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¹ I said in my heart, Come now, I will prove thee with mirth, and behold thou good: and, behold, this is also vanity. ² I said to laughter, Madness: and to mirth, Why doest thou this: ³ And I examined whether my heart would excite my flesh as with wine, (though my heart guided me in wisdom,) and I desired to lay hold of mirth, until I should see of what kind is the good to the sons of men, which they should do under the sun all the days of their life. ⁴ I enlarged my work; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards. ⁵ I made me gardens and orchards, and planted in them every kind of fruit-tree. ⁶ I made me pools of water, to water from them the timber-bearing wood. ⁷ I got servants and maidens, and servants were born to me in the house: also I had abundant possession of flocks and herds, beyond all who were before me in Jerusalem. ⁸ Moreover I collected for myself both silver and gold also, and the peculiar treasures of kings and provinces: I procured me singing men and singing women, and delights of the sons of men, a butler and female cupbearers. ⁹ So I became great, and advanced beyond all that were before in Jerusalem: also my wisdom was established to me. ¹⁰ And whatever mine eyes desired, I withheld not from them, I withheld not my heart from all my mirth: for my heart rejoiced in all my labour; and this was my portion of all my labour. ¹¹ And I looked on all my works which my hands had wrought, and on my labour which I laboured to perform: and behold, all was vanity and waywardness of spirit, and there is no advantage under the sun.

¹² Then I looked on to see wisdom, and madness, and folly: for who is the man who will follow after counsel, in all things where in he employs it? ¹³ And I saw that wisdom excels folly, as much as light excels darkness. ¹⁴ The wise man’s eyes are in his head; but the fool walks in darkness: and I perceived, even I, that one event shall happen to them all. 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. ²⁰ so I went about to dismiss from my heart all my labour wherein I had laboured under the sun. ²¹ For there is such a man that his labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in fortitude; yet this man shall give his portion to one who has not laboured therein. This is also vanity and great evil. ²² For it happens to a man in all his labour, and in the purpose of his heart wherein he labours under the sun. ²³ For all his days are days of sorrows, and vexation of spirit is his; in the night also his heart rests not. This is also vanity. ²⁴ A man has nothing really good to eat, and to drink, and to shew his soul as good in his trouble. This also I saw, that it is from the hand of God. ²⁵ For who shall eat, or who shall drink, without him? ²⁶ For God has given to the man who is good in his sight, wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but he has given to the sinner trouble, to add and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God; for this is also vanity and waywardness of spirit.