Ecclesiastes 1:13-17

English Standard Version

¹³And I ^(A)applied my heart^[a] to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy ^(B)business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. ¹⁴I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is ^(C)vanity^[b] and a striving after wind.^[c]

¹⁵^(D)What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be counted.

¹⁶I said in my heart, “I have acquired great ^(E)wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.” ¹⁷And I ^(F)applied my heart to know wisdom and to know ^(G)madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but ^(H)a striving after wind.

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Footnotes

Ecclesiastes 1:13 The Hebrew term denotes the center of one's inner life, including mind, will, and emotions
Ecclesiastes 1:14 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath” (see note on 1:2)
Ecclesiastes 1:14 Or a feeding on wind; compare Hosea 12:1 (also in Ecclesiastes 1:17; 2:11, 17, 26; 4:4, 6, 16; 6:9)