Invest in Many Ventures

11 Ship(A) your grain across the sea;
    after many days you may receive a return.(B)
Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight;
    you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.

If clouds are full of water,
    they pour rain on the earth.
Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north,
    in the place where it falls, there it will lie.
Whoever watches the wind will not plant;
    whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

As you do not know the path of the wind,(C)
    or how the body is formed[a] in a mother’s womb,(D)
so you cannot understand the work of God,
    the Maker of all things.

Sow your seed in the morning,
    and at evening let your hands not be idle,(E)
for you do not know which will succeed,
    whether this or that,
    or whether both will do equally well.

Remember Your Creator While Young

Light is sweet,
    and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.(F)
However many years anyone may live,
    let them enjoy them all.
But let them remember(G) the days of darkness,
    for there will be many.
    Everything to come is meaningless.

You who are young, be happy while you are young,
    and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.
Follow the ways of your heart
    and whatever your eyes see,
but know that for all these things
    God will bring you into judgment.(H)
10 So then, banish anxiety(I) from your heart
    and cast off the troubles of your body,
    for youth and vigor are meaningless.(J)

12 Remember(K) your Creator
    in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble(L) come
    and the years approach when you will say,
    “I find no pleasure in them”—
before the sun and the light
    and the moon and the stars grow dark,
    and the clouds return after the rain;
when the keepers of the house tremble,
    and the strong men stoop,
when the grinders cease because they are few,
    and those looking through the windows grow dim;
when the doors to the street are closed
    and the sound of grinding fades;
when people rise up at the sound of birds,
    but all their songs grow faint;(M)
when people are afraid of heights
    and of dangers in the streets;
when the almond tree blossoms
    and the grasshopper drags itself along
    and desire no longer is stirred.
Then people go to their eternal home(N)
    and mourners(O) go about the streets.

Remember him—before the silver cord is severed,
    and the golden bowl is broken;
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
    and the wheel broken at the well,
and the dust returns(P) to the ground it came from,
    and the spirit returns to God(Q) who gave it.(R)

“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.[b](S)
    “Everything is meaningless!(T)

The Conclusion of the Matter

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.(U) 10 The Teacher(V) searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.(W)

11 The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails(X)—given by one shepherd.[c] 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.(Y)

13 Now all has been heard;
    here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God(Z) and keep his commandments,(AA)
    for this is the duty of all mankind.(AB)
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,(AC)
    including every hidden thing,(AD)
    whether it is good or evil.

Solomon’s Song of Songs.(AE)

She[d]

Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
    for your love(AF) is more delightful than wine.(AG)
Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;(AH)
    your name(AI) is like perfume poured out.
    No wonder the young women(AJ) love you!
Take me away with you—let us hurry!
    Let the king bring me into his chambers.(AK)

Friends

We rejoice and delight(AL) in you[e];
    we will praise your love(AM) more than wine.

She

How right they are to adore you!

Dark am I, yet lovely,(AN)
    daughters of Jerusalem,(AO)
dark like the tents of Kedar,(AP)
    like the tent curtains of Solomon.[f]
Do not stare at me because I am dark,
    because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother’s sons were angry with me
    and made me take care of the vineyards;(AQ)
    my own vineyard I had to neglect.
Tell me, you whom I love,
    where you graze your flock
    and where you rest your sheep(AR) at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled(AS) woman
    beside the flocks of your friends?

Friends

If you do not know, most beautiful of women,(AT)
    follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
    by the tents of the shepherds.

He

I liken you, my darling, to a mare
    among Pharaoh’s chariot horses.(AU)
10 Your cheeks(AV) are beautiful with earrings,
    your neck with strings of jewels.(AW)
11 We will make you earrings of gold,
    studded with silver.

She

12 While the king was at his table,
    my perfume spread its fragrance.(AX)
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh(AY)
    resting between my breasts.
14 My beloved(AZ) is to me a cluster of henna(BA) blossoms
    from the vineyards of En Gedi.(BB)

He

15 How beautiful(BC) you are, my darling!
    Oh, how beautiful!
    Your eyes are doves.(BD)

She

16 How handsome you are, my beloved!(BE)
    Oh, how charming!
    And our bed is verdant.

He

17 The beams of our house are cedars;(BF)
    our rafters are firs.

She[g]

I am a rose[h](BG) of Sharon,(BH)
    a lily(BI) of the valleys.

He

Like a lily among thorns
    is my darling among the young women.

She

Like an apple[i] tree among the trees of the forest
    is my beloved(BJ) among the young men.
I delight(BK) to sit in his shade,
    and his fruit is sweet to my taste.(BL)
Let him lead me to the banquet hall,(BM)
    and let his banner(BN) over me be love.
Strengthen me with raisins,
    refresh me with apples,(BO)
    for I am faint with love.(BP)
His left arm is under my head,
    and his right arm embraces me.(BQ)
Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(BR)
    by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
    until it so desires.(BS)

Listen! My beloved!
    Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
    bounding over the hills.(BT)
My beloved is like a gazelle(BU) or a young stag.(BV)
    Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
    peering through the lattice.
10 My beloved spoke and said to me,
    “Arise, my darling,
    my beautiful one, come with me.
11 See! The winter is past;
    the rains are over and gone.
12 Flowers appear on the earth;
    the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
    is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree forms its early fruit;(BW)
    the blossoming(BX) vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
    my beautiful one, come with me.”

