| NET Bible | New International Version |
| 1So I reflected on all this, attempting to clear it all up. I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their works, are in the hand of God; whether a person will be loved or hated--no one knows what lies ahead. | 1So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God's hands, but no one knows whether love or hate awaits them. |
| 2Everyone shares the same fate--the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the ceremonially clean and unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. What happens to the good person, also happens to the sinner; what happens to those who make vows, also happens to those who are afraid to make vows. | 2All share a common destiny--the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. As it is with the good, so with the sinful; as it is with those who take oaths, so with those who are afraid to take them. |
| 3This is the unfortunate fact about everything that happens on earth: the same fate awaits everyone. In addition to this, the hearts of all people are full of evil, and there is folly in their hearts during their lives--then they die. | 3This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of people, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead. |
| 4But whoever is among the living has hope; a live dog is better than a dead lion. | 4Anyone who is among the living has hope --even a live dog is better off than a dead lion! |
| 5For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward--and even the memory of them disappears. | 5For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten. |
| 6What they loved, as well as what they hated and envied, perished long ago, and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth. | 6Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun. |
| 7Go, eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, because God has already approved your works. | 7Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. |
| 8Let your clothes always be white, and do not spare precious ointment on your head. | 8Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. |
| 9Enjoy life with your beloved wife during all the days of your fleeting life that God has given you on earth during all your fleeting days; for that is your reward in life and in your burdensome work on earth. | 9Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun--all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. |
| 10Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, the place where you will eventually go. | 10Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. |
| 11Again, I observed this on the earth: the race is not always won by the swiftest, the battle is not always won by the strongest; prosperity does not always belong to those who are the wisest, wealth does not always belong to those who are the most discerning, nor does success always come to those with the most knowledge--for time and chance may overcome them all. | 11I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. |
| 12Surely, no one knows his appointed time! Like fish that are caught in a deadly net, and like birds that are caught in a snare--just like them, all people are ensnared at an unfortunate time that falls upon them suddenly. | 12Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them. |
| 13This is what I also observed about wisdom on earth, and it is a great burden to me: | 13I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: |
| 14There was once a small city with a few men in it, and a mighty king attacked it, besieging it and building strong siege works against it. | 14There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. |
| 15However, a poor but wise man lived in the city, and he could have delivered the city by his wisdom, but no one listened to that poor man. | 15Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. |
| 16So I concluded that wisdom is better than might, but a poor man's wisdom is despised; no one ever listens to his advice. | 16So I said, "Wisdom is better than strength." But the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. |
| 17The words of the wise are heard in quiet, more than the shouting of a ruler is heard among fools. | 17The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools. |
| 18Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner can destroy much that is good. | 18Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good. |
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