The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on people:
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There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is hard on men;
2 the case in which God gives someone riches, wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing that he wants; but God does not give him the power to enjoy them, and some stranger gets to enjoy them - this is meaningless, evil, sick.
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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.
3 Suppose a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that he has a long life, but he fails to enjoy himself; then, even if he were to [live indefinitely and therefore] never be buried, I say that it would be better to be born dead.
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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.
4 For the arrival of a stillborn baby is a futile thing, and its departure is in darkness; its name is [forgotten,] covered in darkness;
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In wind it came and to the dark it will go, and with the dark will its name be covered.
5 and although it has never seen or known the sun, it is more content than he is,
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Yes, it saw not the sun, and it had no knowledge; it is better with this than with the other.
6 without enjoying himself, even if he were to live a thousand years twice over. Doesn't everyone go to the same place?
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And though he goes on living a thousand years twice over and does not see good, are not the two going to the same place?
7 The purpose of all toil is to fill the mouth, yet the appetite is never satisfied.
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All the work of man is for his mouth, and still he has a desire for food.
8 What advantage has the wise over the fool, or the person with experience, if he is poor?
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What have the wise more than the foolish? and what has the poor man by walking wisely before the living?
9 Better what the eyes can see than meandering desire. Yet this too is pointless and feeding on wind.
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What the eyes see is better than the wandering of desire. This is to no purpose and a desire for wind.
10 Whatever he is, he was named long ago, and it is known that he is merely human; moreover, he cannot defeat what is mightier than he [death].
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That which is, has been named before, and of what man is there is knowledge. He has no power against one stronger than he.
11 There are many things that only add to futility, so how do humans benefit from them?
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There are words without number for increasing what is to no purpose, but what is man profited by them?
12 For who knows what is good for someone during life, during the days of his pointless life spent like a shadow? Who can tell what will happen under the sun after a person is gone?
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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?
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.