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The Existence of Oppression in the World Makes Human Existence Miserable
4 I looked again, and I saw all the oppression that occurs under the sun.
I saw the tears of the oppressed—
no one comforts them!
Those who oppress them are powerful—
no one can comfort them![a]
2 So I deemed the dead who have already died
more fortunate than the living who are still alive.
3 But better off than both of them is the one who has not yet been born
and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.
People Need Balance in Their Approach to Labor
4 I also realized that all of the toil and all of the skillful work that is done—it is envy between one man and another.[b] This also is vanity and chasing wind!
5 The fool refuses to work with his hands,
so he has nothing to eat except his own skin![c]
6 Better is one handful with peace
than two fists full with toil and chasing wind.
Wealth without Someone with Which to Enjoy It is Futile
7 I turned again and saw another vanity under the sun. 8 Sometimes a man is all alone with no companion; he also has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eye is not satisfied with wealth. He laments, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself[d] of pleasure?” This also is vanity—it is an unhappy business!
Friends and Family Can Help One Another in Life
9 Two are better than the one, for they enjoy a better reward for their toil. 10 For if one falls, his companion may help him up. But pity the one who falls and there is no one[e] to help him up. 11 Also if two lie together, they can keep each other warm.[f] But how can one person be warm? 12 Although an assailant may overpower one person, two may withstand him.[g] A threefold cord is not easily broken![h]
One Must Be Willing to Listen to Counsel
13 A poor but wise youth is better than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to receive advice.[i] 14 For he came out of the prison house to reign, since he was born poor in his kingdom.[j] 15 I saw all the living who move about under the sun with the youth; the second who will stand in his place. 16 There is no end to all the people, to all who were before him. Yet the later generation will not rejoice in him, for this also is vanity and chasing wind!
Listen to God Rather Than Uttering Rash Vows
5 [k] Guard your steps when you go to the house of God;
draw near to listen rather than to offer a sacrifice of fools,
for they do not know that they are doing evil.
2 Do not be rash with your mouth,
and do not let your heart be quick to utter a word before God.
For God is in heaven, and you are on earth;
therefore, let your words be few.
3 For a dream comes with many cares,
and the voice of a fool with many words.
4 When you make a vow to God,
do not delay in fulfilling it,
for he takes no pleasure[l] in fools.
Fulfill what you vow!
5 It is better that you not vow
than that you vow and not fulfill it.
6 Do not let your mouth lead your flesh into sin,
and do not tell the messenger that it was a mistake.
Why anger God at your words,
so that he destroys the work of your hands?
7 For with many dreams come vanities and numerous words.
Therefore, fear God!
Powerful Bureaucrats Exploit the Helpless Poor
8 Do not be surprised if you see the poor being oppressed with violence
or do not see justice and righteousness in the province.
For one official is watched by a higher official,
and there are even higher officials over them!
9 The produce of the land is exploited by everyone;
even the king profits from the field of the poor![m]
There is Never Enough Money to Satisfy
10 Whoever loves money is not satisfied with money,
and whoever loves wealth is not satisfied with profit.
This also is vanity!
11 When prosperity increases,
those who consume it increase.
So its owner gains nothing,
except to see his wealth before it is spent.[n]
12 The sleep of the laborer is pleasant, whether he eats little or much,
but the wealth of the rich man does not allow him to rest.
Hoarding Wealth Can Backfire
13 There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded[o] by its owner to his harm. 14 That wealth was lost in a bad venture. Although he has borne a child, he has nothing to leave to him.[p] 15 Just as he came from his mother’s womb naked, he will depart[q] just as he came; he will take nothing with him for his toil. 16 This also is a grievous illness. Exactly as he came, so he will go. What profit does he gain for all his toil for the wind? 17 Also, he eats in darkness all his days; he is frustrated in much sickness and resentment.
