Ecclesiastes 4
1 And I turned about, and beheld all the oppressed that are made so under the sun: and, behold, there are the tears of the oppressed, and they have no comforter; and from the hand of their oppressors they suffer violence; and they have no comforter.
我又轉目注視在太陽下所行的一切暴行：看，受壓迫者眼淚汪流，卻無人安慰；壓迫人者手中只有權勢，卻無人加以援助。
2 Thereupon praised I the dead that are already dead, more than the living who are still alive;
於是我聲稱那已死去的人，比現今還活著的人更為有福。
3 And as happier than both of them, him who hath not yet come into being, who hath not seen the evil-doing that is done under the sun.—
那還沒有出世的人，比這兩等人更為有福，因為他還沒有見到太陽下所行的惡事。
4 Again, I beheld all the toil, and all the energy in doing, that it is [from] the envy of one man of his neighbor. Also this is vanity and a torture of the spirit.
我也看出各種勞苦和一切工作的技巧，都是出於人彼此間的競爭：這也是空虛，也是追風。
5 The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.
愚人交臂叉手，是自食己肉。
6 Better is a handful of quiet, than both the hands full of toil and torture of spirit.
捧一把安逸，勝過兩把勞苦和追風。
7 Then I turned about, and I saw a vanity under the sun.
我又轉睛，看見在太陽下有件空虛的事：
8 There is one alone, and he hath not a companion; yea, he hath neither son nor brother: yet is there no end to all his toil; his eye also is not satisfied with riches. Yet for whom do I toil, and deprive my soul of good? Also this is vanity, yea, it is a bad employment.
有個孤獨無伴的人，既沒有兒子，又沒有兄弟，卻時常勞苦不息，他的眼總是貪得無厭，從來不問：「我辛辛苦苦，節制享樂，究竟是為誰﹖」這也是空虛和大不幸。
9 Two are better than one; because they will have a good reward for their toil.
兩人勝過一人，因為兩人工作，酬報優厚：
10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow; but woe to the single one that falleth; for he hath no companion to lift him up.
若一個跌倒了，另一個可扶起自己的同伴。哀哉孤獨者! 他若跌倒了，沒有另一人扶起他來。
11 Also, if two lie together, then will they become warm; but how can one person alone become warm?
又如兩人同眠，都感溫暖；若孤獨一人，怎能暖和﹖
12 And if a man could overpower him, the single one, two would stand up against him: and a threefold cord cannot quickly be torn asunder.
若一人抵不住一人，兩人就能抵住。－－三股繩，不易斷。
13 Better is a poor and a wise youth than an old and foolish king, who knoweth not how to be admonished any more.
一個貧寒而明智的青年，勝過一個年老昏愚，而總不採納忠言的君王。
14 For out of the prison cometh the one to reign: whereas also in his kingdom the other becometh poor.
這青年雖在國中出身貧寒，但由獄中出來，執政為王；
15 I have seen all the living who walk under the sun, being with the second child that is to stand up in his stead.
我看見一切在太陽下行走的活人，都擁護青年人，新繼位者，來代替老王。
16 There was no end to all the people, [belonging] to all that have been before them: they also that come after will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and a torture of the spirit.—
擁護他為領袖的人民，多得無數；但日後，那些後來的人卻不喜歡他：這也是空虛，也是追風。
