Ecclesiastes 2:15-19 in English

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then said I in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no remembrance for ever; seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. And how doth the wise man die even as the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.

¹⁸ And I hated all my labor wherein I labored under the sun, seeing that I must leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have rule over all my labor wherein I have labored, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart, As the event of the fool is, so shall it be to me, even to me; and to what purpose have I gained wisdom? I said moreover in my heart, This is also vanity, because the fool speaks of his abundance.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise man with the fool for ever; forasmuch as now in the coming days all things are forgotten: and how shall the wise man die with the fool?

¹⁷ So I hated life; because the work that was wrought under the sun was evil before me: for all is vanity and waywardness of spirit.

¹⁸ And I hated the whole of my labour which I took under the sun; because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? and whether he will have power over all my labour in which I laboured, and wherein I grew wise under the sun? this is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart, As the event of the fool is, so shall it be to me, even to me: and to what purpose have I gained wisdom? I said moreover in my heart, This is also vanity, because the fool speaks of his abundance.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise man with the fool for ever; forasmuch as now in the coming days all things are forgotten: and how shall the wise man die with the fool?

¹⁷ So I hated life; because the work that was wrought under the sun was evil before me: for all is vanity and waywardness of spirit.

¹⁸ And I hated the whole of my labor which I took under the sun; because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? and whether he will have power over all my labor in which I laboured, and wherein I grew wise under the sun? this is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also was vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no remembrance for ever; seeing that in the days to come all will have been already forgotten. And how doth the wise man die even as the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me: for all is vanity and a striving after wind.

¹⁸ And I hated all my labour wherein I laboured under the sun: seeing that I must leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ So I said to myself, “I am very wise, but I will die at the end of my life, like foolish people do. So ◄how has it benefited me to be very wise?/it certainly has not benefited me to be very wise RHQ►. I do not understand why people consider that it is valuable to be wise.

¹⁶ Wise people and foolish people all die. And after we die, we will all eventually be forgotten DOU.”

¹⁷ So I hated being alive, because everything that we do here on the earth MTY distresses me. It all seems to be useless like chasing the wind.

¹⁸ I also began to hate all the hard work that I had done, because when I die, everything that I have acquired will belong to the next king.

¹⁹ And ◄who/no one► knows RHQ whether he will be wise or whether he will be foolish. But even if he is foolish, he will acquire all the things that I worked very hard and wisely to get.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart, As the event of the fool is, so shall it be to me, even to me: and to what purpose have I gained wisdom? I said moreover in my heart, This is also vanity, because the fool speaks of his abundance.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise man with the fool for ever; forasmuch as now in the coming days all things are forgotten: and how shall the wise man die with the fool?

¹⁷ So I hated life; because the work that was wrought under the sun was evil before me: for all is vanity and waywardness of spirit.

¹⁸ And I hated the whole of my labour which I took under the sun; because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? and whether he will have power over all my labour in which I laboured, and wherein I grew wise under the sun? this is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labour in which I laboured under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labour in which I have laboured, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart: As it comes to the foolish man, so will it come to me; so why have I been wise overmuch? Then I said in my heart: This again is to no purpose.

¹⁶ Of the wise man, as of the foolish man, there is no memory for ever, seeing that those who now are will have gone from memory in the days to come. See how death comes to the wise as to the foolish!

¹⁷ So I was hating life, because everything under the sun was evil to me: all is to no purpose and desire for wind.

¹⁸ Hate had I for all my work which I had done, because the man who comes after me will have its fruits.

¹⁹ And who is to say if that man will be wise or foolish? But he will have power over all my work which I have done and in which I have been wise under the sun. This again is to no purpose.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool so will it happen even to me; and why was I then so wise? Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For there shall be no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; because everything is already forgotten in the days which come. And how dieth the wise even as the fool?

¹⁷ And I hated life; for the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and pursuit of the wind.

