Kekahuna 9
1 NO keia mau mea a pau, ua haawi au i ko'u naau e noonoo i keia. Aia no iloko o ka lima o ke Akua ka poe pono, a me ka poe naauao, a me ka lakou hana ana; aole ike kekahi kanaka i ke aloha, aole i ka inaina; aia na mea a pau imua o lakou.
I had my mind consider all this. Wise and good people and everything they do are in God's hands. Love or hate—who knows what will happen to them?
2 Ua loaa i na kanaka a pau na mea like. Hookahi no hope i ka mea pono, a me ka mea hewa; i ka mea maikai, i ka mea maemae, a me ka mea maemae ole; i ka mea i mohai aku, a me ka mea i mohai ole aku. E like me ka mea maikai, pela no ka mea hewa; me ka mea hoohiki, pela no ka mea makau i ka hoohiki ana.
Yet we all share the same destiny—those who do right, those who do evil, the good, the religiously-observant and those that are not, those who sacrifice and those who don't. Those who do good are as those who sin, those who make vows to God are as those who don't.
3 He mea pono ole keia ma na mea i hanaia malalo iho o ka la; aia hookahi hope i loaa mai i na kanaka a pau. Oiaio, o ka naau o na keiki a kanaka, ua piha i ka ino, aia no ka ulala iloko o ko lakou naau i ko lakou ola ana, alaila, [hele lakou] i ka make.
This is just so wrong—that everyone here on earth should suffer the same fate! On top of that, people's minds are filled with evil. They spend their lives thinking about stupid things, and then they die.
4 No ka mea, ua laua ka manao, no ka mea i huipuia me na mea ola a pau; no ka mea, ua oi aku ka ilio ola mamua o ka liona make.
But the living still have hope—a live dog is better than a dead lion!
5 No ka mea, ua ike ka poe ola e make auanei lakou; aka, o ka poe make, aole lakou i ike i kekahi mea, aole he uku i koe ia lakou; no ka mea, ua nalowale ko lakou mea i hoomanaoia'i.
The living are conscious of the fact that they're going to die, but the dead have no consciousness of anything. They don't receive any further benefit; they're forgotten.
6 O ko lakou aloha, a me ko lakou inaina, a me ko lakou huahua, ua pau ia mau mea; ua nele mau loa lakou i ka haawina ole, ma na mea a pau i hanaia malalo iho o ka la.
Their love, hate, and envy—it's all gone. They have no further part in anything that happens here on earth.
7 E hele oe, e ai i kau berena, me ka oluolu, a e inu hoi i kou waina me ka naau olioli; no ka mea, ano, ua maliu mai ke Akua i kau hana ana.
So go ahead and eat your food, and enjoy it. Drink your wine with a happy heart. That's what God intends that you should do.
8 I na manawa a pau e keokeo wale no kou kapa komo, aole hoi e hoonele i kou poo i ka aila ala.
Always wear smart clothes and look good.
9 E noho oluolu pu oe me ka wahine au i aloha'i i na la a pau o kou ola lapuwale ana, i haawiia mai ai ia oe malalo iho o ka la, i kou mau la lapuwale a pau loa; no ka mea, oia kou haawina i kou ola ana, a me ka hana ana hoi au i hana'i malalo iho o ka la.
Enjoy life with the wife that you love—the one God gave you—during all the days of this brief life, all these passing days whose meaning is so hard to understand as you work here on earth.
10 O na mea a pau i loaa mai i kou lima e hana'i, e hana oe me kou ikaika; no ka mea, ma ka lua kupapau kahi au e hele aku nei, aole hana, aole noonoo, aole ike, aole naauao. (Sheol h7585)
Whatever you do, do it with all your strength, for when you go to the grave there's no more working or thinking, no more knowing or being wise. (Sheol h7585)
11 Alaila, haliu ae la au a ike malalo iho o ka la, aole no ka poe mama ke kukini ana, aole hoi no ka poe ikaika ke kaua, aole no ka poe naauao ka berena, aole no ka poe akamai ka waiwai, aole hoi no ka poe maiau ke aloha; aka, o ka manawa, a me na mea hiki wale ke loaa i na kanaka a pau.
I thought about other things that happen here on earth. Races are not always won by the fastest runner. Battles are not always decided by the strongest warrior. Also, the wise do not always have food, intelligent people do not always make money, and those who are clever do not always win favor. Time and chance affect all of them.
12 No ka mea, aole ike ke kanaka i kona manawa; e like me na ia i hooheiia i ka upena ino, a e like me na manu i paheleia iloko o ke kipuka, pela no i paheleia'i na keiki a kanaka i ka wa ino, i haule koke ia maluna o lakou.
You can't predict when your end will come. Just like fish caught in a net, or birds caught in a trap, so people are suddenly caught by death when they least expect it.
13 Eia ka mea naauao a'u i ike ai malalo iho o ka la, a he mea nui ia ia'u;
Here's another aspect of wisdom that impressed me about what happens here on earth.
14 Aia ke kulanakauhale uuku, aole nui na kanaka maloko; a hiki mai kekahi alii nui, a hoopopilikia ia wahi, a kukulu iho i pa kaua nui e ku e aku i ua kulanakauhale la.
Once there was a small town with only a few inhabitants. A powerful king came and besieged the town, building great earth ramps against its walls.
15 A ua loaa malaila he kanaka ilihune naauao, a ua hoopakele ia i ke kulanakauhale ma kona naauao, aka hoi, aole kekahi kanaka i hoomanao i ua kanaka ilihune la.
In that town lived a man who was wise, but poor. He saved the town by his wisdom. But no one remembered to thank that poor man.
16 Alaila, i iho la au, Ua oi aku ka naauao mamua o ka ikaika; aka hoi, ua hoowahawahaia ka naauao o ka mea ilihune, aole hoi i hooloheia kana olelo.
As I've always said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” Yet the wisdom of that poor man was dismissed—people didn't pay attention to what he said.
17 Ua loheia no na olelo a ka poe naauao ma kahi noho malu ai, mamua o ke kala ana o ka luna o ka poe naaupo.
It's better to listen to the calm words of a wise person than the shouts of a ruler of fools.
18 Ua oi aku ka naauao mamua o na mea kaua; aka hoi, ua hoohiolo ke kanaka hewa hookahi i ka maikai he nui wale.
It's better to have wisdom than weapons of war; but a sinner can destroy a lot of good.
