Ecclesiastes 2
1 [Then] I said to myself, “Okay, I will try to do everything that I enjoy. I will find out whether doing what I enjoy can truly enable me to be happy.” But I found out that doing that was also useless/senseless.
Therfor Y seide in myn hertez, Y schal go, and Y schal flowe in delicis, and Y schal vse goodis; and Y siy also that this was vanyte.
2 [So] I said [to myself], “It is foolish to laugh [all the time], and continually doing what I enjoy does not seem to bring any lasting benefit.”
And leiyyng Y arrettide errour, and Y seide to ioye, What art thou disseyued in veyn?
3 [So], after thinking a lot about it, I decided to (cheer myself/cause myself to be happy) by drinking [a lot of] wine. [So] while I was still trying to be wise, I decided to do things that [many] people do to be happy during the short time that they are alive on the earth.
I thouyte in myn herte to withdrawe my fleisch fro wyn, that Y schulde lede ouer my soule to wisdom, and that Y schulde eschewe foli, til Y schulde se, what were profitable to the sones of men; in which dede the noumbre of daies of her lijf vndur the sunne is nedeful.
4 I did great things: I [caused] houses to be built for myself and vineyards to be planted.
Y magnefiede my werkis, Y bildide housis to me, and Y plauntide vynes; Y made yerdis and orcherdis,
5 I [told my workers] to make gardens and parks. [Then] I [told them to] fill the gardens with many kinds of fruit trees.
and Y settide tho with the trees of al kynde;
6 I [told them to] build reservoirs to store water to irrigate the fruit trees.
and Y made cisternes of watris, for to watre the wode of trees growynge.
7 I bought male and female slaves, and babies [who later became my slaves] were born in my palace. I also owned more livestock than any of the previous kings in Jerusalem had owned.
I hadde in possessioun seruauntis and handmaidis; and Y hadde myche meynee, and droues of grete beestis, and grete flockis of scheep, ouer alle men that weren bifore me in Jerusalem.
8 I also accumulated large amounts of silver and gold [that were paid to me] from the treasures of kings and rulers of provinces. [I hired] men and women to sing for me, and I had many (concubines/slave wives) who gave me [much] pleasure [EUP].
Y gaderide togidere to me siluer and gold, and the castels of kingis and of prouyncis; Y made to me syngeris and syngeressis, and delicis of the sones of men, and cuppis and vessels in seruyce, to helde out wynes;
9 So, I became greater than anyone else who had ever lived in Jerusalem, and I was [very] wise.
and Y passide in richessis alle men, that weren bifor me in Jerusalem. Also wisdom dwellide stabli with me,
10 I got everything [LIT] that I [SYN] saw and wanted. I did everything [LIT] that I thought would enable me to be happy. All those things that I [SYN] enjoyed were [like] a reward for all my hard work.
and alle thingis whiche myn iyen desiriden, Y denyede not to hem; nether Y refreynede myn herte, that ne it vside al lust, and delitide it silf in these thingis whiche I hadde maad redi; and Y demyde this my part, if Y vside my trauel.
11 [But] then I thought about all the hard work that I [SYN] had done [to get all those things], and none of it seems to bring any lasting benefit [DOU]. It was all [like] chasing the wind.
And whanne Y hadde turned me to alle werkis whiche myn hondys hadden maad, and to the trauels in whiche Y hadde swet in veyn, Y siy in alle thingis vanyte and turment of the soule, and that no thing vndir sunne dwellith stabli.
12 Then I started to think about being wise, and [also about] being foolish [DOU]. [I said to myself, “I certainly do not think that] [RHQ] the next king will be able to do anything better than I can.”
I passide to biholde wisdom, errours, and foli; Y seide, What is a man, that he may sue the king, his maker?
13 And I thought, “Surely it is better to be wise than to be foolish, like light is better than darkness,
And Y siy, that wisdom yede so mych bifor foli, as miche as liyt is dyuerse fro derknessis.
