Ecclesiastes 4
1 And I have turned, and I see all the oppressions that are done under the sun, and behold, the tear of the oppressed, and they have no comforter; and at the hand of their oppressors [is] power, and they have no comforter.
Then I turned to consider all the ways people oppress others here on earth. Look at the tears of the oppressed—there's no one to comfort them! Powerful people oppress them, and there's no one to comfort them!
2 And I am praising the dead who have already died above the living who are yet alive.
I congratulated those who were already dead, for the dead are better off than those who are still alive and being oppressed.
3 And better than both of them [is] he who has not yet been, in that he has not seen the evil work that has been done under the sun.
But best of all are those who have never existed—they haven't seen the evil things people do to each other here on earth.
4 And I have seen all the labor, and all the benefit of the work, because for it a man is the envy of his neighbor. Even this [is] vanity and distress of spirit.
I observed that every skill in work comes from competition with others. Once again this is hard to understand, like trying to hold on to the elusive wind.
5 The fool is clasping his hands, and eating his own flesh:
Fools fold their arms and do nothing—so in the end they're all used up.
6 “Better [is] a handful [with] quietness, than two handfuls [with] labor and distress of spirit.”
It's better to earn a little without stress than a lot with too much stress and chasing after the wind.
7 And I have turned, and I see a vain thing under the sun:
Then I turned to consider something else here on earth that is also frustratingly hard to understand.
8 There is one, and there is not a second; even son or brother he has not, and there is no end to all his labor! His eye also is not satisfied with riches, and [he does not say], “For whom am I laboring and bereaving my soul of good?” This also is vanity, it is a sad travail.
What about someone who has no family to help him, no brother or son, who works all the time, but isn't satisfied with the money he makes. “Who am I working for?” he asks himself. “Why am I preventing myself from enjoying life?” Such a situation is hard to explain—it's an evil business!
9 The two [are] better than the one, in that they have a good reward by their labor.
Two are better than one, for they can help each other in their work.
10 For if they fall, the one raises up his companion, but woe to the one who falls and there is not a second to raise him up!
If one of them falls down, the other can help them up, but how sad it is for someone who falls down and doesn't have anyone to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down, then they have heat, but how has one heat?
In the same way, if two people lie down together, they keep each other warm, but you can't keep yourself warm if you're alone.
12 And if the one strengthens himself, the two stand against him; and the threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Someone fighting against one other person may win, but not if they are fighting against two. A cord made of three strands can't be torn apart quickly.
13 Better is a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king, who has not known to be warned anymore.
A poor young person who's wise is better than an old and foolish king who no longer accepts advice.
14 For from a house of prisoners he has come out to reign, for even in his own kingdom he has been poor.
He may even come out of prison to reign over his kingdom, even though he was born poor.
15 I have seen all the living, who are walking under the sun, with the second youth who stands in his place;
I observed everyone here on earth following the youth who takes his place.
16 there is no end to all the people, to all who were before them; also, the latter do not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and distress of spirit.
He is surrounded by crowds of supporters, but the next generation isn't happy with him. This also illustrates the passing nature of life whose meaning is elusive, like pursuing the wind for understanding.
