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Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.

There is a futility that is done on the earth: There are righteous men who get what the actions of the wicked deserve, and there are wicked men who get what the actions of the righteous deserve. I say that this too is futile.

So I commended the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be merry. For this joy will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.

I saw every work of God, and that a man is unable to comprehend the work that is done under the sun. Despite his efforts to search it out, he cannot find its meaning; even if the wise man claims to know, he is unable to comprehend.

It is the same for all: There is a common fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not. As it is for the good, so it is for the sinner; as it is for the one who makes a vow, so it is for the one who refuses to take a vow.

It is the same for all: There is a common fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not. As it is for the good, so it is for the sinner; as it is for the one who makes a vow, so it is for the one who refuses to take a vow.

It is the same for all: There is a common fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not. As it is for the good, so it is for the sinner; as it is for the one who makes a vow, so it is for the one who refuses to take a vow.

There is hope, however, for anyone who is among the living; for even a live dog is better than a dead lion.

There is hope, however, for anyone who is among the living; for even a live dog is better than a dead lion.

Their love, their hate, and their envy have already vanished, and they will never again have a share in all that is done under the sun.

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has already approved your works:

For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.

For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.

There was a small city with few men. A mighty king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege ramps against it.

There was a small city with few men. A mighty king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege ramps against it.

Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.

The calm words of the wise are heeded over the shouts of a ruler among fools.

As dead flies bring a stench to the perfumer’s oil, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

As dead flies bring a stench to the perfumer’s oil, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

A wise man’s heart inclines to the right, but the heart of a fool to the left.

A wise man’s heart inclines to the right, but the heart of a fool to the left.

Even as the fool walks along the road, his sense is lacking, and he shows everyone that he is a fool.

He who digs a pit may fall into it, and he who breaches a wall may be bitten by a snake.

He who digs a pit may fall into it, and he who breaches a wall may be bitten by a snake.

He who digs a pit may fall into it, and he who breaches a wall may be bitten by a snake.

The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him.

The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him.

The toil of a fool wearies him, for he does not know the way to the city.

Woe to you, O land whose king is a youth, and whose princes feast in the morning.

Blessed are you, O land whose king is a son of nobles, and whose princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness.

A feast is prepared for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything.

Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich even in your bedroom, for a bird of the air may carry your words, and a winged creature may report your speech.

Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich even in your bedroom, for a bird of the air may carry your words, and a winged creature may report your speech.

If the clouds are full, they will pour out rain upon the earth; whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where it falls, there it will lie.

As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

So if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all. But let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is futile.

…when the doors to the street are shut and the sound of the mill fades away, when one rises at the sound of a bird and all the daughters of song grow faint,

The words of the wise are like goads, and the anthologies of the masters are like firmly embedded nails driven by a single Shepherd.

Do not stare because I am dark, for the sun has gazed upon me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me a keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have neglected.

Tell me, O one I love, where do you pasture your sheep? Where do you rest them at midday? Why should I be like a veiled woman beside the flocks of your companions?

I compare you, my darling, to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.

My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh resting between my breasts.

My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms in the vineyards of En-gedi.

I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.

I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.

Like a lily among the thorns is my darling among the maidens.

My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look, he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattice.

My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look, he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattice.

Before the day breaks and shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.

Before the day breaks and shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.

Who is this coming up from the wilderness like a column of smoke, scented with myrrh and frankincense from all the spices of the merchant?

How beautiful you are, my darling—how very beautiful! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead.

Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep coming up from the washing; each has its twin, and not one of them is lost.

Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon, and your mouth is lovely. Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon, and your mouth is lovely. Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

Your neck is like the tower of David, built with rows of stones; on it hang a thousand shields, all of them shields of warriors.

Your breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle grazing among the lilies.

My sister, my bride, you are a garden locked up, a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed.

My sister, my bride, you are a garden locked up, a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed.

My sister, my bride, you are a garden locked up, a spring enclosed, a fountain sealed.

You are a garden spring, a well of fresh water flowing down from Lebanon.

You are a garden spring, a well of fresh water flowing down from Lebanon.

I sleep, but my heart is awake. A sound! My beloved is knocking: “Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. My head is drenched with dew, my hair with the dampness of the night.”

His head is purest gold; his hair is wavy and black as a raven.

Turn your eyes away from me, for they have overcome me. Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down from Gilead.

Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from the washing; each has its twin, and not one of them is lost.

Your brow behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate.

How beautiful are your sandaled feet, O daughter of the prince! The curves of your thighs are like jewels, the handiwork of a master.

Your navel is a rounded goblet; it never lacks blended wine. Your waist is a mound of wheat encircled by the lilies.

Your navel is a rounded goblet; it never lacks blended wine. Your waist is a mound of wheat encircled by the lilies.

Your breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle.

Your neck is like a tower made of ivory; your eyes are like the pools of Heshbon by the gate of Bath-rabbim; your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, facing toward Damascus.

Your stature is like a palm tree; your breasts are clusters of fruit.

The mandrakes send forth a fragrance, and at our door is every delicacy, new as well as old, that I have treasured up for you, my beloved.

O that you were to me like a brother who nursed at my mother’s breasts! If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me.

Set me as a seal over your heart, as a seal upon your arm. For love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol. Its sparks are fiery flames, the fiercest blaze of all.

Set me as a seal over your heart, as a seal upon your arm. For love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol. Its sparks are fiery flames, the fiercest blaze of all.

Mighty waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away. If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love, his offer would be utterly scorned.

We have a little sister, and her breasts are not yet grown. What shall we do for our sister on the day she is spoken for?

If she is a wall, we will build a tower of silver upon her. If she is a door, we will enclose her with panels of cedar.

If she is a wall, we will build a tower of silver upon her. If she is a door, we will enclose her with panels of cedar.

If she is a wall, we will build a tower of silver upon her. If she is a door, we will enclose her with panels of cedar.

I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers. So I have become in his eyes like one who brings peace.

Solomon had a vineyard in Baal-hamon. He leased it to the tenants. For its fruit, each was to bring a thousand shekels of silver.

Solomon had a vineyard in Baal-hamon. He leased it to the tenants. For its fruit, each was to bring a thousand shekels of silver.

Come away, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.

Come away, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.

Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.

Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.

Why do you want more beatings? Why do you keep rebelling? Your head has a massive wound, and your whole heart is afflicted.

Your land is desolate; your cities are burned with fire. Foreigners devour your fields before you—a desolation demolished by strangers.

And the Daughter of Zion is abandoned like a shelter in a vineyard, like a shack in a cucumber field, like a city besieged.

And the Daughter of Zion is abandoned like a shelter in a vineyard, like a shack in a cucumber field, like a city besieged.

And the Daughter of Zion is abandoned like a shelter in a vineyard, like a shack in a cucumber field, like a city besieged.

And the Daughter of Zion is abandoned like a shelter in a vineyard, like a shack in a cucumber field, like a city besieged.

And the Daughter of Zion is abandoned like a shelter in a vineyard, like a shack in a cucumber field, like a city besieged.

Unless the LORD of Hosts had left us a few survivors, we would have become like Sodom, we would have resembled Gomorrah.

Bring your worthless offerings no more; your incense is detestable to Me. New Moons, Sabbaths, and convocations—I cannot endure iniquity in a solemn assembly.

I hate your New Moons and your appointed feasts. They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them.

See how the faithful city has become a harlot! She once was full of justice; righteousness resided within her, but now only murderers!