Ecclesiastes 7
1 A good name is better than fine perfume; and the day of death better than the day of one’s birth.
Godt Navn er bedre end ypperlig Salve, Dødsdag bedre end Fødselsdag;
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting; for that is the end of all men, and the living should take this to heart.
bedre at gå til et Sørgehus end at gå til et Gildehus; thi hist er alle Menneskers Ende, og de levende bør tage det til Hjerte
3 Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made good.
Bedre Græmmelse end Latter, thi er Minerne mørke, har Hjertet det godt.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
De vises Hjerte er i Sørgehuset. Tåbernes Hjerte i Glædeshuset.
5 It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools.
Bedre at høre på Vismands Skænd end at høre på Tåbers Sang.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.
Som Tjørnekvistes Knitren under Gryden er Tåbers Latter; også det er Tomhed.
7 Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
Thi uredelig Vinding gør Vismand til Dåre, og Stikpenge ødelægger Hjertet.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning. The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
En Sags Udgang er bedre end dens Indgang, Tålmod er bedre end Hovmod.
9 Don’t be hasty in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools.
Vær ikke hastig i dit Sind til at græmmes, thi Græmmelse bor i Tåbers Bryst.
10 Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not ask wisely about this.
Spørg ikke: "Hvoraf kommer det, at de gamle Dage var bedre end vore?" Thi således spørger du ikke med Visdom.
11 Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
Bedre er Visdom end Arv, en Fordel for dem, som skuer Solen;
12 For wisdom is a defense, even as money is a defense; but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
thi Visdom skygger, som Penge skygger, men Kundskabs Fortrin er dette, at Visdom holder sin Mand i Live.
13 Consider the work of God, for who can make that straight which he has made crooked?
Se på Guds Værk! Hvo kan rette, hvad han har gjort kroget?
14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider; yes, God has made the one side by side with the other, to the end that man should not find out anything after him.
Vær ved godt Mod på den gode Dag og indse på den onde Dag, at Gud skabte denne såvel som hin, for at Mennesket ikke skal finde noget efter sig.
15 All this I have seen in my days of vanity: there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who lives long in his evildoing.
Begge Dele så jeg i mine tomme Dage: Der er retfærdige, som omkommer i deres Retfærdighed, og der er gudløse, som lever længe i deres Ondskab.
16 Don’t be overly righteous, neither make yourself overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself?
Vær ikke alt for retfærdig og te dig ikke overvættes viis; hvorfor vil du ødelægge dig selv?
17 Don’t be too wicked, neither be foolish. Why should you die before your time?
Vær ikke alt for gudløs og vær ingen Dåre; hvorfor vil du dø i Utide?
18 It is good that you should take hold of this. Yes, also don’t withdraw your hand from that; for he who fears God will come out of them all.
Det bedste er, at du fastholder det ene og ikke slipper det andet; thi den, der frygter Gud, vil undgå begge Farer.
19 Wisdom is a strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
Visdom gør Vismand stærkere end ti Magthavere i Byen.
20 Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and doesn’t sin.
Thi intet Menneske er så retfærdigt på Jorden, at han kun gør gode Gerninger og aldrig synder.
21 Also don’t take heed to all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you;
Giv ikke Agt på alle de Ord, Folk siger, at du ikke skal høre din Træl forbande dig;
22 for often your own heart knows that you yourself have likewise cursed others.
thi du ved med dig selv, at også du mange Gange har forbandet andre.
23 All this I have proved in wisdom. I said, “I will be wise;” but it was far from me.
Alt dette ransagede jeg med Visdom; jeg tænkte: "Jeg vil vorde viis." Men Visdom holdt sig langt fra mig;
24 That which is, is far off and exceedingly deep. Who can find it out?
Tingenes Grund er langt borte, så dyb, så dyb; hvem kan finde den?
25 I turned around, and my heart sought to know and to search out, and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know that wickedness is stupidity, and that foolishness is madness.
Jeg tog mig for at vende min Hu til Kundskab og Granskning og til at søge efter Visdom og sikker Viden og til at kende, at Gudløshed er Tåbelighed, Dårskab Vanvid.
26 I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and traps, whose hands are chains. Whoever pleases God shall escape from her; but the sinner will be ensnared by her.
Og beskere end Døden fandt jeg Kvinden, thi hun er et Fangegarn; hendes Hjerfe er et Net og hendes Arme Lænker. Den, som er Gud kær, undslipper hende, men Synderen bliver hendes Fange.
27 “Behold, I have found this,” says the Preacher, “to one another, to find an explanation
Se, det fandt jeg ud, sagde Prædikeren, ved at lægge det ene til det andet for at drage min Slutning.
28 which my soul still seeks, but I have not found. I have found one man among a thousand, but I have not found a woman among all those.
Hvad min Sjæl stadig søgte, men ikke fandt, er dette: Een Mand fandt jeg blandt tusind, men en Kvinde fandt jeg ikke i hele Flokken.
29 Behold, I have only found this: that God made mankind upright; but they search for many inventions.”
Dog se, det fandt jeg, at Gud har skabt Menneskene, som de bør være; men de har så mange sære Ting for.
