Ecclesiastes 5
1 Guard your steps when you go to God’s house; for to draw near to listen is better than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they don’t know that they do evil.
Thou that entrist in to the hous of God, kepe thi foot, and neiye thou for to here; for whi myche betere is obedience than the sacrifices of foolis, that witen not what yuel thei don.
2 Don’t be rash with your mouth, and don’t let your heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and you on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
Speke thou not ony thing folily, nether thin herte be swift to brynge forth a word bifore God; for God is in heuene, and thou art on erthe, therfor thi wordis be fewe.
3 For as a dream comes with a multitude of cares, so a fool’s speech with a multitude of words.
Dremes suen many bisynessis, and foli schal be foundun in many wordis.
4 When you vow a vow to God, don’t defer to pay it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you vow.
If thou hast avowid ony thing to God, tarie thou not to yelde; for an vnfeithful and fonned biheest displesith hym; but `yelde thou what euer thing thou hast avowid;
5 It is better that you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.
and it is myche betere to make not a vowe, than aftir a vowe to yelde not biheestis.
6 Don’t allow your mouth to lead you into sin. Don’t protest before the messenger that this was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice, and destroy the work of your hands?
Yyue thou not thi mouth, that thou make thi fleisch to do synne; nether seie thou bifor an aungel, No puruyaunce is; lest perauenture the Lord be wrooth on thi wordis, and distruye alle the werkis of thin hondis.
7 For in the multitude of dreams there are vanities, as well as in many words; but you must fear God.
Where ben many dremes, ben ful many vanytees, and wordis with out noumbre; but drede thou God.
8 If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don’t marvel at the matter, for one official is eyed by a higher one, and there are officials over them.
If thou seest false chalengis of nedi men, and violent domes, and that riytfulnesse is distried in the prouynce, wondre thou not on this doyng; for another is hiyere than an hiy man, and also othere men ben more hiye aboue these men;
9 Moreover the profit of the earth is for all. The king profits from the field.
and ferthermore the kyng of al erthe comaundith to the seruaunt.
10 He who loves silver shall not be satisfied with silver, nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity.
An auerouse man schal not be fillid of monei; and he that loueth richessis schal not take fruytis of tho; and therfor this is vanyte.
11 When goods increase, those who eat them are increased; and what advantage is there to its owner, except to feast on them with his eyes?
Where ben many richessis, also many men ben, that eten tho; and what profitith it to the haldere, no but that he seeth richessis with hise iyen?
12 The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not allow him to sleep.
Slepe is swete to hym that worchith, whether he etith litil ether myche; but the fulnesse of a ryche man suffrith not hym to slepe.
13 There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owner to his harm.
Also anothir sijknesse is ful yuel, which Y siy vndur the sunne; richessis ben kept in to the yuel of her lord.
14 Those riches perish by misfortune, and if he has fathered a son, there is nothing in his hand.
For thei perischen in the worste turment; he gendride a sone, that schal be in souereyn nedynesse.
15 As he came out of his mother’s womb, naked shall he go again as he came, and shall take nothing for his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.
As he yede nakid out of his modris wombe, so he schal turne ayen; and he schal take awei with hym no thing of his trauel.
16 This also is a grievous evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go. And what profit does he have who labours for the wind?
Outirli it is a wretchid sijknesse; as he cam, so he schal turne ayen. What therfor profitith it to hym, that he trauelide in to the wynde?
17 All his days he also eats in darkness, he is frustrated, and has sickness and wrath.
In alle the daies of his lijf he eet in derknessis, and in many bisinessis, and in nedynesse, and sorewe.
18 Behold, that which I have seen to be good and proper is for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy good in all his labour, in which he labours under the sun, all the days of his life which God has given him; for this is his portion.
Therfor this semyde good to me, that a man ete, and drynke, and vse gladnesse of his trauel, in which he trauelide vndir the sunne, in the noumbre of daies of his lijf, which God yaf to hym; and this is his part.
19 Every man also to whom God has given riches and wealth, and has given him power to eat of it, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour—this is the gift of God.
And to ech man, to whom God yaf richessis, and catel, and yaf power to hym to ete of tho, and to vse his part, and to be glad of his trauel; this is the yifte of God.
20 For he shall not often reflect on the days of his life, because God occupies him with the joy of his heart.
For he schal not bithenke miche on the daies of his lijf, for God ocupieth his herte with delicis.
