Who can find it out?
25 Jeg tog mig for at vende min Hu til Kundskab og Granskning og til at søge efter Visdom og sikker Viden og til at kende, at Gudløshed er Taabelighed, Daarskab Vanvid.
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 Og beskere end Døden fandt jeg Kvinden, thi hun er et Fangegarn; hendes Hjerte er et Net og hendes Arme Lænker. Den, som er Gud kær, undslipper hende, men Synderen bliver hendes Fange.
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 Se, det fandt jeg ud, sagde Prædikeren, ved at lægge det ene til det andet for at drage min Slutning.
“Behold, I have found this,” says Kohelet, “to one another, to find an explanation
28 Hvad min Sjæl stadig søgte, men ikke fandt, er dette: Een Mand fandt jeg blandt tusind, men en Kvinde fandt jeg ikke i hele Flokken.
which my soul still seeks, but I have not found. I have found one man among a thousand, but I have not found a woman among all those.
29 Dog se, det fandt jeg, at Gud har skabt Menneskene, som de bør være; men de har saa mange sære Ting for.
Behold, I have only found this: that God made mankind upright; but they search for many inventions.”
