Pengkhotbah 8
1 Alangkah senangnya orang bijaksana. Ia tahu jawaban atas segala perkara. Hikmat membuat dia tersenyum gembira, sehingga wajahnya cerah senantiasa.
The wisdom of a man shines in his countenance, and even the expression of a most powerful man will change.
2 Patuhlah jika raja memberi perintah, dan jangan membuat janji gegabah kepada Allah.
I heed the mouth of the king, and the commandment of an oath to God.
3 Raja dapat bertindak semaunya, kalau ia tak berkenan, lebih baik jauhi dia.
You should not hastily withdraw from his presence, nor should you remain in an evil work. For all that pleases him, he will do.
4 Raja bertindak dengan wibawa; tak ada yang berani membantahnya!
And his word is filled with authority. Neither is anyone able to say to him: “Why are you acting this way?”
5 Orang yang taat kepadanya, akan aman dan sentosa; orang arif tahu kapan dan bagaimana mentaati raja.
Whoever keeps the commandment will not experience evil. The heart of a wise man understands the time to respond.
6 Bagi segala sesuatu ada waktu dan caranya sendiri, tetapi sedikit sekali yang kita fahami!
For every matter, there is a time and an opportunity, as well as many difficulties, for man.
7 Tidak seorang pun tahu nasib apa yang menanti, dan tak ada yang dapat mengatakan apa yang akan terjadi.
For he is ignorant of the past, and he is able to know nothing of the future by means of a messenger.
8 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.
It is not in the power of a man to prohibit the spirit, nor does he have authority over the day of death, nor is he permitted to rest when war breaks out, and neither will impiety save the impious.
9 Semua ini kulihat ketika kuperhatikan segala kejadian di dunia. Ada kalanya manusia memakai kuasanya untuk mencelakakan sesamanya.
I have considered all these things, and I have applied my heart to all the works which are being done under the sun. Sometimes one man rules over another to his own harm.
10 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.
I have seen the impious buried. These same, while they were still living, were in the holy place, and they were praised in the city as workers of justice. But this, too, is emptiness.
11 Mengapa begitu mudah orang melakukan kejahatan? Karena hukuman tidak segera diberikan.
For the sons of men perpetrate evils without any fear, because judgment is not pronounced quickly against the evil.
12 Meskipun seratus kejahatan dilakukan seorang berdosa, ia tetap hidup bahkan panjang umurnya. Konon, siapa taat kepada Allah, pasti hidupnya serba mudah.
But although a sinner may do evil of himself one hundred times, and by patience still endure, I realize that it will be well with those who fear God, who revere his face.
13 Sebaliknya, orang jahat mendapat banyak kesukaran. Hidupnya cepat berlalu seperti bayangan. Ia akan mati pada usia muda karena ia tidak taat kepada Tuhannya.
So, may it not go well with the impious, and may his days not be prolonged. And let those who do not fear the face of the Lord pass away like a shadow.
14 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.
There is also another vanity, which is done upon the earth. There are the just, to whom evils happen, as though they had done the works of the impious. And there are the impious, who are very secure, as though they possess the deeds of the just. But this, too, I judge to be a very great vanity.
15 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.
And so, I praised rejoicing, because there was no good for a man under the sun, except to eat and drink, and to be cheerful, and because he may take nothing with him from his labor in the days of his life, which God has given to him under the sun.
16 Ketika aku berusaha mendapat hikmat, dan kuperhatikan segala kejadian di dunia ini, maka sadarlah aku bahwa meskipun kita bersusah payah siang malam tanpa beristirahat,
And I applied my heart, so that I might know wisdom, and so that I might understand a disturbance that turns upon the earth: it is a man, who takes no sleep with his eyes, day and night.
17 kita tak mampu mengerti tindakan Allah. Bagaimanapun kita berusaha, tak mungkin kita memahaminya. Orang arif mengaku bahwa ia tahu, tetapi sebenarnya ia tidak tahu.
And I understood that man is able to find no explanation for all those works of God which are done under the sun. And so, the more that he labors to seek, so much the less does he find. Yes, even if a wise man were to claim that he knows, he would not be able to discover it.
