Nothing Makes Sense

When the son of David was king in Jerusalem, he was known to be very wise, and he said:

Nothing makes sense! Everything is nonsense. I have seen it all— nothing makes sense!

What is there to show for all of our hard work here on this earth?

People come, and people go, but still the world never changes.

The sun comes up, the sun goes down; it hurries right back to where it started from.

The wind blows south, the wind blows north; round and round it blows over and over again.

All rivers empty into the sea, but it never spills over; one by one the rivers return to their source.

All of life is far more boring than words could ever say. Our eyes and our ears are never satisfied with what we see and hear.

Everything that happens has happened before; nothing is new, nothing under the sun.

Someone might say, “Here is something new!” But it happened before, long before we were born.

It Is Senseless To Be Wise

I said these things when I lived in Jerusalem as king of Israel.

With all my wisdom I tried to understand everything that happens here on earth. And God has made this so hard for us humans to do.

I have seen it all, and everything is just as senseless as chasing the wind.

If something is crooked, it can't be made straight; if something isn't there, it can't be counted.

I said to myself, “You are by far the wisest person who has ever lived in Jerusalem. You are eager to learn, and you have learned a lot.”

Then I decided to find out all I could about wisdom and foolishness. Soon I realized that this too was as senseless as chasing the wind.

The more you know, the more you hurt; the more you understand, the more you suffer.

It Is Senseless To Be Selfish

I said to myself, “Have fun and enjoy yourself!” But this didn't make sense.

I wanted to find out what was best for us during the short time we have on this earth. So I decided to make myself happy with wine and find out what it means to be foolish, without really being foolish myself.

I did some great things. I built houses and planted vineyards.

I owned slaves, and their sons and daughters became my slaves. I had more sheep and goats than anyone who had ever lived in Jerusalem.

Foreign rulers brought me silver, gold, and precious treasures. Men and women sang for me, and I had many wives who gave me great pleasure.

Then I thought about everything I had done, including the hard work, and it was simply chasing the wind. Nothing on earth is worth the trouble.

Wisdom Comes from God

I asked myself, “What can the next king do that I haven't done?” Then I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and stupidity.

Wisdom is like having two good eyes; foolishness leaves you in the dark. But wise or foolish, we all end up the same.