Ecclesiastes 1
1 These are the words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem:
These are the words of the Teacher, the descendant of David and king in Jerusalem.
2 “Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher, “futility of futilities! Everything is futile!”
The Teacher says this. “Like a vapor of mist, like a breeze in the wind, everything vanishes, leaving many questions.
3 What does a man gain from all his labor, at which he toils under the sun?
What profit does mankind gain from all the work that they labor at under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
One generation goes, and another generation comes, but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets; it hurries back to where it rises.
The sun rises, and it goes down and hurries back to the place where it rises again.
6 The wind blows southward, then turns northward; round and round it swirls, ever returning on its course.
The wind blows south and circles around to the north, always going around along its pathway and coming back again.
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 the rivers flow into the sea, but the sea is never full. To the place where the rivers go, there they go again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can describe; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear content with hearing.
Everything becomes wearisome, and no one can explain it. The eye is not satisfied by what it sees, nor is the ear fulfilled by what it hears.
9 What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
Whatever has been is what will be, and whatever has been done is what will be done. There is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there a case where one can say, “Look, this is new”? It has already existed in the ages before us.
Is there anything about which it may be said, 'Look, this is new'? Whatever exists has already existed for a long time, during ages which came long 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.
No one seems to remember the things that happened in ancient times, and the things that happened much later and that will happen in the future will not likely be remembered either.”
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
I am the Teacher, and I have been king over Israel in 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!
I applied my mind to study and to search out by wisdom everything that is done under heaven. That search is a burdensome task that God has given to the children of mankind to be busy with.
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 the deeds that are done under the sun, and look, they all amount to vapor and chasing the wind.
15 What is crooked cannot be straightened, and what is lacking cannot be counted.
The twisted cannot be straightened! The missing cannot be counted!
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 to my heart saying, “Look, I have acquired greater wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My mind has seen great wisdom and knowledge.”
17 So I set my mind to know wisdom and madness and folly; I learned that this, too, is a pursuit of the wind.
So I applied my heart to know wisdom and also madness and folly. I came to understand that this also was an attempt to shepherd the wind.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow, and as knowledge grows, grief increases.
For in the abundance of wisdom there is much frustration, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
