CHAPTER 9
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.
It is the same
for all:
There is a common
fate
for the righteous
and the wicked,
for the good and the bad,
for the clean
and the unclean,
for the one who sacrifices
and the one
who does not.
As it is for the good,
so it is for the sinner;
as it is for the one who makes a vow,
so it is
for the one who refuses
to take a vow.
This
is an evil
in everything
that
is done
under
the sun:
There is one
fate
for everyone.
Furthermore,
the hearts
of men
are full of
evil
and madness
while they are alive,
and afterward
they join
the dead.
There is
hope,
however,
for anyone who
is among
the living;
for even
a live
dog
is better
than
a dead
lion.
For
the living
know
that they will die,
but the dead
know
nothing.
They have no
further
reward,
because
the memory
of them is forgotten.
Their love,
their hate,
and
their envy
have already
vanished,
and they will never again have
a portion
in all
that
is done
under
the sun.
Go,
eat
your bread
with joy,
and drink
your wine
with a cheerful
heart,
for
God
has already
approved
your works:
Enjoy
life
with
your beloved
wife
all
the days
of the fleeting
life
which
has been given
to you under
the sun—
all
your fleeting
days.
For
this
is your portion
in life
and in your labor
under
the sun.
Whatever
you find
to do
with your hands,
do it
with all your might,
for
in Sheol,
where
you
are going,
there is no
work
or planning
or knowledge
or wisdom.
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;
rather,
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.
And I
said,
“Wisdom
is better
than strength,
but the wisdom
of the poor
man is despised,
and his words
are not
heeded.”