Ecclesiastes 8
1 Who [is] as the wise? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? The wisdom of man causeth his face to shine, and the hardness of his face is changed.
Alangkah senangnya orang bijaksana. Ia tahu jawaban atas segala perkara. Hikmat membuat dia tersenyum gembira, sehingga wajahnya cerah senantiasa.
2 I pray thee, the commandment of a king keep, even for the sake of the oath of God.
Patuhlah jika raja memberi perintah, dan jangan membuat janji gegabah kepada Allah.
3 Be not troubled at his presence, thou mayest go, stand not in an evil thing, for all that he pleaseth he doth.
Raja dapat bertindak semaunya, kalau ia tak berkenan, lebih baik jauhi dia.
4 Where the word of a king [is] power [is], and who saith to him, 'What dost thou?'
Raja bertindak dengan wibawa; tak ada yang berani membantahnya!
5 Whoso is keeping a command knoweth no evil thing, and time and judgment the heart of the wise knoweth.
Orang yang taat kepadanya, akan aman dan sentosa; orang arif tahu kapan dan bagaimana mentaati raja.
6 For to every delight there is a time and a judgment, for the misfortune of man is great upon him.
Bagi segala sesuatu ada waktu dan caranya sendiri, tetapi sedikit sekali yang kita fahami!
7 For he knoweth not that which shall be, for when it shall be who declareth to him?
Tidak seorang pun tahu nasib apa yang menanti, dan tak ada yang dapat mengatakan apa yang akan terjadi.
8 There is no man ruling over the spirit to restrain the spirit, and there is no authority over the day of death, and there is no discharge in battle, and wickedness delivereth not its possessors.
Tak seorang pun dapat menahan atau menunda kematiannya. Itu perjuangan yang tak dapat dielakkannya, tak dapat ia luput daripadanya, walaupun dengan muslihat dan tipu daya.
9 All this I have seen so as to give my heart to every work that hath been done under the sun; a time that man hath ruled over man to his own evil.
Semua ini kulihat ketika kuperhatikan segala kejadian di dunia. Ada kalanya manusia memakai kuasanya untuk mencelakakan sesamanya.
10 And so I have seen the wicked buried, and they went in, even from the Holy Place they go, and they are forgotten in the city whether they had so done. This also [is] vanity.
Pernah kulihat orang jahat mati dan dikuburkan. Tetapi waktu orang-orang pulang dari penguburannya, mereka memuji dia di kota tempat ia melakukan kejahatan. Jadi, itu pun sia-sia.
11 Because sentence hath not been done [on] an evil work speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of man is full within them to do evil.
Mengapa begitu mudah orang melakukan kejahatan? Karena hukuman tidak segera diberikan.
12 Though a sinner is doing evil a hundred [times], and prolonging [himself] for it, surely also I know that there is good to those fearing God, who fear before Him.
Meskipun seratus kejahatan dilakukan seorang berdosa, ia tetap hidup bahkan panjang umurnya. Konon, siapa taat kepada Allah, pasti hidupnya serba mudah.
13 And good is not to the wicked, and he doth not prolong days as a shadow, because he is not fearing before God.
Sebaliknya, orang jahat mendapat banyak kesukaran. Hidupnya cepat berlalu seperti bayangan. Ia akan mati pada usia muda karena ia tidak taat kepada Tuhannya.
14 There is a vanity that hath been done upon the earth, that there are righteous ones unto whom it is coming according to the work of the wicked, and there are wicked ones unto whom it is coming according to the work of the righteous. I have said that this also [is] vanity.
Namun semua itu omong kosong belaka. Lihat saja apa yang terjadi di dunia: Ada orang saleh yang dihukum bagai pendurhaka, ada penjahat yang diganjar bagai orang saleh. Jadi, itu pun sia-sia.
15 And I have praised mirth because there is no good to man under the sun except to eat and to drink, and to rejoice, and it remaineth with him of his labour the days of his life that God hath given to him under the sun.
Kesimpulanku ialah bahwa orang harus bergembira. Karena dalam hidupnya di dunia tak ada kesenangan lain baginya kecuali makan, minum dan bersukaria. Itu saja yang dapat dinikmati di tengah jerih payahnya, selama hidup yang diberikan Allah kepadanya.
16 When I gave my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that hath been done on the earth, (for there is also a spectator in whose eyes sleep is not by day and by night),
Ketika aku berusaha mendapat hikmat, dan kuperhatikan segala kejadian di dunia ini, maka sadarlah aku bahwa meskipun kita bersusah payah siang malam tanpa beristirahat,
17 then I considered all the work of God, that man is not able to find out the work that hath been done under the sun, because though man labour to seek, yet he doth not find; and even though the wise man speak of knowing he is not able to find.
kita tak mampu mengerti tindakan Allah. Bagaimanapun kita berusaha, tak mungkin kita memahaminya. Orang arif mengaku bahwa ia tahu, tetapi sebenarnya ia tidak tahu.
