Ecclesiastes 9

1 All this I took to heart, and my heart saw it all: that the upright and the wise and their works are in the hand of God; and men may not be certain if it will be love or hate; all is to no purpose before them.

But all this I have laid to my heart, so as to clear up the whole of this, that the righteous and the wise, and their works, [are] in the hand of God, neither love nor hatred does man know, the whole [is] before them.

2 Because to all there is one event, to the upright man and to the evil, to the clean and to the unclean, to him who makes an offering and to him who makes no offering; as is the good so is the sinner; he who takes an oath is as he who has fear of it.

The whole [is] as to the whole; one event is to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good, and to the clean, and to the unclean, and to him who is sacrificing, and to him who is not sacrificing; as [is] the good, so [is] the sinner, he who is swearing as he who is fearing an oath.

3 This is evil in all things which are done under the sun: that there is one fate for all, and the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; while they have life their hearts are foolish, and after that — to the dead.

This [is] an evil among all that has been done under the sun, that one event [is] to all, and also the heart of the sons of man is full of evil, and madness [is] in their heart during their life, and after it—to the dead.

4 For him who is joined to all the living there is hope; a living dog is better than a dead lion.

But [to] him who is joined to all the living there is confidence, for to a living dog it [is] better than to the dead lion.

5 The living are conscious that death will come to them, but the dead are not conscious of anything, and they no longer have a reward, because there is no memory of them.

For the living know that they die, and the dead do not know anything, and there is no more reward to them, for their remembrance has been forgotten.

6 Their love and their hate and their envy are now ended; and they have no longer a part for ever in anything which is done under the sun.

Their love also, their hatred also, their envy also, has already perished, and they have no more portion for all time in all that has been done under the sun.

7 Come, take your bread with joy, and your wine with a glad heart. God has taken pleasure in your works.

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a glad heart, for already has God been pleased with your works.

8 Let your clothing be white at all times, and let not your head be without oil.

At all times let your garments be white, and do not let oil be lacking on your head.

9 Have joy with the woman of your love all the days of your foolish life which he gives you under the sun. Because that is your part in life and in your work which you do under the sun.

See life with the wife whom you have loved, all the days of the life of your vanity, that He has given to you under the sun, all the days of your vanity, for it [is] your portion in life, even of your labor that you are laboring at under the sun.

10 Whatever comes to your hand to do with all your power, do it because there is no work, or thought, or knowledge, or wisdom in the place of the dead to which you are going. (Sheol h7585)

All that your hand finds to do, with your power do, for there is no work, and plan, and knowledge, and wisdom in Sheol to where you are going. (Sheol h7585)

11 And again I saw under the sun that the reward goes not to him who is quick, or the fruits of war to the strong; and there is no bread for the wise, or wealth for men of learning, or respect for those who have knowledge; but time and chance come to all.

I have turned so as to see under the sun, that not to the swift [is] the race, nor to the mighty the battle, nor even to the wise bread, nor even to the intelligent wealth, nor even to the skillful grace, for time and chance happen with them all.

12 Even man has no knowledge of his time; like fishes taken in an evil net, or like birds taken by deceit, are the sons of men taken in an evil time when it comes suddenly on them.

For even man does not know his time; as fish that are taken hold of by an evil net, and as birds that are taken hold of by a snare, the sons of man are snared like these at an evil time when it falls on them suddenly.

13 This again I have seen under the sun as wisdom and it seemed great to me.

This also I have seen: wisdom under the sun, and it is great to me.

14 There was a little town and the number of its men was small, and there came a great king against it and made an attack on it, building works of war round about it.

A little city, and few men in it, and a great king has come to it, and has surrounded it, and has built against it great bulwarks;

15 Now there was in the town a poor, wise man, and he, by his wisdom, kept the town safe. But no one had any memory of that same poor man.

and there has been found in it a poor wise man, and he has delivered the city by his wisdom, and men have not remembered that poor man!

16 Then I said, Wisdom is better than strength, but the poor man's wisdom is not respected, and his words are not given a hearing.

And I said, “Better [is] wisdom than might, and the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heard.”

17 The words of the wise which come quietly to the ear are noted more than the cry of a ruler among the foolish.

The words of the wise are heard in quiet, More than the cry of a ruler over fools.

18 Wisdom is better than instruments of war, but one sinner is the destruction of much good.

Better [is] wisdom than weapons of conflict, And one sinner destroys much good!