2:13 I realized that wisdom is preferable to folly, 1
just as light is preferable to darkness:
1:1 The words of the Teacher, 2 the son 3 of David, king 4 in Jerusalem: 5
1:2 “Futile! Futile!” laments 6 the Teacher, 7
“Absolutely futile! 8 Everything 9 is futile!” 10
1:3 What benefit 11 do people 12 get from all the effort
which 13 they expend 14 on earth? 15
1:4 A generation comes 16 and a generation goes, 17
but the earth remains 18 the same 19 through the ages. 20
1:5 The sun rises 21 and the sun sets; 22
it hurries away 23 to a place from which it rises 24 again. 25
1:6 The wind goes to the south and circles around to the north;
round and round 26 the wind goes and on its rounds it returns. 27
1:7 All the streams flow 28 into the sea, but the sea is not full,
and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again. 29
1:8 All this 30 monotony 31 is tiresome; no one can bear 32 to describe it: 33
The eye is never satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear ever content 34 with hearing.
1:9 What exists now 35 is what will be, 36
and what has been done is what will be done;
there is nothing truly new on earth. 37
1:10 Is there anything about which someone can say, “Look at this! It is new!”? 38
It was already 39 done long ago, 40 before our time. 41
1:11 No one remembers the former events, 42
nor will anyone remember 43 the events that are yet to happen; 44
they will not be remembered by the future generations. 45
1:12 I, the Teacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 46
1:13 I decided 47 to carefully 48 and thoroughly examine 49
all that has been accomplished on earth. 50
I concluded: 51 God has given people 52 a burdensome task 53
that keeps them 54 occupied. 55
1:14 I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man 56 on earth, 57
and I concluded: Everything 58 he has accomplished 59 is futile 60 – like chasing the wind! 61
1:15 What is bent 62 cannot be straightened, 63
and what is missing 64 cannot be supplied. 65
1:16 I thought to myself, 66
“I have become much wiser 67 than any of my predecessors who ruled 68 over Jerusalem; 69
I 70 have acquired much wisdom and knowledge.” 71
1:17 So I decided 72 to discern the benefit of 73 wisdom and knowledge over 74 foolish behavior and ideas; 75
however, I concluded 76 that even 77 this endeavor 78 is like 79 trying to chase the wind! 80
1:18 For with great wisdom comes 81 great frustration;
whoever increases his 82 knowledge merely 83 increases his 84 heartache.