Ecclesiastes 8
1 Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? the wisedome of a man doth make his face to shine: and the strength of his face shalbe changed.
The wisdom of a man schyneth in his cheer; and the myytieste schal chaunge his face.
2 I aduertise thee to take heede to ye mouth of the King, and to the worde of the othe of God.
I kepe the mouth of the kyng, and the comaundementis and sweryngis of God.
3 Haste not to goe forth of his sight: stand not in an euill thing: for he will doe whatsoeuer pleaseth him.
Haste thou not to go awei fro his face, and dwelle thou not in yuel werk. For he schal do al thing, that he wole;
4 Where the word of ye King is, there is power, and who shall say vnto him, What doest thou?
and his word is ful of power, and no man mai seie to hym, Whi doist thou so?
5 He that keepeth the commandement, shall knowe none euill thing, and the heart of the wise shall knowe the time and iudgement.
He that kepith the comaundement of God `in this lijf, schal not feele ony thing of yuel; the herte of a wijs man vndurstondith tyme and answer.
6 For to euery purpose there is a time and iudgement, because the miserie of man is great vpon him.
Tyme and cesoun is to ech werk; and myche turment is of a man,
7 For he knoweth not that which shalbe: for who can tell him when it shalbe?
for he knowith not thingis passid, and he mai not knowe bi ony messanger thingis to comynge.
8 Man is not lorde ouer the spirit to retaine the spirite: neither hath hee power in the day of death, nor deliuerance in the battell, neither shall wickednesse deliuer the possessers thereof.
It is not in the power of man to forbede the spirit, nethir he hath power in the dai of deth, nethir he is suffrid to haue reste, whanne the batel neiyeth; nethir wickidnesse schal saue a wickid man.
9 All this haue I seene, and haue giuen mine heart to euery worke, which is wrought vnder the sunne, and I sawe a time that man ruleth ouer man to his owne hurt.
I bihelde alle thes thingis, and Y yaf myn herte in alle werkis, that ben don vndur the sunne. Sum tyme a man is lord of a man, to his yuel.
10 And likewise I sawe the wicked buried, and they returned, and they that came from the holy place, were yet forgotten in the citie where they had done right: this also is vanitie.
Y siy wickid men biryed, which, whanne thei lyueden yit, weren in hooli place; and thei weren preisid in the citee, as men of iust werkis; but also this is vanyte.
11 Because sentence against an euill worke is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to doe euill.
Forsothe for the sentence is not brouyt forth soone ayens yuele men, the sones of men doon yuels with outen ony drede.
12 Though a sinner doe euill an hundreth times, and God prolongeth his dayes, yet I knowe that it shalbe well with them that feare the Lord, and doe reuerence before him.
Netheles of that, that a synnere doith yuel an hundrid sithis, and is suffrid bi pacience, Y knew that good schal be to men dredynge God, that reuerensen his face.
13 But it shall not be well to the wicked, neither shall he prolong his dayes: he shall be like a shadowe, because he feareth not before God.
Good be not to the wickid man, nethir hise daies be maad longe; but passe thei as schadewe, that dreden not the face of the Lord.
14 There is a vanitie, which is done vpon the earth, that there be righteous men to whom it commeth according to the worke of the wicked: and there be wicked men to whom it commeth according to the worke of the iust: I thought also that this is vanitie.
Also another vanyte is, which is don on erthe. Iust men ben, to whiche yuels comen, as if thei diden the werkis of wickid men; and wickid men ben, that ben so sikur, as if thei han the dedis of iust men; but Y deme also this moost veyn.
15 And I praysed ioy: for there is no goodnesse to man vnder the sunne, saue to eate and to drinke and to reioyce: for this is adioyned to his labour, the dayes of his life that God hath giuen him vnder the sunne.
Therfor Y preysid gladnesse, that no good was to a man vndur the sunne, no but to ete, and drynke, and to be ioiful; and that he schulde bere awei with hym silf oneli this of his trauel, in the daies of his lijf, whiche God yaf to hym vndur the sunne.
16 When I applied mine heart to knowe wisedome, and to behold the busines that is done on earth, that neither day nor night the eyes of man take sleepe,
And Y settide myn herte to knowe wisdom, and to vndurstonde the departing, which is turned in erthe. A man is, that bi daies and niytis takith not sleep with iyen.
17 Then I behelde the whole worke of God, that man cannot finde out ye worke that is wrought vnder the sunne: for the which man laboureth to seeke it, and cannot finde it: yea, and though the wise man thinke to knowe it, he cannot finde it.
And Y vndurstood, that of alle the werkis of God, a man may fynde no resoun of tho thingis, that ben don vndur the sunne; and in as myche as he traueilith more to seke, bi so myche he schal fynde lesse; yhe, thouy a wijs man seith that he knowith, he schal not mow fynde.