He

14 My dove(BY) in the clefts of the rock,
    in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face,
    let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
    and your face is lovely.(BZ)
15 Catch for us the foxes,(CA)
    the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,(CB)
    our vineyards that are in bloom.(CC)

She

16 My beloved is mine and I am his;(CD)
    he browses among the lilies.(CE)
17 Until the day breaks
    and the shadows flee,(CF)
turn, my beloved,(CG)
    and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag(CH)
    on the rugged hills.[j](CI)

All night long on my bed
    I looked(CJ) for the one my heart loves;
    I looked for him but did not find him.
I will get up now and go about the city,
    through its streets and squares;
I will search for the one my heart loves.
    So I looked for him but did not find him.
The watchmen found me
    as they made their rounds in the city.(CK)
    “Have you seen the one my heart loves?”
Scarcely had I passed them
    when I found the one my heart loves.
I held him and would not let him go
    till I had brought him to my mother’s house,(CL)
    to the room of the one who conceived me.(CM)
Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(CN)
    by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
    until it so desires.(CO)

Who is this coming up from the wilderness(CP)
    like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh(CQ) and incense
    made from all the spices(CR) of the merchant?
Look! It is Solomon’s carriage,
    escorted by sixty warriors,(CS)
    the noblest of Israel,
all of them wearing the sword,
    all experienced in battle,
each with his sword at his side,
    prepared for the terrors of the night.(CT)
King Solomon made for himself the carriage;
    he made it of wood from Lebanon.
10 Its posts he made of silver,
    its base of gold.
Its seat was upholstered with purple,
    its interior inlaid with love.
Daughters of Jerusalem, 11 come out,
    and look, you daughters of Zion.(CU)
Look[k] on King Solomon wearing a crown,
    the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
    the day his heart rejoiced.(CV)

He

How beautiful you are, my darling!
    Oh, how beautiful!
    Your eyes behind your veil(CW) are doves.(CX)
Your hair is like a flock of goats
    descending from the hills of Gilead.(CY)
Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn,
    coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin;
    not one of them is alone.(CZ)
Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon;
    your mouth(DA) is lovely.(DB)
Your temples behind your veil
    are like the halves of a pomegranate.(DC)
Your neck is like the tower(DD) of David,
    built with courses of stone[l];
on it hang a thousand shields,(DE)
    all of them shields of warriors.
Your breasts(DF) are like two fawns,
    like twin fawns of a gazelle(DG)
    that browse among the lilies.(DH)
Until the day breaks
    and the shadows flee,(DI)
I will go to the mountain of myrrh(DJ)
    and to the hill of incense.
You are altogether beautiful,(DK) my darling;
    there is no flaw(DL) in you.

Come with me from Lebanon, my bride,(DM)
    come with me from Lebanon.
Descend from the crest of Amana,
    from the top of Senir,(DN) the summit of Hermon,(DO)
from the lions’ dens
    and the mountain haunts of leopards.
You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride;(DP)
    you have stolen my heart
with one glance of your eyes,
    with one jewel of your necklace.(DQ)
10 How delightful(DR) is your love(DS), my sister, my bride!
    How much more pleasing is your love than wine,(DT)
and the fragrance of your perfume(DU)
    more than any spice!
11 Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride;
    milk and honey are under your tongue.(DV)
The fragrance of your garments
    is like the fragrance of Lebanon.(DW)
12 You are a garden(DX) locked up, my sister, my bride;(DY)
    you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.(DZ)
13 Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates(EA)
    with choice fruits,
    with henna(EB) and nard,
14     nard and saffron,
    calamus and cinnamon,(EC)
    with every kind of incense tree,
    with myrrh(ED) and aloes(EE)
    and all the finest spices.(EF)
15 You are[m] a garden(EG) fountain,(EH)
    a well of flowing water
    streaming down from Lebanon.

She

16 Awake, north wind,
    and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden,(EI)
    that its fragrance(EJ) may spread everywhere.
Let my beloved(EK) come into his garden
    and taste its choice fruits.(EL)

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 11:5 Or know how life (or the spirit) / enters the body being formed
  2. Ecclesiastes 12:8 Or the leader of the assembly; also in verses 9 and 10
  3. Ecclesiastes 12:11 Or Shepherd
  4. Song of Songs 1:2 The main male and female speakers (identified primarily on the basis of the gender of the relevant Hebrew forms) are indicated by the captions He and She respectively. The words of others are marked Friends. In some instances the divisions and their captions are debatable.
  5. Song of Songs 1:4 The Hebrew is masculine singular.
  6. Song of Songs 1:5 Or Salma
  7. Song of Songs 2:1 Or He
  8. Song of Songs 2:1 Probably a member of the crocus family
  9. Song of Songs 2:3 Or possibly apricot; here and elsewhere in Song of Songs
  10. Song of Songs 2:17 Or the hills of Bether
  11. Song of Songs 3:11 Or interior lovingly inlaid / by the daughters of Jerusalem. / 11 Come out, you daughters of Zion, / and look
  12. Song of Songs 4:4 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  13. Song of Songs 4:15 Or I am (spoken by She)

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