14 [because] wise people [walk in the daylight and] [IDM] can see where they are going, but foolish people walk in the darkness [and cannot see where they are going].” But I [also] realized that both wise people and foolish people eventually die.
The iyen of a wijs man ben in his heed, a fool goith in derknessis; and Y lernede, that o perisching was of euer either.
15 So I said to myself, “I am very wise, but I will [die at the end of my life], like foolish people do. So (how has it benefited me to be very wise?/it certainly has not benefited me to be very wise [RHQ]). I do not understand why [people consider that] it is valuable to be wise.
And Y seide in myn herte, If o deth schal be bothe of the fool and of me, what profitith it to me, that Y yaf more bisynesse to wisdom? And Y spak with my soule, and perseyuede, that this also was vanyte.
16 Wise people and foolish people all die. And after we die, we will all eventually be forgotten [DOU].”
For mynde of a wijs man schal not be, in lijk maner as nether of a fool with outen ende, and tymes to comynge schulen hile alle thingis togidere with foryetyng; a lerned man dieth in lijk maner and an vnlerned man.
17 So I hated being alive, because everything that we do here on the earth [MTY] distresses me. It all seems to be useless [like] chasing the wind.
And therfor it anoiede me of my lijf, seynge that alle thingis vndur sunne ben yuele, and that alle thingis ben vanyte and turment of the spirit.
18 I [also began to] hate all the hard work that I had done, because [when I die], everything [that I have acquired] will belong to the next king.
Eft Y curside al my bisynesse, bi which Y trauelide moost studiousli vndur sunne, and Y schal haue an eir after me,
19 And (who/no one) knows [RHQ] whether he will be wise or whether he will be foolish. But even if he is foolish, he will acquire all the things that I worked very hard and wisely to get.
whom Y knowe not, whether he schal be wijs ether a fool; and he schal be lord in my trauels, for whiche Y swatte greetli, and was bisi; and is ony thing so veyn?
20 I thought about all the hard work that I had done. [It seemed useless], and I became depressed/discouraged.
Wherfor Y ceesside, and myn herte forsook for to trauele ferthere vnder sunne.
21 Some people work wisely and skillfully, using the things that they have learned. But [when they die], they leave everything, and someone who has not worked hard acquires those things. And that also [seemed to] be senseless and caused me to be discouraged.
For whi whanne another man trauelith in wisdom, and techyng, and bisynesse, he leeueth thingis getun to an idel man; and therfor this is vanyte, and greet yuel.
22 So, it seems that people do not [RHQ] get much for all the hard work that they do and for worrying.
For whi what schal it profite to a man of al his trauel, and turment of spirit, bi which he was turmentid vndur sunne?
23 Every day the work that they do causes them to experience pain and to be worried. And during the night, their minds are not able to rest. That also is very frustrating.
Alle hise daies ben ful of sorewis and meschefs, and bi nyyt he restith not in soule; and whether this is not vanyte?
24 [So I decided that] the best thing that we can do is to enjoy what we eat and drink, and [also] enjoy our work. And I realized that those things are what God intends for us.
Whether it is not betere to ete and drynke, and to schewe to hise soule goodis of hise trauels? and this thing is of the hond of God.
25 There is absolutely no one [RHQ] who is able to enjoy those things if God does not give those things to him.
Who schal deuoure so, and schal flowe in delicis, as Y dide?
26 God enables those who please him to be wise, to know [many things], and to enjoy [many things]. But if sinful people work hard and become rich, God [can] take their money away from them and give it to those who please him. But that also is something that is difficult for me to understand. [Their working hard seems] useless, [like] chasing the wind.
God yaf wisdom, and kunnyng, and gladnesse to a good man in his siyt; but he yaf turment, and superflu bisynesse to a synnere, that he encreesse, and gadere togidere, and yyue to hym that plesith God; but also this is vanyte, and veyn bisynesse of soule.
