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.
Fremdeles så jeg al den Undertrykkelse, som sker under Solen; jeg så de undertryktes tårer og ingen trøstede dem; de led Vold af deres Undertrykkeres Hånd, og ingen trøstede dem.
2 Thereupon praised I the dead that are already dead, more than the living who are still alive;
Da priste jeg de døde, som allerede er døde, lykkeligere end de levende, som endnu er i Live;
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.—
men lykkeligere end begge den, som slet ikke er til, som ikke har set det onde, der sker under Solen.
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.
Og jeg så, at al Flid og alt dygtigt Arbejde udspringer af den enes Misundelse mod den anden. Også det er Tomhed og Jag efter Vind.
5 The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.
Dåren lægger Hænderne i Skødet og æder sig selv op
6 Better is a handful of quiet, than both the hands full of toil and torture of spirit.
Bedre en Håndfuld Hvile end Hænderne fulde af Flid og Jag efter Vind.
7 Then I turned about, and I saw a vanity under the sun.
Og mere Tomhed så jeg under Solen.
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.
Mangen står alene og har ikke nogen ved sin Side, hverken Søn eller Broder, og dog er der ingen Ende på al hans Flid og hans Øje bliver ikke mæt af Rigdom. Men, for hvis Skyld gør jeg mig Flid og nægter mig enhver Nydelse? Også det, er Tomhed og ondt Slid.
9 Two are better than one; because they will have a good reward for their toil.
To er bedre faren end een, thi de får god Løn for deres Flid;
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.
hvis den ene falder, kan den anden rejse sin Fælle op. Men ve den ensomme! Thi falder han, er der ingen til at rejse ham op.
11 Also, if two lie together, then will they become warm; but how can one person alone become warm?
Og når to ligger sammen, bliver de varme; men hvorledes kan den ensomme blive varm?
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.
Og når nogen kan overvælde den ensomme, så kan to stå sig imod ham; tretvundet Snor brister ikke i Hast.
13 Better is a poor and a wise youth than an old and foolish king, who knoweth not how to be admonished any more.
Bedre faren er en fattig Yngling, som er viis, end en gammel Konge, som er en Tåbe og ikke mere har Forstand til at lade sig råde.
14 For out of the prison cometh the one to reign: whereas also in his kingdom the other becometh poor.
Thi hin gik ud af Fængselet for at blive Konge, skønt han var født i Fattigdom under den andens Regering.
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.
Jeg så alle, som levede og færdedes under Solen, stille sig ved den Ynglings Side, som skulde træde i Kongens Sted;
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.—
der var ikke Tal på alle de Mennesker, han stod i Spidsen for; men heller ikke over ham glæder de senere Slægter sig; nej, også det er Tomhed og Jag efter Vind.
