2I said to myself, “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life.” But I found that this, too, was meaningless.H559H3820H3212H5254H8057H7200H2896H18922So I said, “Laughter is silly. What good does it do to seek pleasure?”H559H7814H1984H8057H2090H62133After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine. And while still seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world.H8446H3820H4900H1320H3196H5090H3820H2451H270H5531H7200H2896H1121H120H6213H8064H4557H3117H24164I also tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards.H1431H4639H1129H1004H5193H37545I made gardens and parks, filling them with all kinds of fruit trees.H6213H1593H6508H5193H6086H65296I built reservoirs to collect the water to irrigate my many flourishing groves.H6213H1295H4325H8248H3293H6779H60867I bought slaves, both men and women, and others were born into my household. I also owned large herds and flocks, more than any of the kings who had lived in Jerusalem before me.H7069H5650H8198H1121H1004H7235H4735H1241H6629H3389H64408I collected great sums of silver and gold, the treasure of many kings and provinces. I hired wonderful singers, both men and women, and had many beautiful concubines. I had everything a man could desire!H3664H3701H2091H5459H4428H4082H6213H7891H7891H8588H1121H120H7705H77059So I became greater than all who had lived in Jerusalem before me, and my wisdom never failed me.H1431H3254H6440H3389H2451H597510Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure. I even found great pleasure in hard work, a reward for all my labors.H5869H7592H680H4513H3820H8057H3820H8056H5999H2506H599911But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.H6437H4639H3027H6213H5999H5998H6213H1892H7469H7307H3504H8121
The Wise and the Foolish
12So I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and madness (for who can do this better than I, the king?).H6437H7200H2451H1947H5531H120H935H310H4428H3528H621313I thought, “Wisdom is better than foolishness, just as light is better than darkness.H7200H3426H2451H3504H5531H216H3504H282214For the wise can see where they are going, but fools walk in the dark.” Yet I saw that the wise and the foolish share the same fate.H2450H5869H7218H3684H1980H2822H3045H259H4745H713615Both will die. So I said to myself, “Since I will end up the same as the fool, what’s the value of all my wisdom? This is all so meaningless!”H227H559H3820H4745H3684H7136H1571H3148H2449H1696H3820H189216For the wise and the foolish both die. The wise will not be remembered any longer than the fool. In the days to come, both will be forgotten.H2146H2450H5973H3684H5769H3528H3117H935H7911H4191H2450H368417So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun is so troubling. Everything is meaningless—like chasing the wind.H8130H2416H4639H6213H8121H7451H1892H7469H7307
The Futility of Work
18I came to hate all my hard work here on earth, for I must leave to others everything I have earned.H8130H5999H6001H8121H3240H120H31019And who can tell whether my successors will be wise or foolish? Yet they will control everything I have gained by my skill and hard work under the sun. How meaningless!H3045H2450H5530H7980H5999H5998H2449H8121H189220So I gave up in despair, questioning the value of all my hard work in this world.H5437H2976H3820H2976H5999H5998H812121Some people work wisely with knowledge and skill, then must leave the fruit of their efforts to someone who hasn’t worked for it. This, too, is meaningless, a great tragedy.H3426H120H5999H2451H1847H3788H120H5998H5414H2506H1892H7227H745122So what do people get in this life for all their hard work and anxiety?H1933H120H5999H7475H3820H1931H6001H812123Their days of labor are filled with pain and grief; even at night their minds cannot rest. It is all meaningless.H3117H4341H6045H3708H3820H7901H3915H189224So I decided there is nothing better than to enjoy food and drink and to find satisfaction in work. Then I realized that these pleasures are from the hand of God.H2896H120H398H8354H5315H7200H2896H5999H2090H7200H3027H43025For who can eat or enjoy anything apart from him?H398H2363H235126God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to those who please him. But if a sinner becomes wealthy, God takes the wealth away and gives it to those who please him. This, too, is meaningless—like chasing the wind.H5414H120H2896H6440H2451H1847H8057H2398H5414H6045H622H3664H5414H2896H6440H430H1892H7469H7307
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