Study Desk

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.

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has already approved your works:

"Let your garments always be white, and never spare the oil for your head."

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. For 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.

If the ruler's temper flares against you, do not abandon your post, for calmness lays great offenses to rest.

If the snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.

The toil of a fool wearies him, for he does not know the way to the city.

Blessed are you, O land whose king is a son of nobles, and whose princes feast at the proper time-for strength and not for drunkenness.

A feast is prepared for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything.

Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich even in your bedroom, for a bird of the air may carry your words, and a winged creature may report your speech.

Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

Divide your portion among seven, or even eight, for you do not know what disaster may befall the land.

Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.

So if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is futile.

Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.