Ecclesiastes 5
1 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.
Keep your feet when you go to a house of God, and draw near to hear rather than to give of fools the sacrifice, for they do not know they do evil.
2 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.
Do not cause your mouth to hurry, and do not let your heart hurry to bring out a word before God, for God is in the heavens, and you on the earth, therefore let your words be few.
3 Dremes suen many bisynessis, and foli schal be foundun in many wordis.
For the dream has come by abundance of business, and the voice of a fool by abundance of words.
4 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;
When you vow a vow to God, do not delay to complete it, for there is no pleasure in fools; that which you vow—complete.
5 and it is myche betere to make not a vowe, than aftir a vowe to yelde not biheestis.
Better that you do not vow, than that you vow and do not complete.
6 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.
Do not permit your mouth to cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger that it [is] ignorance. Why is God angry because of your voice and has destroyed the work of your hands?
7 Where ben many dremes, ben ful many vanytees, and wordis with out noumbre; but drede thou God.
For in the abundance of dreams both vanities and words abound; but fear God.
8 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;
If oppression of the poor, and violent taking away of judgment and righteousness you see in a province, do not marvel at the matter, for a higher than the high is observing, and high ones [are] over them.
9 and ferthermore the kyng of al erthe comaundith to the seruaunt.
And the abundance of a land is for all. A king for a field is served.
10 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.
Whoever is loving silver is not satisfied [with] silver, nor he who is in love with stores [with] increase. Even this [is] vanity.
11 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?
In the multiplying of good have its consumers been multiplied, and what benefit [is] to its possessor except the sight of his eyes?
12 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.
Sweet [is] the sleep of the laborer whether he eat little or much; and the sufficiency of the wealthy is not permitting him to sleep.
13 Also anothir sijknesse is ful yuel, which Y siy vndur the sunne; richessis ben kept in to the yuel of her lord.
There is a painful evil I have seen under the sun: wealth kept for its possessor, for his evil.
14 For thei perischen in the worste turment; he gendride a sone, that schal be in souereyn nedynesse.
And that wealth has been lost in an evil business, and he has begotten a son and there is nothing in his hand!
15 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.
As he came out from the belly of his mother, naked he turns back to go as he came, and he does not take away anything of his labor, that goes in his hand.
16 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?
And this also [is] a painful evil, just as he came, so he goes, and what advantage [is] to him who labors for wind?
17 In alle the daies of his lijf he eet in derknessis, and in many bisinessis, and in nedynesse, and sorewe.
He also consumes all his days in darkness, and sadness, and wrath, and sickness abound.
18 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.
Behold, that which I have seen: [It is] good, because beautiful, to eat, and to drink, and to see good in all one’s labor that he labors at under the sun, the number of the days of his life that God has given to him, for it [is] his portion.
19 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.
Every man also to whom God has given wealth and riches, and has given him power to eat of it, and to accept his portion, and to rejoice in his labor, this is a gift of God.
20 For he schal not bithenke miche on the daies of his lijf, for God ocupieth his herte with delicis.
For he does not much remember the days of his life, for God is answering through the joy of his heart.
