אֵת

In my futile life I have seen both of these: A righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.

It is good to grasp the one and not let the other slip from your hand. For he who fears God will follow both warnings.

Do not pay attention to every word that is spoken, or you may hear your servant cursing you.

And I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a net, and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is ensnared.

Only this have I found: I have discovered that God made mankind upright, but they have sought out many schemes.”

As no man has power over the wind to contain it, so no one has authority over his day of death. As no one can be discharged in wartime, so wickedness will not release those who practice it.

All this I have seen, applying my mind to every deed that is done under the sun; there is a time when one man lords it over another to his own detriment.

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.

When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe the task that one performs on the earth—though his eyes do not see sleep in the day or even in the night—

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.

So I took all this to heart and concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their deeds, are in God’s hands. Man does not know what lies ahead, whether love or hate.

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

I saw something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; neither is the bread to the wise, nor the wealth to the intelligent, nor the favor to the skillful. For time and chance happen to all.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.

Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.

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.

Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of adversity come and the years approach of which you will say, “I find no pleasure in them,”

Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs.

When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man.

For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.

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.

If you do not know, O fairest of women, follow the tracks of the flock, and graze your young goats near the tents of the shepherds.

O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.

O my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the crevices of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your countenance is lovely.

On my bed at night I sought the one I love; I sought him, but did not find him.

I will arise now and go about the city, through the streets and squares. I will seek the one I love. So I sought him but did not find him.

I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: “Have you seen the one I love?”

I had just passed them when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let go until I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the chamber of the one who conceived me.

O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right.

I have taken off my robe—must I put it back on? I have washed my feet—must I soil them again?

I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city. They beat me and bruised me; they took away my cloak, those guardians of the walls.