Ecclesiastes 8
1 [I will tell you about] those who are truly wise [RHQ] with the result that they can explain why everything happens. Being wise enables people to be happy [MTY] and enables them to smile.
Hvo er som den vise? og hvo forstaar Sagens Udtydning? Menneskens Visdom opklarer hans Ansigt, og hans Ansigts Haardhed forandres.
2 You solemnly promised God that you would obey what the king commands, so do that.
Jeg siger: Agt paa Kongens Mund, og det formedelst Eden til Gud.
3 Do not quickly disobey the king. And do not join those who want to rebel against him, because the king will do what he wants to do.
Vær ikke hastig til at gaa bort fra hans Ansigt, bliv ikke staaende ved en slet Sag; thi han kan gøre alt, hvad han har Lyst til,
4 We need to obey what the king says more than we need to obey what anyone else says; no one can say to the king, “(Why are you doing that?/You should not be doing that.) [RHQ]”
efterdi Kongens Ord er et Magtsprog; og hvo tør sige til ham: Hvad gør du?
5 If you obey what the king commands, he will not harm you. [So] be wise, and know the correct/right time to do things and the right way to do them.
Hvo som holder Budet, skal intet ondt forfare, og den vises Hjerte kender Tid og Ret.
6 Although people experience many troubles/difficulties, there is a right/correct time to do things, and there is a right/correct way [to do them].
Thi for enhver Idræt er der Tid og Ret; thi Menneskets Ulykke hviler svar over ham.
7 No one knows what will happen in the future, so there is no one [RHQ] who can tell us what is going to happen.
Thi han ved ikke, hvad der skal ske: Thi hvo kan tilkendegive ham, hvorledes det skal vorde?
8 We cannot control the wind, and we cannot control when we will die. Soldiers are not permitted to go home during a battle, and evil people will not be saved by [doing what is] evil.
Mennesket har ikke Magt over Aanden til at holde Aanden tilbage og ingen Magt over Dødens Dag og kan i Striden ikke undslippe, og Ugudelighed kan ikke redde sin Ejermand.
9 I thought about all those things, and I thought about all [HYP] the other things that happen on this earth. I saw that [sometimes] people cause those whom they control to suffer.
Alt dette har jeg set, og jeg har lagt Mærke til al den Gerning, som gøres under Solen; der er en Tid, da Mennesket hersker over et Menneske til dettes Ulykke.
10 I also saw that [sometimes] after evil [people] die, they are highly honored at their funerals by the people in the cities where they had done [evil] deeds. It seemed to be difficult to understand why that happens.
Og da saa jeg de ugudelige at begraves og komme hjem og at gaa bort fra den Helliges Sted og at glemmes i Staden efter at have gjort saaledes; ogsaa dette er Forfængelighed.
11 If evil people are not immediately punished, it causes [other] people [SYN] to [also] want to do evil things.
Efterdi der ikke fældes en Dom, haster Ondskabens Gerning; derfor er Menneskenes Børns Hjerte inden i dem fuldt af at gøre ondt.
12 But even if sinful people commit 100 crimes, and [even if they] live for a long time, I know that things will go better for those who greatly respect and revere God.
Lad endog en Synder gøre hundrede Gange ondt og leve længe! thi jeg ved dog, at det skal gaa dem vel, som frygte Gud, og som frygte for hans Ansigt.
13 [I also know] that things will not go well go for those who are evil, because they do not revere God. Shadows [do not last a long time]. Similarly [SIM], evil people will not live a long time.
Men det skal ikke gaa den ugudelige vel, og han skal ikke leve længe, han skal gaa bort ligesom en Skygge, fordi han ikke frygter for Guds Ansigt.
14 Another thing that [sometimes] happens on this earth is that bad things happen to righteous people, and good things happen to evil people. It is difficult to understand why that happens.
Der er en Forfængelighed, som sker paa Jorden: At der er retfærdige, hvem det rammer efter de ugudeliges Gerning, og at der er ugudelige, hvem det rammer efter de retfærdiges Gerning; jeg sagde, at ogsaa dette er Forfængelighed.
15 [So] I decided that I would recommend that people be happy while they are alive, because the best thing that people can do here on this earth is to eat and drink and be happy. Enjoying doing those things will help people while they do their work, all the time that God has given to them to remain alive here on the earth.
Og jeg prisede Glæden, efterdi et Menneske intet bedre har under Solen end at æde og at drikke og at være glad; og saadant følger ham for hans Arbejde i hans Livsdage, som Gud har givet ham under Solen.
16 I thought about being wise and about people who work very hard, working day and night and not taking time to sleep.
Eftersom jeg gav mit Hjerte hen til at forstaa Visdom og til at se den Møje, som man gør sig paa Jorden, at der er den, som hverken Dag eller Nat ser Søvn i sine Øjne:
17 Then I thought about everything [HYP] that God has done, and I realized that no one can understand everything that happens here on this earth. Truly, people are not able to fully understand everything [that God understands], even if they try hard to do that. Even if wise people claim that they understand it all, they cannot.
Da saa jeg al Guds Gerning, at et Menneske ikke kan udfinde den Gerning, som sker under Solen, idet Mennesket arbejder paa at udgranske den uden at kunne finde den; og selv om den vise vilde sige sig at forstaa den, kan han dog ikke finde den.
