Ecclesiastes 1
1 Here are the words of the Teacher, the king of Jerusalem, David's son.
The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 “Everything passes—it's so temporary! It's all so hard to understand!” says the Teacher.
Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
3 What benefit do you get for slaving away in this life?
What profit hath a man by all his labor with which he wearieth himself under the sun?
4 People come, and people go, but the earth lasts forever!
One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; while the earth abideth for ever.
5 The sun comes up, and the sun goes down, and then rushes to its place to rise again.
The sun riseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteneth to the place whence it arose.
6 The wind blows south, and then turns to the north. Round and round it spins, finally coming full circle.
The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about to the north; round and round goeth the wind, and returneth to its circuits.
7 Streams all flow into the sea, but the sea never becomes full. The streams return to the place from where they came.
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; to the place whence the rivers come, thither they return.
8 Everything just keeps on going. You can't say all there is to say. You can't see all there is to see. You can't hear all there is to hear.
All words become weary; man cannot express it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 Everything that was will continue to be; everything that has been done will be done again. Nothing new ever happens here.
The thing that hath been is that which shall be, and that which hath been done is that which shall be done; and there is no new thing under the sun.
10 There's nothing anyone can point to and say, “Look! Here's something new.” In fact it's been around for ages, long before our time.
Is there any thing of which one may say, “Behold, this is new”? It was long ago, in the times which were before us.
11 The problem is we don't remember people from the past, and people in the future won't remember those who came before them.
There is no remembrance of former things, and of things that are to come there shall be no remembrance to those who live afterwards.
12 I am the Teacher, and I was king over Israel, reigning from Jerusalem.
I, the Preacher, was king over Israel at Jerusalem.
13 I decided to focus my mind to explore, using wisdom, everything that happens here on earth. This is a tough assignment that God has given people to keep them busy!
And I gave my mind to seek and to search out with wisdom concerning all things which are done under heaven; an evil business, which God hath given to the sons of men, in which to employ themselves.
14 I examined everything people do here on earth, and discovered that it's all so temporary—trying to understand it is like trying to pin down the wind!
I saw all the things which are done under the sun; and, behold, it was all vanity, and striving after wind.
15 You can't straighten what is twisted, and you can't count what isn't there.
That which is crooked cannot be made straight, and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
16 I thought to myself, “I've become very wise, wiser than all the kings of Jerusalem before me. My mind has gained a great deal of wisdom and knowledge.”
I communed with my heart, saying, “Behold, I have gained more and greater wisdom than all who have been before me at Jerusalem; yea, my mind hath seen much wisdom and knowledge.”
17 So I decided to use my mind to learn everything about wisdom, and madness and foolishness as well. But I found out that this is as hard as trying to catch hold of the wind.
And I gave my mind to know wisdom, and to know senselessness and folly; I perceived that this also is striving after wind.
18 For with great wisdom comes great frustration. The greater the knowledge, the greater the pain.
For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.
