Study Desk

And I saw that the cause of all the work and of everything which is done well was man's envy of his neighbour. This again is to no purpose and a desire for wind.

The foolish man, folding his hands, takes the flesh of his body for food.

It is one who is by himself, without a second, and without son or brother; but there is no end to all his work, and he has never enough of wealth. For whom, then, am I working and keeping myself from pleasure? This again is to no purpose, and a bitter work.

There is a great evil which I have seen under the sun--wealth kept by the owner to be his downfall.

And I saw the destruction of his wealth by an evil chance; and when he became the father of a son he had nothing in his hand.

As he came from his mother at birth, so does he go again; he gets from his work no reward which he may take away in his hand.

All his days are in the dark, and he has much sorrow, pain, disease, and trouble.

This is what I have seen: it is good and fair for a man to take meat and drink and to have joy in all his work under the sun, all the days of his life which God has given him; that is his reward.

Every man to whom God has given money and wealth and the power to have pleasure in it and to do his part and have joy in his work: this is given by God.

He will not give much thought to the days of his life; because God lets him be taken up with the joy of his heart.

A man to whom God gives money, wealth, and honour so that he has all his desires but God does not give him the power to have joy of it, and a strange man takes it. This is to no purpose and an evil disease.

If a man has a hundred children, and his life is long so that the days of his years are great in number, but his soul takes no pleasure in good, and he is not honoured at his death; I say that a birth before its time is better than he.

All the work of man is for his mouth, and still he has a desire for food.

Who is able to say what is good for man in life all the days of his foolish life which he goes through like a shade? who will say what is to be after him under the sun?

These two have I seen in my life which is to no purpose: a good man coming to his end in his righteousness, and an evil man whose days are long in his evil-doing.

There is no man on earth of such righteousness that he does good and is free from sin all his days.

Who is like the wise man? and to whom is the sense of anything clear? A man's wisdom makes his face shining, and his hard face will be changed.

No man has authority over the wind, to keep the wind; or is ruler over the day of his death. In war no man's time is free, and evil will not keep the sinner safe.

All this have I seen, and have given my heart to all the work which is done under the sun: there is a time when man has power over man for his destruction.

Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and his life is long, I am certain that it will be well for those who go in fear of God and are in fear before him.