Ecclesiastes 1
The Futility of All Endeavor
1The words of the aPreacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2 ▼▼ Or Futility of futilities
,
c“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher,▼
▼ Or Futility of futilities
“Vanity of vanities! All is ▼▼ Or futile
vanity.”3 fWhat advantage does man have in all his work
Which he does under the sun?
4A generation goes and a generation comes,
But the gearth ▼
▼ Lit stands
remains forever.5Also, ithe sun rises and the sun sets;
And ▼
▼ Lit panting
hastening to its place it rises there again.6 ▼
▼ Lit Going
,
lBlowing toward the south,Then turning toward the north,
The wind continues ▼
▼ Lit turning
swirling along;And on its circular courses the wind returns.
7All the rivers ▼
▼ Lit go
flow into the sea,Yet the sea is not full.
To the place where the rivers ▼
▼ Lit go
flow,There they ▼
▼ Lit go
flow again.8All things are wearisome;
Man is not able to tell it.
qThe eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor is the ear filled with hearing.
9 rThat which has been is that which will be,
And that which has been done is that which will be done.
So there is nothing new under the sun.
10Is there anything of which one might say,
“See this, it is new”?
Already it has existed for ages
Which were before us.
11There is sno remembrance of ▼
▼ Lit first or former
earlier things;And also of the ▼
▼ Lit latter or after
later things which will occur,There will be for them no remembrance
Among those who will come ▼
▼ Lit latter or after
later still.The Futility of Wisdom
12I, the wPreacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13And I xset my ▼▼ Lit heart
mind to seek and zexplore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. It is ▼▼ Lit an evil
a grievous abtask which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with. 14I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is ▼▼ Or futility
,
advanity and striving after wind. 15What is aecrooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. 16I ▼▼ Lit spoke with my heart, saying
said to myself, “Behold, I have magnified and increased agwisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my ▼▼ Lit heart
mind has observed ▼▼ Lit an abundance
a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.” 17And I ajset my ▼▼ Lit heart
mind to know wisdom and to alknow madness and folly; I realized that this also is amstriving after wind. 18Because anin much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain.
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