Ecclesiastes 11
1 Send your bread out on the surface of the water, and many days later you will find it again.
Maka tau taro ki te mata o nga wai; kia maha hoki nga ra ka kitea ano e koa.
2 Share what you own with seven or eight people, for you never know what disaster could happen.
Hoatu tetahi wahi ma te tokowhitu, ae ma te tokowaru ano hoki; e kore hoki koe e mohio ko tehea kino e puta mai ki te whenua.
3 When the clouds are full they pour rain down upon the earth. Whether a tree falls to the north or to the south, it stays where it fell.
Ki te ki nga kapua i te ua, ka ringihia ki te whenua: ki te hinga hoki te rakau ki te tonga, ki te raki ranei, ko te wahi e hinga ai te rakau, ko reira ano ia takoto ai.
4 The farmer who pays attention to the direction of the wind knows when not to sow, and by watching the clouds knows when not to reap.
Ko te tangata e whai mahara ana ki te hau, e kore e rui; ko te tangata titiro kapua e kore e kokoti.
5 Just as you don't know how the breath of life comes to the child in its mother's womb, so you can't understand the work of God, the Creator of everything.
Na, ka kore ano koe e mohio ki te huarahi o te hau, ki te tupu ranei o nga wheua i roto i te kopu o te wahine hapu; e kore ano hoki e mohiotia e koe te mahi a te Atua, a te kaimahi o nga mea katoa.
6 In the morning, sow your seed. In the evening, don't stop. For you have no way of knowing which crop will grow well—one may be profitable, or the other—or maybe both.
I te ata ruia tau purapura, a i te ahiahi kaua e pepeke tou ringa; kahore hoki koe e mohio ko tenei ranei e tika, ko tera ranei, ko raua ranei e rua ka pai ngatahi.
7 How sweet it is to live in the light, to see the sun rise on another day.
He pono he ahuareka te marama, a he mea pai ki nga kanohi te titiro ki te ra.
8 May you live for many years, and may you enjoy them all. But remember there will many days of darkness, and all that is to come is uncertain.
Ae ra, ki te maha nga tau e ora ai te tangata, kia hari ia ki aua tau katoa; engari kia mahara ia ki nga tau o te pouri, tera hoki e maha. Ko nga mea e haere ake ana he horihori katoa.
9 Young people, enjoy your youth! Be happy with what's good! While you're young, let your mind guide your life, and do as you think best. But remember that God will judge you for all your thoughts and actions.
Kia koe, e te taitamariki, ki tou taitamarikitanga; kia whakahari ano hoki tou ngakau i a koe i nga ra o tou taitamarikitanga, haere hoki i nga ara o tou ngakau, i te tirohanga ano a ou kanohi: otiia kia mohio ano koe, he mea enei katoa e riro ai koe i te Atua ki te whakawa.
10 So don't let your mind worry, and avoid things that hurt your body. Even so, despite youth and enthusiasm, life is still so hard to understand!
No reira whakawateatia atu te riri i tou ngakau, a whakanekehia atu te kino i tou kikokiko: he mea horihori nei hoki te taitamarikitanga, me te houkuratanga.
