⁶ The Lord works righteousness^(M)
    and justice for all the oppressed.^(N)

⁷ He made known^(O) his ways^(P) to Moses,
    his deeds^(Q) to the people of Israel:
⁸ The Lord is compassionate and gracious,^(R)
    slow to anger, abounding in love.
⁹ He will not always accuse,
    nor will he harbor his anger forever;^(S)
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve^(T)
    or repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love^(U) for those who fear him;^(V)
12 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions^(W) from us.

¹³ As a father has compassion^(X) on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,^(Y)
    he remembers that we are dust.^(Z)
15 The life of mortals is like grass,^(AA)
    they flourish like a flower^(AB) of the field;
¹⁶ the wind blows^(AC) over it and it is gone,
    and its place^(AD) remembers it no more.
¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
    the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
    and his righteousness with their children’s children^(AE)—
¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant^(AF)
    and remember^(AG) to obey his precepts.^(AH)

¹⁹ The Lord has established his throne^(AI) in heaven,
    and his kingdom rules^(AJ) over all.

²⁰ Praise the Lord,^(AK) you his angels,^(AL)
    you mighty ones^(AM) who do his bidding,^(AN)
    who obey his word.
²¹ Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts,^(AO)
    you his servants^(AP) who do his will.
²² Praise the Lord, all his works^(AQ)
    everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the Lord, my soul.^(AR)

This man’s utterance to Ithiel:

“I am weary, God,
    but I can prevail.^[a]
2 Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
    I do not have human understanding.
³ I have not learned wisdom,
    nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.^(B)
4 Who has gone up^(C) to heaven and come down?
    Whose hands^(D) have gathered up the wind?
Who has wrapped up the waters^(E) in a cloak?^(F)
    Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name,^(G) and what is the name of his son?
    Surely you know!

⁵ “Every word of God is flawless;^(H)
    he is a shield^(I) to those who take refuge in him.
⁶ Do not add^(J) to his words,
    or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.

⁷ “Two things I ask of you, Lord;
    do not refuse me before I die:
⁸ Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
    give me neither poverty nor riches,
    but give me only my daily bread.^(K)
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown^(L) you
    and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’^(M)
Or I may become poor and steal,
    and so dishonor the name of my God.^(N)

¹⁰ “Do not slander a servant to their master,
    or they will curse you, and you will pay for it.

¹¹ “There are those who curse their fathers
    and do not bless their mothers;^(O)
12 those who are pure in their own eyes^(P)
    and yet are not cleansed of their filth;^(Q)
13 those whose eyes are ever so haughty,^(R)
    whose glances are so disdainful;
¹⁴ those whose teeth^(S) are swords
    and whose jaws are set with knives^(T)
to devour^(U) the poor^(V) from the earth
    and the needy from among mankind.^(W)

¹⁵ “The leech has two daughters.
    ‘Give! Give!’ they cry.

“There are three things that are never satisfied,^(X)
    four that never say, ‘Enough!’:
¹⁶ the grave,^(Y) the barren womb,
    land, which is never satisfied with water,
    and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’

¹⁷ “The eye that mocks^(Z) a father,
    that scorns an aged mother,
will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley,
    will be eaten by the vultures.^(AA)

¹⁸ “There are three things that are too amazing for me,
    four that I do not understand:
¹⁹ the way of an eagle in the sky,
    the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
    and the way of a man with a young woman.

²⁰ “This is the way of an adulterous woman:
    She eats and wipes her mouth
    and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’^(AB)

²¹ “Under three things the earth trembles,
    under four it cannot bear up:
²² a servant who becomes king,^(AC)
    a godless fool who gets plenty to eat,
²³ a contemptible woman who gets married,
    and a servant who displaces her mistress.

²⁴ “Four things on earth are small,
    yet they are extremely wise:
²⁵ Ants are creatures of little strength,
    yet they store up their food in the summer;^(AD)
26 hyraxes^(AE) are creatures of little power,
    yet they make their home in the crags;
²⁷ locusts^(AF) have no king,
    yet they advance together in ranks;
²⁸ a lizard can be caught with the hand,
    yet it is found in kings’ palaces.

²⁹ “There are three things that are stately in their stride,
    four that move with stately bearing:
³⁰ a lion, mighty among beasts,
    who retreats before nothing;
³¹ a strutting rooster, a he-goat,
    and a king secure against revolt.^[b]

³² “If you play the fool and exalt yourself,
    or if you plan evil,
    clap your hand over your mouth!^(AG)
33 For as churning cream produces butter,
    and as twisting the nose produces blood,
    so stirring up anger produces strife.”

² Listen, my son! Listen, son of my womb!
    Listen, my son, the answer to my prayers!^(AI)
3 Do not spend your strength^[c] on women,
    your vigor on those who ruin kings.^(AJ)

⁴ It is not for kings, Lemuel—
    it is not for kings to drink wine,^(AK)
    not for rulers to crave beer,
⁵ lest they drink^(AL) and forget what has been decreed,^(AM)
    and deprive all the oppressed of their rights.
⁶ Let beer be for those who are perishing,
    wine^(AN) for those who are in anguish!
⁷ Let them drink^(AO) and forget their poverty
    and remember their misery no more.

⁸ Speak^(AP) up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
    for the rights of all who are destitute.
⁹ Speak up and judge fairly;
    defend the rights of the poor and needy.^(AQ)

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)

¹⁵ What is crooked cannot be straightened;^(Q)
    what is lacking cannot be counted.

¹⁸ For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;^(U)
    the more knowledge, the more grief.^(V)