If You Have Wealth, Enjoy It as God Enables
18 Look! I have discovered what is good and fitting: to eat and to drink and to enjoy[r] all the fruit of the toil with which one toils under the sun during the number of the days of his life that God gives to him—for this is his lot.[s] 19 This indeed is a gift of God: everyone to whom God gives wealth and possessions, he also empowers him to enjoy them,[t] to accept his lot, and to rejoice in the fruit of his toil. 20 For he does not remember the brief days of his life, for God keeps his heart preoccupied with enjoyment of life.
Those Who Have Wealth but Do Not Enjoy It Are Pitiful
6 Here is another misfortune that I have seen under the sun, and it is prevalent among humankind. 2 God gives a man wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires; yet God does not enable him to enjoy it—instead someone else ends up enjoying it. This is vanity—indeed, it is a grievous ill!
3 Even if a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years so that the days of his years are many, if his heart[u] is not satisfied with his prosperity[v] and he does not receive a proper burial,[w] I deem the stillborn better than him. 4 For he comes into vanity and departs into darkness, and his name is shrouded in darkness. 5 He has neither seen nor known the sun, yet he has more rest than him. 6 Even if a man[x] lives a thousand years twice, if he[y] does not enjoy prosperity,[z] both suffer the same fate![aa]
One Must Learn to Be Content with What One Has
7 All of a man’s toil is for his mouth—
yet his appetite is never satisfied.
8 So do the wise really have an advantage over fools?
Can the poor really gain anything by knowing how to act in front of others?[ab]
9 Better to be content with what your eyes see
than for your soul to constantly crave more.[ac]
This also is vanity and chasing wind!
It is Futile for Humans to Complain about God’s Irresistible Will
10 Whatever is—it was already determined,
what will be—it has already been decided.[ad]
As for man, he cannot argue
against what is more powerful than him.
11 Increasing words only multiplies futility,[ae]
how does that profit anyone?
The Future is Inscrutable to Humans
12 For who knows what is good for a man in his life during the few days of his fleeting life, which are fleeting as a shadow? For who can tell anyone what will happen in the future[af] under the sun?
Do Not Become Unevenly Yoked with Unbelievers
14 Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers, for what participation is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? 15 And what agreement does Christ have with Beliar? Or what share does a believer have with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are the temple of the living God, just as God said,
“I will live in[a] them and will walk about among them,
and I will be their God and they will be my people.”[b]
17 Therefore “come out from their midst
and be separate,” says the Lord,
“and do not touch what is unclean,[c]
and I will welcome you,[d]
18 and I will be a father to you,
and you will be sons and daughters to me,”[e]
says the all-powerful Lord.
Paul’s Joy at the Corinthians’ Repentance
7 Therefore since we[f] have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of body and spirit, accomplishing holiness in the fear of God. 2 Make room for us in your hearts[g]. We have wronged no one, we have ruined no one, we have defrauded no one. 3 I do not say this to condemn you[h], because I have already said that you are in our hearts, so that we die together and we live together. 4 Great is my confidence toward you; great is my boasting on your behalf; I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in all our affliction.
5 For even when[i] we arrived in Macedonia, our body had no rest, but we were afflicted in every way—quarrels outside, fears within. 6 But God, who comforts the humble, comforted us by the coming of Titus, 7 and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted among you, because he[j] reported to us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced even more.
God Is King over All the Earth
For the music director. Of the sons of Korah. A psalm.[a]
47 All you peoples, clap your hands.[b]
Shout to God with a voice of rejoicing.
2 For Yahweh Most High is awesome,[c]
a great king over all the earth.
3 He subdues peoples under us
and nations under our feet.
4 He chooses for us our inheritance,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.
5 God has gone up with a shout,
Yahweh with the sound of a trumpet.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises.
Sing praises to our king, sing praises.
7 For God is king of all the earth.
Sing praises with understanding.[d]
8 God reigns over nations;
God sits on his holy throne.
9 The princes of the peoples are gathered together
with the people of Abraham’s God.
For the shields of the earth belong to God.
He is very exalted.
16 He who oppresses the poor in order to enrich himself,
or gives to the rich, will come to poverty.[a]
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