¹⁸ And I hated all my labour wherewith I had been toiling under the sun, because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour at which I have laboured, and wherein I have been wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart: If the death of the fool and mine shall be one, what doth it avail me, that I have applied myself more to the study of wisdom? And speaking with my own mind, I perceived that this also was vanity.

¹⁶ For there shall be no remembrance of the wise no more than of the fool for ever, and the times to come shall cover all things together with oblivion: the learned dieth in like manner as the unlearned.

¹⁷ And therefore I was weary of my life, when I saw that all things under the sun are evil, and all vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ Again I hated all my application wherewith I had earnestly laboured under the sun, being like to have an heir after me,

¹⁹ Whom I know not whether he will be a wise man or a fool, and he shall have rule over all my labours with which I have laboured and been solicitous: and is there any thing so vain?

¹⁵ Then I thought to myself, “If I'm going to end up the same as a fool, what's the point of being so wise?” So I thought to myself, “This is also hard to understand!”

¹⁶ Nobody remembers the wise or the fool for very long—in the future everything will be forgotten. Whether wise or foolish, they both die.

¹⁷ So I ended up feeling disgusted with life because everything that happens here on earth is so distressing. It's so incomprehensible, like trying to control the wind.

¹⁸ I even ended up hating what I had achieved here on earth because I have to hand it over to whoever comes after me.

¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will rule over everything I accomplished through my wisdom here on earth. This is just so frustrating, so hard to understand!

¹⁵ Then I thought in mine heart, It befalleth vnto me, as it befalleth to ye foole. Why therefore doe I then labour to be more wise? And I sayd in mine heart, that this also is vanitie.

¹⁶ For there shalbe no remembrance of the wise, nor of the foole for euer: for that that now is, in the dayes to come shall all be forgotten. And howe dyeth the wise man, as doeth the foole?

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life: for the worke that is wrought vnder the sunne is grieuous vnto me: for all is vanitie, and vexation of the spirit.

¹⁸ I hated also all my labour, wherein I had trauailed vnder the sunne, which I shall leaue to the man that shalbe after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shalbe wise or foolish? yet shall hee haue rule ouer all my labour, wherein I haue trauailed, and wherein I haue shewed my selfe wise vnder the sunne. This is also vanitie.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart: 'As it happeneth to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?' Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no remembrance for ever; seeing that in the days to come all will long ago have been forgotten. And how must the wise man die even as the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.

¹⁸ And I hated all my labour wherein I laboured under the sun, seeing that I must leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is, in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, The same that befalleth the fool will also befall even me: and why have I then been wiser? Then spoke I in my heart, that this is also vanity.

¹⁶ For there is no recollection of the wise any more than of the fool for ever: seeing that which hath long ago been will, in the days that are coming, all be forgotten. And how doth the wise die equally with the fool!

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life; because I felt displeased with the work that is wrought under the sun; for all is vanity and a torture of the spirit.

¹⁸ Yea, I hated also all my toil with which I had toiled under the sun; because I should have to leave it unto the man that will be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth, whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have full sway over all my toil wherein I have toiled, and wherein I have shown myself wise under the sun. Also this is vanity.

¹⁵ And I said in my heart, As the event of the fool is, So shall it be to me, even to me; And to what purpose have I gained wisdom? I said moreover in my heart, This is also vanity, Because the fool speaks of his abundance.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise man With the fool forever; Forasmuch as now in the coming days All things are forgotten: And how shall the wise man die with the fool?

¹⁷ So I hated life; Because the work that was wrought under the sun Was evil before me: For all is vanity and waywardness of spirit.

¹⁸ And I hated the whole of my labor Which I took under the sun; Because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? And whether he will have power over all my labor In which I labored, and wherein I grew wise under the sun? This is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth to me. Why, then, became I wiser than others?” Then I said in my heart, “This also is vanity.”

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise man more than of the fool for ever; for in the days to come shall all have long been forgotten; and, alas! the wise man dieth, as well as the fool.

