Ecclesiastes 1
1 THE WORDS OF the Koheleth, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
Ord af Prædikeren, Davids Søn, Konge i Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, saith Koheleth; vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
Endeløs Tomhed, sagde Prædikeren, endeløs Tomhed, alt er Tomhed!
3 What profit hath man of all his labour wherein he laboureth under the sun?
Hvad Vinding har Mennesket af al den Flid, han gør sig under Solen?
4 One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; and the earth abideth for ever.
Slægt går, og Slægt kommer, men Jorden står til evig Tid.
5 The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he ariseth.
Sol står op, og Sol går ned og haster igen til sin Opgangs Sted.
6 The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it turneth about continually in its circuit, and the wind returneth again to its circuits.
Vinden går mod Syd og drejer mod Nord, den drejer atter og atter og vender tilbage til samme Kredsløb.
7 All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
Alle Bække løber i Havet, men Havet bliver ikke fuldt; det Sted, til hvilket Bækkene løber, did bliver de ved at løbe.
8 All things toil to weariness; man cannot utter it, the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
Alting slider sig træt; Mand hører ikke op med at tale, Øjet bliver ikke mæt af at se, Øret ej fuldt af at høre.
9 That which hath been is that which shall be, and that which hath been done is that which shall be done; and there is nothing new under the sun.
Det, der kommer, er det, der var, det, der sker, er det, der skete; der er slet intet nyt under Solen.
10 Is there a thing whereof it is said: 'See, this is new'? — it hath been already, in the ages which were before us.
Kommer der noget, om hvilket man siger: "Se, her er da noget nyt!"det har dog for længst været til i Tiderne forud for os
11 There is no remembrance of them of former times; neither shall there be any remembrance of them of latter times that are to come, among those that shall come after.
Ej mindes de svundne Slægter, og de ny, som kommer engang, skal ej heller mindes af dem, som kommer senere hen.
12 I Koheleth have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.
Jeg, Prædikeren, var Konge over Israel i Jerusalem.
13 And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven; it is a sore task that God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised therewith.
Jeg vendte min Hu til at ransage og med Visdom udgranske alt, hvad der sker under Himmelen; det er et ondt Slid, som Gud har givet Menneskens Børn at slide med.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Jeg så alt, hvad der sker under Solen, og se, det er alt sammen Tomhed og Jag efter Vind.
15 That which is crooked cannot be made straight; and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
Kroget kan ej blive lige, og halvt kan ej blive helt.
16 I spoke with my own heart, saying: 'Lo, I have gotten great wisdom, more also than all that were before me over Jerusalem'; yea, my heart hath had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.
Jeg tænkte ved mig selv: "Se, jeg har vundet større og rigere Visdom end alle de, der før mig var over Jerusalem, og mit Hjerte har skuet Visdom og Kundskab i Fylde."
17 And I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly — I perceived that this also was a striving after wind.
Jeg vendte min Hu til at fatte, hvad der er Visdom og Kundskab, og hvad der er Dårskab og Tåbelighed; jeg skønnede, at også det er Jag efter Vind.
18 For in much wisdom is much vexation; and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.
Thi megen Visdom megen Græmmelse, øget Kundskab øget Smerte.
