Ecclesiastes 1
1 These are the words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem:
The words of Ecclesiastes, the son of David, the king of Jerusalem.
2 “Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher, “futility of futilities! Everything is futile!”
Ecclesiastes said: Vanity of vanities! Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity!
3 What does a man gain from all his labor, at which he toils under the sun?
What more does a man have from all his labor, as he labors under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
A generation passes away, and a generation arrives. But the earth stands forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets; it hurries back to where it rises.
The sun rises and sets; it returns to its place, and from there, being born again,
6 The wind blows southward, then turns northward; round and round it swirls, ever returning on its course.
it circles through the south, and arcs toward the north. The spirit continues on, illuminating everything in its circuit, and turning again in its cycle.
7 All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full; to the place from which the streams come, there again they flow.
All rivers enter into the sea, and the sea does not overflow. To the place from which the rivers go out, they return, so that they may flow again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can describe; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear content with hearing.
Such things are difficult; man is not able to explain them with words. The eye is not satisfied by seeing, nor is the ear fulfilled by hearing.
9 What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
What is it that has existed? The same shall exist in the future. What is it that has been done? The same shall continue to be done.
10 Is there a case where one can say, “Look, this is new”? It has already existed in the ages before us.
There is nothing new under the sun. Neither is anyone able to say: “Behold, this is new!” For it has already been brought forth in the ages that were before us.
11 There is no remembrance of those who came before, and those yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow after.
There is no remembrance of the former things. Indeed, neither shall there be any record of past things in the future, for those who will exist at the very end.
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
I, Ecclesiastes, was king of Israel at Jerusalem.
13 And I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid upon the sons of men to occupy them!
And I was determined in my mind to seek and to investigate wisely, concerning all that is done under the sun. God has given this very difficult task to the sons of men, so that they may be occupied by it.
14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun, and have found them all to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.
I have seen all that is done under the sun, and behold: all is emptiness and an affliction of the spirit.
15 What is crooked cannot be straightened, and what is lacking cannot be counted.
The perverse are unwilling to be corrected, and the number of the foolish is boundless.
16 I said to myself, “Behold, I have grown and increased in wisdom beyond all those before me who were over Jerusalem, and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.”
I have spoken in my heart, saying: “Behold, I have achieved greatness, and I have surpassed all the wise who were before me in Jerusalem.” And my mind has contemplated many things wisely, and I have learned.
17 So I set my mind to know wisdom and madness and folly; I learned that this, too, is a pursuit of the wind.
And I have dedicated my heart, so that I may know prudence and doctrine, and also error and foolishness. Yet I recognize that, in these things also, there is hardship, and affliction of the spirit.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow, and as knowledge grows, grief increases.
Because of this, with much wisdom there is also much anger. And whoever adds knowledge, also adds hardship.
