Ecclesiastes 4:3-8 in English

³ yea, better than them both did I esteem him that hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all labor and every skilful work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and striving after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one that is alone, and he hath not a second; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end of all his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches. For whom then, saith he, do I labor, and deprive my soul of good? This also is vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

³ Better also than both these is he who has not yet been, who has not seen all the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labour, and all the diligent work, that this is a man's envy from his neighbour. This is also vanity and waywardness of spirit.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together, and eats his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of rest than two handfuls of trouble and waywardness of spirit.

⁷ So I returned, and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he has neither son nor brother: yet there is no end to all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with wealth; and for whom do I labour, and deprive my soul of good? this is also vanity, and an evil trouble.

³ Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit.

⁷ Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

³ Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit.

⁷ Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

³ Better also than both these is he who has not yet been, who has not seen all the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labor, and all the diligent work, that this is a man's envy from his neighbor. This is also vanity and waywardness of spirit.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together, and eats his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of rest than two handfuls of trouble and waywardness of spirit.

⁷ So I returned, and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yes, he has neither son nor brother: yet there is no end to all his labor; neither is his eye satisfied with wealth; and for whom do I labor, and deprive my soul of good? this is also vanity, and an evil trouble.

³ yea, better than them both did I esteem him which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all labour and every skilful work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is an handful with quietness, than two handfuls with labour and striving after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one that is alone, and he hath not a second; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end of all his labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches. For whom then, saith he, do I labour, and deprive my soul of good? This also is vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

³ And those who have not been born yet are more fortunate than those who are still alive and those who have died, because those who have not been born have not seen all the evil things that are done on the earth.

⁴ I also thought about all the hard work that people do and the skills that they have. And I thought about how they compete with each other because they are envious of others, and I concluded that this also is something that is not accomplishing anything useful, like chasing the wind.

⁵ Foolish people refuse to work; they sit idly, with their hands folded, and do not work. So they ruin themselves.

⁶ So I say, “It is better to be content with not having much money, than to work very hard and try to get a lot of money, which is as useless as chasing the wind.”

⁷ I thought about something else that happens on the earth MTY that seems senseless.

⁸ There are men who live alone; they do not have a wife or children or any brothers living with them; every day they work very hard, without stopping, to get a lot of money, but they are never satisfied with the things that they have. They never ask themselves, “Why am I working very hard to earn more money? Why am I not doing things that would cause me to be happy?” What they do also seems senseless.

³ Better also than both these is he who has not yet been, who has not seen all the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labour, and all the diligent work, that this is a man's envy from his neighbour. This is also vanity and waywardness of spirit.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together, and eats his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of rest than two handfuls of trouble and waywardness of spirit.

⁷ So I returned, and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yes, he has neither son nor brother: yet there is no end to all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with wealth; and for whom do I labour, and deprive my soul of good? this is also vanity, and an evil trouble.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labor and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labor and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labour and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbour. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labour and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labour and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, happier than the dead or the living seemed he who has not ever been, who has not seen the evil which is done under the sun.

⁴ 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.

⁵ The foolish man, folding his hands, takes the flesh of his body for food.

⁶ One hand full of rest is better than two hands full of trouble and desire for wind.

⁷ Then I came back, and I saw an example of what is to no purpose under the sun.

⁸ 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.

³ and more fortunate than both is he who hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labour, and all success of work, that it is man's jealousy of his neighbour. This also is vanity and pursuit of the wind.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful with quietness, than both hands full with labour and pursuit of the wind.

⁷ And I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone and without a second; also he hath neither son nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour, neither is his eye satisfied with riches, and he saith not, For whom then am I labouring, and depriving my soul of good? This also is vanity and a grievous occupation.

³ And I judged him happier than them both, that is not yet born, nor hath seen the evils that are done under the sun.

