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Opening motto

The words of the Teacher of the Assembly,[a] David’s son, king in Jerusalem:

Perfectly pointless,[b] says the Teacher, perfectly pointless.
    Everything is pointless.

Some things are inevitable

What do people gain from all the hard work
    that they work so hard at under the sun?
A generation goes, and a generation comes,
    but the earth remains as it always has.
The sun rises, the sun sets;
    it returns panting to the place where it dawns.
The wind blows to the south,
    goes around to the north;
    around and around blows the wind;
    the wind returns to its rounds again.
All streams flow to the sea,
    but the sea is never full;
    to the place where the rivers flow,
    there they continue to flow.
All words[c] are tiring;
    no one is able to speak.
    The eye isn’t satisfied with seeing,
    neither is the ear filled up by hearing.
Whatever has happened—that’s what will happen again;
    whatever has occurred—that’s what will occur again.

There’s nothing new under the sun. 10 People may say about something: “Look at this! It’s new!” But it was already around for ages before us. 11 There’s no remembrance of things in the past, nor of things to come in the future. Neither will there be any remembrance among those who come along in the future.

The Teacher’s quest

12 I am the Teacher. I was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

13 I applied my mind to investigate and to explore by wisdom all that happens under heaven. It’s an unhappy obsession that God has given to human beings.

14 When I observed all that happens under the sun, I realized that everything is pointless, a chasing after wind.

15 What’s crooked can’t be straightened;
    what isn’t there can’t be counted.

16 I said to myself, Look here, I have grown much wiser than any who ruled over Jerusalem before me. My mind has absorbed great wisdom and knowledge. 17 But when I set my mind to understand wisdom, and also to understand madness and folly, I realized that this too was just wind chasing.

18 Remember:
In much wisdom is much aggravation;
    the more knowledge, the more pain.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:1 Or Gatherer or Convener or Assembler (Heb Qoheleth); see also 1:2, 12; 7:27; 12:8, 9, 10.
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:2 Or meaningless or vapor or puff of air (Heb hebel, which often occurs in the book)
  3. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Or things

These are the words from the Teacher, a son of David and king of Jerusalem.

Everything is so meaningless. The Teacher says that it is all a waste of time![a] Do people really gain anything from all the hard work they do in this life[b]?

Things Never Change

People live and people die, but the earth continues forever. The sun rises and the sun goes down, and then it hurries to rise again in the same place.

The wind blows to the south, and the wind blows to the north. The wind blows around and around. Then it turns and blows back to the place it began.

All rivers flow again and again to the same place. They all flow to the sea, but the sea never becomes full.

Words cannot fully explain things,[c] but people continue speaking.[d] Words come again and again to our ears, but our ears don’t become full. And our eyes don’t become full of what we see.

Nothing Is New

All things continue the way they have been since the beginning. The same things will be done that have always been done. There is nothing new in this life.

10 Someone might say, “Look, this is new,” but that thing has always been here. It was here before we were.

11 People don’t remember what happened long ago. In the future, they will not remember what is happening now. And later, other people will not remember what the people before them did.

Does Wisdom Bring Happiness?

12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I decided to study and to use my wisdom to learn about everything that is done in this life. I learned that it is a very hard thing that God has given us to do. 14 I looked at everything done on earth, and I saw that it is all a waste of time. It is like trying to catch the wind.[e] 15 If something is crooked, you cannot say it is straight. And if something is missing, you cannot say it is there.

16 I said to myself, “I am very wise. I am wiser than all the kings who ruled Jerusalem before me. I know what wisdom and knowledge really are.”

17 I decided to learn how wisdom and knowledge are better than thinking foolish thoughts. But I learned that trying to become wise is like trying to catch the wind. 18 With much wisdom comes frustration. The one who gains more wisdom also gains more sorrow.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:2 meaningless … a waste of time The Hebrew word means “vapor or breath” or “something that is useless, meaningless, empty, wrong, or a waste of time.”
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:3 in this life Literally, “under the sun.” Also in verses 9, 13.
  3. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Words cannot fully explain things Literally, “All words are weak.”
  4. Ecclesiastes 1:8 but people continue speaking The Hebrew could also be translated, “People cannot speak.”
  5. Ecclesiastes 1:14 trying to catch the wind Or “It is very troubling to the spirit.” The word for “troubling” can also mean “craving,” and the word for “spirit” can also mean “wind.” Also in verse 17.

The Vanity of Life

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, (A)king in Jerusalem.

“Vanity(B)[a] of vanities,” says the Preacher;
“Vanity of vanities, (C)all is vanity.”

(D)What profit has a man from all his labor
In which he [b]toils under the sun?
One generation passes away, and another generation comes;
(E)But the earth abides forever.
(F)The sun also rises, and the sun goes down,
And [c]hastens to the place where it arose.
(G)The wind goes toward the south,
And turns around to the north;
The wind whirls about continually,
And comes again on its circuit.
(H)All the rivers run into the sea,
Yet the sea is not full;
To the place from which the rivers come,
There they return again.
All things are [d]full of labor;
Man cannot express it.
(I)The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor the ear filled with hearing.

(J)That which has been is what will be,
That which is done is what will be done,
And there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which it may be said,
“See, this is new”?
It has already been in ancient times before us.
11 There is (K)no remembrance of former things,
Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come
By those who will come after.

The Grief of Wisdom

12 I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 And I set my heart to seek and (L)search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; (M)this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be [e]exercised. 14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.

15 (N)What is crooked cannot be made straight,
And what is lacking cannot be numbered.

