1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:
1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all [is] vanity.
3 What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?
3 What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
4 [One] generation passeth away, and [another] generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.
5 The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.
6 The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course.
6 The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.
7 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again.
7 All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea [is] not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
8 All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.
8 All things [are] full of labour; man cannot utter [it]: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
9 The thing that hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which shall be done: and [there is] no new [thing] under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say, "Look! This is something new"? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.
10 Is there [any] thing whereof it may be said, See, this [is] new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.
11 There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.
11 [There is] no remembrance of former [things]; neither shall there be [any] remembrance of [things] that are to come with [those] that shall come after.
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
12 I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men!
13 And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all [things] that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.
14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all [is] vanity and vexation of spirit.
15 What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.
15 [That which is] crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
16 I thought to myself, "Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge."
16 I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all [they] that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.
17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
17 And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.
18 For in much wisdom [is] much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.