⁴ Again I considered all the labours of men, and I remarked that their industries are exposed to the envy of their neighhour: so in this also there is vanity, and fruitless care.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh, saying:

⁶ Better is a handful with rest, than both hands full with labour, and vexation of mind.

⁷ Considering I found also another vanity under the sun:

⁸ There is but one, and he hath not a second, no child, no brother, and yet he ceaseth not to labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches, neither doth he reflect, saying: For whom do I labour, and defraud my soul of good things? in this also is vanity, and a grievous vexation.

³ But best of all are those who have never existed—they haven't seen the evil things people do to each other here on earth.

⁴ I observed that every skill in work comes from competition with others. Once again this is hard to understand, like trying to hold on to the elusive wind.

⁵ Fools fold their arms and do nothing—so in the end they're all used up.

⁶ It's better to earn a little without stress than a lot with too much stress and chasing after the wind.

⁷ Then I turned to consider something else here on earth that is also frustratingly hard to understand.

⁸ What about someone who has no family to help him, no brother or son, who works all the time, but isn't satisfied with the money he makes. “Who am I working for?” he asks himself. “Why am I preventing myself from enjoying life?” Such a situation is hard to explain—it's an evil business!

³ And I count him better then them both, which hath not yet bin: for he hath not seene the euill workes which are wrought vnder the sunne.

⁴ Also I beheld all trauaile, and all perfection of workes that this is ye enuie of a man against his neighbour: this also is vanitie and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The foole foldeth his hands, and eateth vp his owne flesh.

⁶ Better is an handfull with quietnesse, then two handfuls with labour and vexation of spirit.

⁷ Againe I returned, and sawe vanitie vnder the sunne.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second, which hath neither sonne nor brother, yet is there none end of all his trauaile, neither can his eye be satisfied with riches: neither doeth he thinke, For whome doe I trauaile and defraude my soule of pleasure? this also is vanitie, and this is an euill trauaile.

³ but better than they both is he that hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Again, I considered all labour and all excelling in work, that it is a man's rivalry with his neighbour. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of quietness, than both the hands full of labour and striving after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one that is alone, and he hath not a second; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end of all his labour, neither is his eye satisfied with riches: 'for whom then do I labour, and bereave my soul of pleasure?' This also is vanity, yea, it is a grievous business.

³ Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit.

⁷ Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

³ And as happier than both of them, him who hath not yet come into being, who hath not seen the evil-doing that is done under the sun.—

⁴ Again, I beheld all the toil, and all the energy in doing, that it is from the envy of one man of his neighbor. Also this is vanity and a torture of the spirit.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of quiet, than both the hands full of toil and torture of spirit.

⁷ Then I turned about, and I saw a vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and he hath not a companion; yea, he hath neither son nor brother: yet is there no end to all his toil; his eye also is not satisfied with riches. Yet for whom do I toil, and deprive my soul of good? Also this is vanity, yea, it is a bad employment.

³ Better also than both these Is he who has not yet been, Who has not seen all the evil work That is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labor, And all the diligent work, That this is a man’s envy from his neighbor. This is also vanity and waywardness of spirit.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together, And eats his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful of rest Than two handfuls of trouble And waywardness of spirit.

⁷ So I returned, and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone, and there is not a second; Yea, he has neither son nor brother: Yet there is no end to all his labor; Neither is his eye satisfied with wealth; And for whom do I labor, And deprive my soul of good? This is also vanity, And an evil trouble.

³ Yea, better than both of them is he who hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work which is done under the sun.

⁴ And I saw all labor, and all success in work, that for this a man is envied by his neighbor. This also is vanity, and striving after wind.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a hand full of quietness, than both hands full of weariness and striving after wind.

⁷ Then I turned and saw other vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and no one with him; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end to all his labor, and his eye is not satisfied with riches. “For whom, then saith he, do I labor and deprive myself of good?” This also is vanity; yea, it is an evil thing!

