Propovednik 8
1 Ko je kao mudri? i ko zna šta znaèe stvari? Mudrost prosvjetljuje èovjeku lice, a tvrdoæa lica njegova mijenja se.
[I will tell you about] those who are truly wise [RHQ] with the result that they can explain why everything happens. Being wise enables people to be happy [MTY] and enables them to smile.
2 Ja ti kažem: izvršuj zapovijest carevu, i to zakletve Božije radi.
You solemnly promised God that you would obey what the king commands, so do that.
3 Ne budi brz da otideš ispred njega; ne stoj u zloj stvari, jer æe uèiniti što god hoæe.
Do not quickly disobey the king. And do not join those who want to rebel against him, because the king will do what he wants to do.
4 Jer gdje je god rijeè careva ondje je vlast, i ko æe mu reæi: šta radiš?
We need to obey what the king says more than we need to obey what anyone else says; no one can say to the king, “(Why are you doing that?/You should not be doing that.) [RHQ]”
5 Ko izvršuje zapovijest, neæe znati za zlo, jer srce mudroga zna vrijeme i naèin.
If you obey what the king commands, he will not harm you. [So] be wise, and know the correct/right time to do things and the right way to do them.
6 Jer svaèemu ima vrijeme i naèin; ali mnoga zla snalaze èovjeka,
Although people experience many troubles/difficulties, there is a right/correct time to do things, and there is a right/correct way [to do them].
7 Što ne zna šta æe biti; jer kad æe što biti, ko æe mu kazati?
No one knows what will happen in the future, so there is no one [RHQ] who can tell us what is going to happen.
8 Èovjek nije vlastan nad duhom da bi ustavio duh, niti ima vlasti nad danom smrtnijem, niti ima obrane u toj borbi; ni bezbožnost ne izbavlja onoga u koga je.
We cannot control the wind, and we cannot control when we will die. Soldiers are not permitted to go home during a battle, and evil people will not be saved by [doing what is] evil.
9 Sve ovo vidjeh, i upravih srce svoje na sve što se radi pod suncem. Katkad vlada èovjek nad èovjekom na zlo njegovo.
I thought about all those things, and I thought about all [HYP] the other things that happen on this earth. I saw that [sometimes] people cause those whom they control to suffer.
10 I tada vidjeh bezbožnike pogrebene, gdje se vratiše; a koji dobro èinjahu otidoše sa svetoga mjesta i biše zaboravljeni u gradu. I to je taština.
I also saw that [sometimes] after evil [people] die, they are highly honored at their funerals by the people in the cities where they had done [evil] deeds. It seemed to be difficult to understand why that happens.
11 Što nema odmah osude za zlo djelo, zato srce sinova ljudskih kipi u njima da èine zlo.
If evil people are not immediately punished, it causes [other] people [SYN] to [also] want to do evil things.
12 Neka grješnik sto puta èini zlo i odgaða mu se, ja ipak znam da æe biti dobro onima koji se boje Boga, koji se boje lica njegova.
But even if sinful people commit 100 crimes, and [even if they] live for a long time, I know that things will go better for those who greatly respect and revere God.
13 A bezbožniku neæe biti dobro, niti æe mu se produljiti dani, nego æe biti kao sjen onome koji se ne boji lica Božijega.
[I also know] that things will not go well go for those who are evil, because they do not revere God. Shadows [do not last a long time]. Similarly [SIM], evil people will not live a long time.
14 Taština je koja biva na zemlji što ima pravednika kojima biva po djelima bezbožnièkim, a ima bezbožnika kojima biva po djelima pravednièkim. Rekoh: i to je taština.
Another thing that [sometimes] happens on this earth is that bad things happen to righteous people, and good things happen to evil people. It is difficult to understand why that happens.
15 Zato ja hvalih veselje, jer nema ništa bolje èovjeku pod suncem nego da jede i pije i da se veseli; i to mu je od truda njegova za života njegova, koji mu Bog da pod suncem.
[So] I decided that I would recommend that people be happy while they are alive, because the best thing that people can do here on this earth is to eat and drink and be happy. Enjoying doing those things will help people while they do their work, all the time that God has given to them to remain alive here on the earth.
16 Kad upravih srce svoje da poznam mudrost i vidim šta se radi na zemlji, te ni danju ni noæu ne dolazi èovjeku san na oèi,
I thought about being wise and about people who work very hard, working day and night and not taking time to sleep.
17 Vidjeh na svijem djelima Božijim da èovjek ne može dokuèiti ono što se radi pod suncem, oko èega se trudi èovjek tražeæi, ali ne nalazi, i ako i mudarac reèe da zna, ipak ne može dokuèiti.
Then I thought about everything [HYP] that God has done, and I realized that no one can understand everything that happens here on this earth. Truly, people are not able to fully understand everything [that God understands], even if they try hard to do that. Even if wise people claim that they understand it all, they cannot.
