I said ¹to myself, “Come now, I will test you with ^apleasure. So ²enjoy yourself.” And behold, it too was futility. 2 ^aI said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?” 3 I explored with my ¹mind how to ^astimulate my body with wine while my ²mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of ^bfolly, until I could see ^cwhat good there is for the sons of men ³to do under heaven the few ⁴years of their lives. 4 I enlarged my works: I ^abuilt houses for myself, I planted ^bvineyards for myself; 5 I made ^agardens and ^bparks for myself and I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees; 6 I made ^aponds of water for myself from which to irrigate a forest of growing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves and I had ^1ahomeborn slaves. Also I possessed flocks and ^bherds larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. 8 Also, I collected for myself silver and ^agold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself ^bmale and female singers and the pleasures of men—many concubines.

9 Then I became ^agreat and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. 10 ^aAll that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my ^breward for all my labor. 11 Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had ¹exerted, and behold all was ^2avanity and striving after wind and there was ^bno profit under the sun.

12 So I turned to ^aconsider wisdom, madness and folly; for what will the man do who will come after the king except ^bwhat has already been done? 13 And I saw that ^awisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. 14 The wise man’s eyes are in his head, but the ^afool walks in darkness. And yet I know that ^bone fate befalls them both. 15 Then I said ¹to myself, “^aAs is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. ^bWhy then have I been extremely wise?” So ²I said to myself, “This too is vanity.” 16 For there is ^ano ¹lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And ^bhow the wise man and the fool alike die! 17 So I ^ahated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was ¹grievous to me; because everything is futility and striving after wind.

18 Thus I hated ^aall the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must ^bleave it to the man who will come after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be a wise man or ^aa fool? Yet he will have ¹control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is ^bvanity. 20 Therefore I ¹completely despaired of all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun. 21 When there is a man who has labored with wisdom, knowledge and ^askill, then he ^bgives his ¹legacy to one who has not labored with them. This too is vanity and a great evil. 22 For what does a man get in ^aall his labor and in ¹his striving with which he labors under the sun? 23 Because all his days his task is painful and ^agrievous; even at night his ¹mind ^bdoes not rest. This too is vanity.

24 There is ^anothing better for a man than to eat and drink and ¹tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen that it is ^bfrom the hand of God. 25 For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without ¹Him? 26 For to a person who is good in His sight ^aHe has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may ^bgive to one who is good in God’s sight. This too is ^cvanity and striving after wind.

I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with ^agladness, so that you shall see good things.” And behold, it too was vanity. 2 ^aI said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of gladness, “What does it do?” 3 I explored with my heart how to ^1astimulate my ²body with wine—while my heart was guiding me wisely—and how to seize ^bsimpleminded folly, until I could see ^cwhere is this good for the sons of men in what they do under heaven the few days of their lives. 4 I made my works great: I ^abuilt houses for myself; I planted ^bvineyards for myself; 5 I made for myself ^agardens and ^bparks, and I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees; 6 I made for myself ^apools of water from which to water a forest of growing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves, and I had ^1ahomeborn slaves. Also I possessed flocks and ^bherds larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. 8 Also, I collected for myself silver and ^agold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself ^bmale and female singers and the pleasures of the sons of men—many concubines.

9 Then I became ^agreat and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. 10 ^aAll that my eyes asked for I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any gladness, for my heart was glad because of all my labor, and this was my ^breward for all my labor. 11 Thus I turned to all my works which my hands had done and the labor which I had labored to do, and behold, all was ^1avanity and striving after wind, and there was ^bno advantage under the sun.

12 So I turned to ^asee wisdom, madness, and simpleminded folly. What will the man do who will come after the king except ^bwhat has already been done? 13 And I saw that there is an advantage in ^awisdom over simpleminded folly as light has an advantage over darkness. 14 The wise man’s eyes are in his head, but the ^afool walks in darkness. And yet I know that the ^bfate of one becomes the fate of all of them. 15 Then I said in my heart, “^aAs is the fate of the fool, so will my fate be also. ^bWhy then have I been extremely wise?” So I said in my heart, “This too is vanity.” 16 For there is ^ano remembrance of the wise man along with the fool forever, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And ^bhow the wise man dies with the fool! 17 So I ^ahated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was ¹grievous to me; because everything is vanity and striving after wind.

18 Thus I hated ^aall the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must ^bleave it to the man who will come after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be a wise man or ^aa man of simpleminded folly? Yet he will have ¹power over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored and for which I have acted wisely under the sun. This too is ^bvanity. 20 Therefore I turned my heart to despair of all my labor for which I had labored under the sun. 21 When there is a man who has labored with wisdom, knowledge, and ^askill, then he ^bgives his portion to one who has not labored with them. This too is vanity and a great evil. 22 For what does a man get in ^aall his labor and in the striving of his heart with which he labors under the sun? 23 Because all his days his endeavor is painful and ^avexing; even at night his heart ^bdoes not lie down. This too is vanity.

24 ¹There is ^anothing better for a man than to eat and drink and have his soul see good in his labor. This also I have seen that it is ^bfrom the hand of God. 25 For who can eat and who can have enjoyment outside of ¹Him? 26 For to a man who is good before Him, ^aHe has given wisdom and knowledge and gladness, while to the sinner He has given the endeavor of gathering and collecting so that he may ^bgive to one who is good before God. This too is ^cvanity and striving after wind.