³ However, more fortunate than both of them is the one who has not yet lived, the one who has not seen any of the evil acts that are done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw that every act of labor and every skillful work became the envy of one's neighbor. This also is vapor and an attempt to shepherd the wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands and does not work, so his food is his own flesh.

⁶ But better is a handful of profit with quiet work than two handfuls with the work that tries to shepherd the wind.

⁷ Then I thought again about more futility, more vanishing vapor under the sun.

⁸ There is the kind of man who is alone. He does not have anyone, no son or brother. There is no end to all his work, and his eyes are not satisfied with gaining wealth. He wonders, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” This also is vapor, a bad situation.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labor and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labour and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbour. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labour and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labour and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, better is he than both they, who hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Again, I considered all labor, and every right work, that for this a man is envied by his neighbor. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.

⁶ Better is a handful with quietness, than both the hands full with toil and vexation of spirit.

⁷ Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one alone , and there is not a second; yes, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labor; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he , For whom do I labor, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yes, it is a grievous labor.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labor and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ Yes, better than them both is him who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴ Then I saw all the labour and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbour. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁵ The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself.

⁶ Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labour and chasing after wind.

⁷ Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.

⁸ There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then do I labour and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business.

³ and I deemed him, that was not born yet, and saw not the evils that be done under the sun, to be more blessed than ever either.

⁴ Again I beheld all the travails of men, and busynesses; and I perceived that those be open to the envy of the neighbour; and therefore in this is vanity, and superfluous busyness.

⁵ A fool foldeth together his hands, and eateth his flesh,

⁶ and saith, Better is an handful, with rest, than ever either hand full, with travail and torment of soul.

⁷ I beheld and found also another vanity under the sun;

⁸ one there is, and he hath not a second; neither a son, nor a brother; and nevertheless he ceaseth not to travail, neither his eyes be filled with riches; neither he bethinketh him, and saith, To whom travail I, and deceive my soul in goods? In this also is vanity, and the worst torment.

³ and I deemed him, that was not born yet, and saw not the evils that be done under the sun, to be more blessed than ever either. (and I judged him, who was not yet born, and saw not the evils that be done under the sun, to be more blessed than either the living or the dead.)

⁴ Again I beheld all the travails of men, and busynesses; and I perceived that those be open to the envy of the neighbour; and therefore in this is vanity, (or and so this is emptiness and futility), and superfluous busyness.

⁵ A fool foldeth together his hands, and eateth his flesh, (or and eateth his meat),

⁶ and saith, Better is an handful, with rest, than ever either hand full, with travail and torment of soul.

⁷ I beheld and found also another vanity under the sun; (I looked and found more emptiness and futility under the sun;)

⁸ one there is, and he hath not a second; neither a son, nor a brother; and nevertheless he ceaseth not to travail, neither his eyes be (ful)filled with riches; neither he bethinketh ( to) him (self), and saith, To whom travail I, and deceive my soul in goods? In this also is vanity, and the worst torment. (one is alone, and he hath not a second, or someone with him; neither a son, nor a brother; and yet he ceaseth not to labour, and his eyes be not fulfilled with his riches; nor he thinketh to himself, and saith, For whom do I labour, and deprive myself of the enjoyment of good things? This is also empty and futile, and the worst torment.)

³ And better than both of them is he who hath not yet been, in that he hath not seen the evil work that hath been done under the sun.

⁴ And I have seen all the labour, and all the benefit of the work, because for it a man is the envy of his neighbour. Even this is vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁵ The fool is clasping his hands, and eating his own flesh:

⁶ 'Better is a handful with quietness, than two handfuls with labour and vexation of spirit.'

⁷ And I have turned, and I see a vain thing under the sun:

⁸ There is one, and there is not a second; even son or brother he hath not, and there is no end to all his labour! His eye also is not satisfied with riches, and he saith not, 'For whom am I labouring and bereaving my soul of good?' This also is vanity, it is a sad travail.