Ecclesiastes 12
1 Remember your Creator while you are young, before days of trouble come and you grow old, saying, “I'm not enjoying life anymore.”
故に少き日に汝の造主を記えよ 即ち惡き日の來り年のよりて我は早何も樂むところ無しと言にいたらざる先
2 Before the light fades—sun, moon, and stars—and rain clouds return to darken the skies.
また日や光明や月や星の暗くならざる先 雨の後に雲の返らざる中に汝然せよ
3 Before the guards of the house tremble and the strong men are bent over, the grinders stop working because there are only a few left, and the ones looking through the windows only see dimly,
その日いたる時は家を守る者は慄ひ 力ある人は屈み 磨碎者は寡きによりて息み 窓より窺ふ者は目昏むなり
4 and the doors to the street are shut. Before the sound of the grinding mill grows low, and you wake up early when the birds are singing, but you can hardly hear them.
磨こなす聲低くなれば衢の門は閉づ その人は鳥の聲に起あがり 歌の女子はみな身を卑くす
5 Before you develop a fear of heights and worry about going out on the streets; when the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper crawls along, and desire fails, for everyone has to go to their eternal home as the mourners go up and down the street.
かかる人は高き者を恐る畏しき者多く途にあり 巴旦杏は花咲くまた蝗もその身に重くその嗜欲は廃る 人永遠の家にいたらんとすれば哭婦衢にゆきかふ
6 Before the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl is broken; before the water jug is smashed at the spring, or the pulley is broken at the well.
然る時には銀の紐は解け金の盞は砕け吊瓶は泉の側に壊れ轆轤は井の傍に破ん
7 Then the dust returns to the earth from which it came, and the breath of life returns to God who gave it.
而して塵は本の如くに土に皈り 霊魂はこれを賦けし神にかへるべし
8 “Everything passes! It's all so hard to understand!” says the Teacher.
傳道者云ふ空の空なるかな皆空なり
9 Not only was the Teacher a wise man, he also taught what he knew to others. He thought about many proverbs, studying them and arranging them.
また傅道者は智慧あるが故に恒に知識を民に教へたり 彼は心をもちひて尋ね究め許多の箴言を作れり
10 The Teacher looked for the best way to explain things, writing truthfully and honestly.
傳道者は務めて佳美き言詞を求めたり その書しるしたる者は正直して眞實の言語なり
11 The words of the wise are like cattle prods. Their collected sayings are like nails driven home, given by one shepherd.
智者の言語は刺鞭のごとく 會衆の師の釘たる釘のごとくにして 一人の牧者より出し者なり
12 In addition, my student, take care, for there's no end to book writing, and too much study wears you out.
わが子よ是等より訓誡をうけよ 多く書をつくれば竟なし 多く学べば體疲る
13 To sum up now that everything has been discussed: Respect God by keeping his commandments, for that's what everyone should do.
事の全體の皈する所を聴べし 云く 神を畏れその誡命を守れ 是は諸の人の本分たり 神は一切の行爲ならびに一切の隠れたる事を善惡ともに審判たまふなり
14 God is going to judge us for everything we do, including what we do secretly, whether good or bad.
