Parallel Bible results for "ecclesiastes 9"

Ecclesiastes 9

The Bible in Basic English BBE

1 All this I took to heart, and my heart saw it all: that the upright and the wise and their works are in the hand of God; and men may not be certain if it will be love or hate; all is to no purpose before them.

2 Because to all there is one event, to the upright man and to the evil, to the clean and to the unclean, to him who makes an offering and to him who makes no offering; as is the good so is the sinner; he who takes an oath is as he who has fear of it.

3 This is evil in all things which are done under the sun: that there is one fate for all, and the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; while they have life their hearts are foolish, and after that--to the dead.

4 For him who is joined to all the living there is hope; a living dog is better than a dead lion.

5 The living are conscious that death will come to them, but the dead are not conscious of anything, and they no longer have a reward, because there is no memory of them.

6 Their love and their hate and their envy are now ended; and they have no longer a part for ever in anything which is done under the sun.

7 Come, take your bread with joy, and your wine with a glad heart. God has taken pleasure in your works.

8 Let your clothing be white at all times, and let not your head be without oil.

9 Have joy with the woman of your love all the days of your foolish life which he gives you under the sun. Because that is your part in life and in your work which you do under the sun.

10 Whatever comes to your hand to do with all your power, do it because there is no work, or thought, or knowledge, or wisdom in the place of the dead to which you are going.

11 And again I saw under the sun that the reward goes not to him who is quick, or the fruits of war to the strong; and there is no bread for the wise, or wealth for men of learning, or respect for those who have knowledge; but time and chance come to all.

12 Even man has no knowledge of his time; like fishes taken in an evil net, or like birds taken by deceit, are the sons of men taken in an evil time when it comes suddenly on them.

13 This again I have seen under the sun as wisdom and it seemed great to me.

14 There was a little town and the number of its men was small, and there came a great king against it and made an attack on it, building works of war round about it.

15 Now there was in the town a poor, wise man, and he, by his wisdom, kept the town safe. But no one had any memory of that same poor man.

16 Then I said, Wisdom is better than strength, but the poor man's wisdom is not respected, and his words are not given a hearing.

17 The words of the wise which come quietly to the ear are noted more than the cry of a ruler among the foolish.

18 Wisdom is better than instruments of war, but one sinner is the destruction of much good.

Orthodox Jewish Bible OJB

1 All this I took to my lev, explaining it all, that the tzaddikim, and the chachamim, and their works, are in the yad HaElohim; adam does not have da’as of whether it will be ahavah or sinah; all lies before him.

2 All things come alike to all; there is one mikreh (fortune) to the tzaddik, and to the rasha; to the tov and to the tahor, and to the tameh; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not; as is the tov, so is the choteh; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth a shevuah (an oath).

3 This is a rah among all things that are done under the shemesh, that there is one mikreh (fortune) unto all; yea, also the lev of the bnei haAdam is full of rah, and holelot (madness) is in their lev while they live, and after that they go to the mesim.

4 For to him that is joined to all the living there is bitachon; for a kelev chai (living dog) is better than an aryeh hamet (dead lion).

5 For the living have da’as that they shall die; but the mesim do not have da’as of anything, neither have they any more a sachar, for the memory of them is forgotten.

6 Also their ahavah, and their sinah, and their kina, is now perished; neither have they any more a chelek l’olam in any thing that is done under the shemesh.

7 Go thy way, eat thy lechem with simchah, and drink thy yayin with a lev tov; for HaElohim now accepteth thy ma’asim.

8 Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no shemen (ointment).

9 Live joyfully with the isha whom thou lovest all the days of thy chayyei hevel, which he hath given thee under the shemesh, all the days of thy hevel; for that is thy chelek in this life, and in thy amal (toil) which thou laborest under the shemesh.

10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy koach; for there is no ma’aseh, nor cheshbon, nor da’as, nor chochmah in Sheol, whither thou goest.

11 I returned, and saw under the shemesh, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the gibborim, neither yet lechem to the chachamim, nor yet osher to the intelligent, nor yet chen (favor) to the experts; but et (time) and pega (chance) happeneth to them all.

12 For haAdam also hath no da’as of his et (time, hour, but see Yn 13:1; 8:20; 7:30; 2:4 regarding the Moshiach’s knowledge of his hour); as the dagim that are caught in a metzodah rah (evil net), and as the birds that are trapped in the pach (snare), so are the Bnei HaAdam snared in an et ra’ah (evil time), when it falleth suddenly upon them.

13 This chochmah have I seen also under the shemesh, and it seemed gedolah (great) unto me:

14 There was an ir ketanah (little city), and few men within it; and there came a melech gadol against it, and besieged it, and built metzorim gedolim (huge siegeworks) against it.

15 Now there was found in it a poor chacham, and he by his chochmah delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.

16 Then said I, Chochmah is better than gevurah (strength); nevertheless the poor man’s chochmah is despised, and his devarim are not heard.

17 Divrei chachamim in quiet are more to be heeded than the shouting of the moshel (one ruling) among kesilim.

18 Chochmah is better than weapons of war, but one choteh destroyeth much good.