Ecclesiastes 1

1The words of Qoheleth, son of David, king in Jerusalem.

2Vapor of vapors, says Qoheleth; vapor of vapors—all is vapor.

3What profit does a person have from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?

4A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth stands forever.

5And the sun rises, and the sun goes down, and hastening to its place, it rises there again.

6Going toward the south and turning toward the north, turning and turning goes the wind; on its circuits the wind returns.

7All the streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they return to flow again.

8All things are wearisome; no one can speak of them. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear filled with hearing.

9What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; and there is nothing new under the sun.

10Is there anything of which one says, “See, this is new”? It has already existed in the ages before us.

11There is no remembrance of the former ones, and even of the later ones who will be, there will be no remembrance among those who will come afterward.

12I, Qoheleth, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

13And I set my heart to seek and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is a burdensome task God has given to human beings to be occupied with.

14I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and look, all of it is vanity and a chasing after wind.

15What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted.

16I said to myself, “Look, I have become great and increased in wisdom beyond all who were before me over Jerusalem, and my heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge.”

17And I set my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly; I came to know that this too is a chasing after wind.

18For with much wisdom comes much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases pain.