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Ecclesiastes 1
21st Century King James Version
Ecclesiastes 1
21st Century King James Version
1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 “Vanity of vanities,” saith the Preacher. “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.”
3 What profit hath a man from all his labor which he doeth under the sun?
4 One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; but the earth abideth for ever.
5 The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteneth to his place where he arose.
6 The wind goeth toward the south and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.
7 All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
8 All things are full of labor; man cannot utter it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done, is that which shall be done; and there is no new thing under the sun.
10 Is there any thing whereof it may be said, “See, this is new”? It hath been already in olden times which were before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things, neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come by those that shall come after.
12 I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven. This sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.
15 That which is crooked cannot be made straight, and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
16 I communed with mine own heart, saying, “Lo, I have come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem; yea, my heart had great experience in wisdom and knowledge.”
17 And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly. But I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.
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Ecclesiastes 1
New International Version
Ecclesiastes 1
New International Version
Everything Is Meaningless
1 The words of the Teacher,[a](A) son of David, king in Jerusalem:(B)
2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!”
says the Teacher.
“Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.”(C)
3 What do people gain from all their labors
at which they toil under the sun?(D)
4 Generations come and generations go,
but the earth remains forever.(E)
5 The sun rises and the sun sets,
and hurries back to where it rises.(F)
6 The wind blows to the south
and turns to the north;
round and round it goes,
ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
there they return again.(G)
8 All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,(H)
nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;(I)
there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say,
“Look! This is something new”?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.
11 No one remembers the former generations,(J)
and even those yet to come
will not be remembered
by those who follow them.(K)
Wisdom Is Meaningless
12 I, the Teacher,(L) was king over Israel in Jerusalem.(M) 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens.(N) What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind!(O) 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.(P)
15 What is crooked cannot be straightened;(Q)
what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I said to myself, “Look, I have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me;(R) I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom,(S) and also of madness and folly,(T) but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 1:1 Or the leader of the assembly; also in verses 2 and 12
Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
21st Century King James Version
Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
21st Century King James Version
8 “Vanity of vanities,” saith the Preacher. “All is vanity.”
9 And moreover because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed and sought out and set in order many proverbs.
10 The Preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth!
11 The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the master builders, which are given from one Shepherd.
12 And further, my son, by these words be admonished: of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness to the flesh.
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.
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Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
New International Version
Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
New International Version
The Conclusion of the Matter
9 Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs.(C) 10 The Teacher(D) searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.(E)
11 The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails(F)—given by one shepherd.[b] 12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.
Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.(G)
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 12:8 Or the leader of the assembly; also in verses 9 and 10
- Ecclesiastes 12:11 Or Shepherd
21st Century King James Version (KJ21)
Copyright © 1994 by Deuel Enterprises, Inc.
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