16 I communed with my heart, saying, “Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained (O)more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has [f]understood great wisdom and knowledge.” 17 (P)And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind.

18 For (Q)in much wisdom is much grief,
And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:2 Or Absurdity, Frustration, Futility, Nonsense; and so throughout the book
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:3 labors
  3. Ecclesiastes 1:5 Is eager for, lit. panting
  4. Ecclesiastes 1:8 wearisome
  5. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Or afflicted
  6. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Lit. seen

The author: Solomon[a] of Jerusalem, King David’s son, “The Preacher.”

In my opinion, nothing is worthwhile; everything is futile. 3-7 For what does a man get for all his hard work?

Generations come and go, but it makes no difference.[b] The sun rises and sets and hurries around to rise again. The wind blows south and north, here and there, twisting back and forth, getting nowhere. The rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full, and the water returns again to the rivers and flows again to the sea . . . 8-11 everything is unutterably weary and tiresome. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied; no matter how much we hear, we are not content.

History merely repeats itself. Nothing is truly new; it has all been done or said before. What can you point to that is new? How do you know it didn’t exist long ages ago? We don’t remember what happened in those former times, and in the future generations no one will remember what we have done back here.

12-15 I, the Preacher, was king of Israel, living in Jerusalem. And I applied myself to search for understanding about everything in the universe. I discovered that the lot of man, which God has dealt to him, is not a happy one. It is all foolishness, chasing the wind. What is wrong cannot be righted; it is water over the dam; and there is no use thinking of what might have been.

16-18 I said to myself, “Look, I am better educated than any of the kings before me in Jerusalem. I have greater wisdom and knowledge.” So I worked hard to be wise instead of foolish[c]—but now I realize that even this was like chasing the wind. For the more my wisdom, the more my grief; to increase knowledge only increases distress.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:1 Solomon, implied; literally, “the words of the Preacher, the son [or descendant] of David, King of Jerusalem.”
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:3 but it makes no difference, literally, “but the earth remains forever.” getting nowhere, implied.
  3. Ecclesiastes 1:16 So I worked hard to be wise instead of foolish, or “So I sought to learn about composure and madness.”

Prologue

The words of the Teacher,[a] the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

Motto Introduced

“Vanity of vanities!” says the Teacher,[b]
    “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!”

All Toil is Profitless and Repetitious

What does a person gain in all his toil
    with which he toils under the sun?
A generation goes, and a generation comes,
    but the earth stands forever.
The sun rises, and the sun goes down;
    to its place it hurries,[c] and there it rises again.
The wind goes to the south and goes around to the north;
    around and around it goes, and on its circuit the wind returns.
All the streams flow to the sea,
    but the sea is never full;
to the place where the streams flow,
    there they continue to flow.
All things toil continuously;[d]
    no one can ever finish describing this.[e]
The eye is never[f] satisfied with seeing,
    and the ear is never[g] filled with hearing.
What has been—it is what will be;
    what has been done—it is what will be done;
        there is nothing new under the sun.
10 There is a thing of which it is said, “Look at this! This is new!”
    But it already existed in ages past before us.
11 There is neither remembrance of former generations,
    nor will there be remembrance of future generations.

Qohelet Introduces His Quest

12 I, the Teacher,[h] was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to seek and to search by wisdom all that is done under the heavens.[i] It is a grievous task God has given to humans.[j] 14 I saw all the works that are done under the sun. Look! Everything is vanity and chasing wind.

15 What is twisted cannot be straightened,[k]
    and what is lacking cannot be counted.[l]

16 I said to myself,[m] “Look! I have become great and have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has preceded[n] me over Jerusalem. I have acquired a great deal of wisdom and knowledge.”[o] 17 So I dedicated myself[p] to learn about wisdom and to learn about delusion and folly. However, I discovered[q] that this also is chasing wind.

18 For in much wisdom is much frustration,[r]
    and whoever increases knowledge increases sorrow.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:1 Hebrew “Qohelet”
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:2 Hebrew “Qohelet”
  3. Ecclesiastes 1:5 The MT reads “it gasps for breath,” which is supported by LXX “to draw breath”; the BHS editors suggest “it returns again”
  4. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Or “are wearisome”
  5. Ecclesiastes 1:8 The MT reads “no one is able to speak.” The BHS editors suggest “no one can finish speaking.” On the basis of internal evidence, the latter is adopted in the translation, since it makes better sense in the light of the immediate context
  6. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Or “not”
  7. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Or “not”
  8. Ecclesiastes 1:12 Hebrew “Qohelet”
  9. Ecclesiastes 1:13 MT reads “under the heavens,” which is supported by LXX; however, several versions (Syriac Peshitta, Aramaic Targum, Latin Vulgate) as well as the Cairo Geniza manuscript read, “under the sun,” cf. 1:3, 9, etc.
  10. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Literally “the sons of the man”
  11. Ecclesiastes 1:15 The MT reads the active “to be straight”; however, the BHS editors suggest the passive “to be straightened,” which is supported by LXX, which reflects a passive form
  12. Ecclesiastes 1:15 The MT reads “to be numbered”; however, the BHS editors suggest “to be supplied,” comparing 1:15b with similar wording in the Babylonian Talmud: “May the Almighty replenish your loss” (b. Berachot 16b)
  13. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Literally “I myself said to my heart”
  14. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Literally “before me”
  15. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Literally “And my mind has seen much wisdom and knowledge”
  16. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Literally “So I gave my heart”
  17. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Or “I knew”
  18. Ecclesiastes 1:18 Or “vexation”