Ecclesiastes 1:1; Ecclesiastes 1:13; Ecclesiastes 2:3; Ecclesiastes 2:8; Ecclesiastes 3:10; Ecclesiastes 3:18; Ecclesiastes 3:19; Ecclesiastes 3:21; Ecclesiastes 4:8; Ecclesiastes 5:14; Ecclesiastes 8:11; Ecclesiastes 9:3; Ecclesiastes 9:12; Ecclesiastes 10:17; Ecclesiastes 12:12

Ecclesiastes 1:1

1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:

Ecclesiastes 1:13

13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind!

Ecclesiastes 2:3

3 I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was good for people to do under the heavens during the few days of their lives.

Ecclesiastes 2:8

8 I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and a harem as well—the delights of a man’s heart.

Ecclesiastes 3:10

10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.

Ecclesiastes 3:18

18 I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals.

Ecclesiastes 3:19

19 Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath ; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless.

Ecclesiastes 3:21

21 Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

Ecclesiastes 4:8

8 There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business!

Ecclesiastes 5:14

14 or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when they have children there is nothing left for them to inherit.

Ecclesiastes 8:11

11 When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, people’s hearts are filled with schemes to do wrong.

Ecclesiastes 9:3

3 This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of people, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead.

Ecclesiastes 9:12

12 Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.

Ecclesiastes 10:17

17 Blessed is the land whose king is of noble birth and whose princes eat at a proper time— for strength and not for drunkenness.

Ecclesiastes 12:12

12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.