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life, because what is done under the sun appeared evil to me. For all is vanity, and striving after wind.

¹⁸ Yea, I hated all my labor which I had performed under the sun, because I must leave it to the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? Yet shall he be lord of all the labor with which I have wearied myself, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “What happens to the fool, will also happen to me. So what difference does it make if I am very wise?” I concluded in my heart, “This too is only vapor.”

¹⁶ For the wise man, like the fool, is not remembered for very long. In the days to come everything will have been long forgotten. The wise man dies just like the fool dies.

¹⁷ So I detested life because all the work done under the sun was evil to me. This was because everything is vapor and an attempt to shepherd the wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my accomplishments for which I had worked under the sun because I must leave them behind to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ For who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over everything under the sun that my work and wisdom have built. This also is vapor.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labour in which I laboured under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labour in which I have laboured, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man ? as the fool.

¹⁷ Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous to me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ Yes, I hated all my labor which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it to the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.

¹⁶ For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

¹⁸ I hated all my labour in which I laboured under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹ Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labour in which I have laboured, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

¹⁵ And I said in mine heart, If one death shall be both of the fool and of me, what profiteth it to me, that I gave more busyness to wisdom? And I spake with my soul, and perceived, that this also was vanity.

¹⁶ For the mind of a wise man shall not be, in like manner as neither that of a fool, without end, and the times to coming or to come shall cover all things altogether with forgetting; a learned man dieth in like manner as an unlearned man.

¹⁷ And therefore it annoyed me of my life, seeing that all things under the sun be evil, and that all things be vanity and torment of the spirit.

¹⁸ Again I cursed all my busyness, by which I travailed most studiously under the sun; and I shall have an heir after me,

¹⁹ whom I know not, whether he shall be wise either a fool; and he shall be lord in my travails, for which I sweated greatly, and was busy; and is there anything so vain?

¹⁵ And I said in mine heart, If one death shall be both of the fool and of me, what profiteth it to me, that I gave more busyness to wisdom? And I spake with my soul, and perceived, that this also was vanity. (And I said in my heart, If one death shall be for both the fool and for me, what profiteth it to me, that I gave more busyness, or more effort and study, to wisdom? And I spoke with myself, and understood, that this was also empty and futile.)

¹⁶ For the mind of a wise man shall not be, (and) in like manner as neither (that) of a fool, without end, and the times to coming or to come shall cover all things (al)together with forgetting; a learned man dieth in like manner as an unlearned man. (For a wise person shall not be remembered, and in like manner neither shall a fool, yea, for ever, and the times to come shall altogether cover all things with forgetting; for a learned person dieth in the same manner as an unlearned person.)

¹⁷ And therefore it annoyed me of my life, seeing that all things under the sun be evil, and that all things be vanity and torment of the spirit. (And so it vexed me to live, seeing that all things under the sun be troublesome, and that everything is empty and futile, like chasing the wind.)

¹⁸ Again I cursed all my busyness, by which I travailed most studiously under the sun; and I shall have an heir after me,

¹⁹ whom I know not, whether he shall be wise either a fool; and he shall be lord in my travails, for which I sweated greatly, and was busy; and is there anything so vain? (whom I know not, whether he shall be wise or a fool; but he shall be the lord of all my works, for which I was so busy, and greatly sweated over; is there anything so empty and futile as this?)

¹⁵ and I said in my heart, 'As it happeneth with the fool, it happeneth also with me, and why am I then more wise?' And I spake in my heart, that also this is vanity:

¹⁶ That there is no remembrance to the wise — with the fool — to the age, for that which is already, in the days that are coming is all forgotten, and how dieth the wise? with the fool!

¹⁷ And I have hated life, for sad to me is the work that hath been done under the sun, for the whole is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁸ And I have hated all my labour that I labour at under the sun, because I leave it to a man who is after me.

¹⁹ And who knoweth whether he is wise or foolish? yet he doth rule over all my labour that I have laboured at, and that I have done wisely under the sun! this also is vanity.