Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

1 Blessed is the man, that goeth not in the counsel of wicked men; and stood not in the way of sinners, and sat not in the chair of pestilence. (Happy is the person who goeth not in the counsel of the wicked; and walketh not in the way of sinners, and sitteth not in the chair of pestilence.)

² But his will is in the law of the Lord; and he shall bethink in the law of him day and night. (But his delight is in the Law of the Lord; and he shall think about his Law day and night.)

³ And he shall be as a tree, which is planted beside the runnings of waters; that shall give his fruit in his time. And his leaf shall not fall down; and all things, whichever he shall do, shall have prosperity. (And he shall be like a tree, which is planted beside the running water; it shall give its fruit at its proper time, and its leaves shall not fall down. Yea, everything, whatever he shall do, shall prosper.)

⁴ Not so wicked men, not so; but they be as dust, which the wind casteth away from the face of the earth. (Not so the wicked, not so; but they be like the dust, which the wind bloweth away from off the face of the earth.)

⁵ Therefore wicked men rise not again in doom; neither sinners in the council of just men. (And so the wicked shall not stand long at the judgement; nor shall the sinners stand with the congregation of the righteous.)

⁶ For the Lord knoweth the way of just men; and the way of wicked men shall perish. (For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous; but the wicked shall perish on their own way.)

1 The words of Ecclesiastes^[a], son of David, king of Jerusalem.

² Vanity of vanities, said Ecclesiastes; vanity of vanities, and all things be vanity. (Emptiness and futility, said Ecclesiastes; emptiness and futility, yea, everything is empty and futile.)

³ What hath a man more[over] of all his travail, by which he travaileth under the sun? (What profiteth a person from all his labour, that he laboureth at under the sun?)

⁴ A generation passeth away, [and] another generation cometh; but the earth standeth without end. (One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; but the earth endureth forever.)

⁵ The sun riseth [up], and goeth down, and turneth again to his place (and returneth to its place); and there it riseth again,

⁶ and compasseth by the south, and turneth again to the north. The spirit compassing all things goeth about, and turneth again into his circles. (and goeth around to the south, and then returneth to the north. Going around, the wind goeth about touching all things, and then returneth full circle.)

⁷ All floods enter into the sea, and the sea floweth not over the marks set of God; the floods turn again to the place from whence they come forth, that they flow [out] again. (All the rivers enter into the sea, and the sea floweth not over the boundaries set by God; the rivers return to the places from where they came forth, only so that they can flow out again.)

⁸ All things be hard; a man may not declare those things by word (a person cannot declare all of these things with words alone); the eye is not (ful)filled by sight, neither the ear is filled by hearing.

⁹ What is that thing that was, that that shall come? What is that thing that is made, that that shall be made? Nothing under the sun is new, (What is that thing that was, but that which shall come again? What is that thing that is made, but that which shall be made later? Nothing is new under the sun,)

¹⁰ neither any man may say, Lo! this thing is new; for now it went before in worlds, that were before us. (nor can anyone say, Lo! this is new; for it hath already come before, in the time that was before us.)

¹¹ Mind of the former things is not, but soothly neither thinking of those things, that shall come afterward, shall be at them that shall come in the last time. (Remembering the former things is not done, and those things that come now, shall not be remembered by those who shall come after us.)

¹² I Ecclesiastes was king of Israel in Jerusalem;

¹³ and I purposed in my soul to seek and ensearch wisely of all things, that be made under the sun. God gave this evil occupation to the sons of men, that they should be occupied therein. (and I purposed in my mind to wisely seek out and to search into everything, that is done under the sun. God gave this difficult task to the sons and daughters of men, so that they would be occupied with it.)

¹⁴ I saw all things that be made under the sun, and lo! all things be vanity and torment of spirit. (I saw everything that is done under the sun, and lo! everything is empty and futile, like chasing the wind.)

¹⁵ Wayward men be amended of hard (The wayward can only be corrected with great difficulty); and the number of fools is great without end.

¹⁶ I spake in mine heart, and I said, Lo! I am made great, and I passed in wisdom all men, that were before me in Jerusalem; and my soul saw many things wisely, and I learned. (I said in my heart, Lo! I am made great, and I have surpassed in wisdom all who were before me in Jerusalem; I have seen many things, and I have become wise, yea, I have learned much.)

¹⁷ And I gave mine heart, that I should know prudence and doctrine, and errors and folly. And I knew that in these things also was travail and torment of spirit; (And I gave my heart, or I applied my mind, so that I would understand wisdom and doctrine, and errors and foolishness. And I learned that all these things were also empty and futile, like chasing the wind;)

¹⁸ for in much wisdom is much indignation, and he that increaseth knowing, increaseth also travail. (for the greater one’s wisdom, the greater one’s anger, or one’s vexation, and he who increaseth his knowledge, also increaseth his own troubles.)

²⁹ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, that build [the] sepulchres of prophets, and make fair the burials of just men,

³⁰ and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been their fellows in the blood of prophets.

³¹ And so ye be in witnessing to yourselves [And so ye be into witnessing to yourselves], that ye be the sons of them that slew the prophets.

³² And full-fill ye the measure of your fathers. [And fill ye the measure of your fathers.]

³³ Ye adders, and adders' brood [Ye serpents, fruits of adders], how shall ye flee from the doom of hell?

³⁴ Therefore lo! I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes [Therefore lo! I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, or writers]; and of them ye shall slay and crucify, and of them ye shall scourge in your synagogues, and shall pursue from city into city;

³⁵ that all the just blood come on [upon] you, that was shed on the earth, from the blood of just Abel [till] to the blood of Zacharias, the son of Barachias, whom ye slew betwixt the temple and the altar [whom ye slew between the temple and the altar].

³⁶ Truly I say to you, all these things shall come on [upon] this generation.

³⁷ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that slayest prophets, and stonest them that be sent to thee, how oft would I gather together thy children, as an hen gathereth together her chickens under her wings, and thou wouldest not.

³⁸ Lo! your house shall be left to you desert.

³⁹ And I say to you, ye shall not see me from henceforth, till ye say, Blessed is he, that cometh in the name of the Lord.