Eklesiastes 8
1 En ngʼa machalo gi ngʼama nigi rieko matut? En ngʼa mongʼeyo wacho tiend gik moko? Rieko miyo ngʼato bedo mamor kendo otieko ich wangʼ ma en-go.
Who is like the wise man? and to whom is the sense of anything clear? A man's wisdom makes his face shining, and his hard face will be changed.
2 Luor chik ruoth, awacho kamano, nikech ni kwongʼori e nyim Jehova Nyasaye.
I say to you, Keep the king's law, from respect for the oath of God.
3 Kik irikni ka ia e nyim ruoth. Kik ichwak ngʼama timo richo, nimar obiro timo gimora amora mohero.
Be not quick to go from before him. Be not fixed in an evil design, because he does whatever is pleasing to him.
4 Nimar wach ruoth nigi teko, en ngʼa manyalo wachone niya, “Angʼo ma itimo?”
The word of a king has authority; and who may say to him, What is this you are doing?
5 Ngʼato angʼata moluoro chikne ok noyud hinyruok moro amora, to chuny man-gi rieko biro ngʼeyo sa mowinjore mar timo gimoro kod chenro miluwo.
Whoever keeps the law will come to no evil: and a wise man's heart has knowledge of time and of decision.
6 Nimar nitiere sa mowinjore kod chenro miluwo e gimoro amora, kata kamano dhier mar dhano pek moloye.
For every purpose there is a time and a decision, because the sorrow of man is great in him.
7 Nimar dhano ok ongʼeyo gima biro, en ngʼa manyalo nyise gima biro?
No one is certain what is to be, and who is able to say to him when it will be?
8 Onge ngʼama nigi teko ewi yamo mondo ochike, omiyo onge ngʼama nigi teko e odiechieng thone. Mana kaka jalweny ok mi thuolo mar yweyo e kinde mag kedo, e kaka joricho bende ok yud thuolo kuom timbegigo.
No man has authority over the wind, to keep the wind; or is ruler over the day of his death. In war no man's time is free, and evil will not keep the sinner safe.
9 Magi duto ne aneno, kane aketo pacha e gik moko duto mitimo e piny. Nitie kinde moro ma ngʼato sandoe jowetegi to en owuon ema ohinyore.
All this have I seen, and have given my heart to all the work which is done under the sun: there is a time when man has power over man for his destruction.
10 Aseneno joma timbegi richo ka iyiko, jogo mane osiko kadonjo kendo wuok e kama ler kendo ne yudo pak e dala maduongʼ kuom gik ma ok mi Nyasaye duongʼ. Ma bende en tim manono.
And then I saw evil men put to rest, taken even from the holy place; and they went about and were praised in the town because of what they had done. This again is to no purpose.
11 Ka ngʼado bura ne janjore ok otim, to chuny ji pongʼ gi chenro mar timo marach.
Because punishment for an evil work comes not quickly, the minds of the sons of men are fully given to doing evil.
12 Kata obedo ni joma timbegi richo nyalo timo richo mathoth, to pod ginyalo dak kuom kinde mangʼeny, to gima angʼeyo en ni joma oluoro Nyasaye to biro dhi maber e nyim Nyasaye.
Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and his life is long, I am certain that it will be well for those who go in fear of God and are in fear before him.
13 Nikech joma timbegi mono ok oluoro Nyasaye, ok ginine maber kendo ngimagi nolal mana ka tipo.
But it will not be well for the evil-doer; he will not make his days long like a shade, because he has no fear before God.
14 Nitiere gimoro machielo maonge tiende matimore e piny: joma kare mayudo gigo ma joma mono ema onego yudi, kod joma timbegi mono mayudo gigo monego joma kare ema yudi. Ma bende, awacho, ni onge tiende.
There is a thing which is to no purpose done on the earth: that there are good men to whom is given the same punishment as those who are evil, and there are evil men who get the reward of the good. I say that this again is to no purpose.
15 Omiyo ayie ni mondo ji owinj maber e ngima margi, nikech onge gima ber ne dhano e piny moloyo chiemo, metho kod bedo gimor. Bangʼe obiro bedo mamor kuom tije matek motiyo e kinde mar ngimane ma Nyasaye omiye ngima e piny ka.
So I gave praise to joy, because there is nothing better for a man to do under the sun than to take meat and drink and be happy; for that will be with him in his work all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.
16 Kane aketo pacha mondo angʼe rieko kendo mondo anon tich matek mar dhano e piny-ka ka nindo ok tere odiechiengʼ gotieno,
When I gave my mind to the knowledge of wisdom and to seeing the business which is done on the earth (and there are those whose eyes see not sleep by day or by night),
17 to ne afwenyo ni gigo duto Nyasaye ema timo. Omiyo onge ngʼama ongʼeyo gigo matimore e piny. Kata dabed ni oketo chunye manade mar ngʼeyo tiendgi, to ok onyal ngʼeyo tiendgi. Bende kata ngʼama riek par ni ongʼeyo, to ok onyal winjo tiendgi maber.
Then I saw all the work of God, and that man may not get knowledge of the work which is done under the sun; because, if a man gives hard work to the search he will not get knowledge, and even if the wise man seems to be coming to the end of his search, still he will be without knowledge.
