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Mankind Is in the Hand of God

¹ For I have given all this to my heart and explain ^(F1)it that righteous men, wise men, and their service are ^(C1)in the hand of God. ^(C2)Man does not know whether it will be ^(C3)love or hatred; anything may be before him.

^2 (C1)It is the same for all. There is ^(C2)one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who ^(F1)is afraid to swear.³ This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is ^(C1)one fate for all. Furthermore, ^(C2)the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil, and ^(C3)madness is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.⁴ For whoever is joined with all the living, there is confidence; surely a live dog is better than a dead lion.⁵ For the living know they will die; but the dead ^(C1)do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for the ^(C2)memory of them is forgotten.⁶ Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished, and they will never again have a ^(C1)portion in all that is done under the sun.

⁷ Go then, ^(C1)eat your bread in gladness and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works.⁸ Let your ^(C1)clothes be white all the time, and let not ^(C2)oil be lacking on your head.⁹ See life with the woman whom you love all the days of your ^(C1)vain life, which He has given to you under the sun—all the days of your ^(C1)vanity; for this is your ^(C2)portion in life and in your labor in which you have labored under the sun.

Whatever Your Hand Finds to Do

¹⁰ Whatever your hand finds to do, ^(C1)do it with all your might; for there is no ^(C2)working or explaining or knowledge or wisdom in ^(C3)Sheol where you are going.

¹¹ I again saw under the sun that the ^(C1)race is not to the swift and the ^(C2)battle is not to the mighty, and neither is bread to the wise nor ^(C3)riches to the discerning nor favor to men who know; for time and ^(C4)misfortune overtake them all.¹² Moreover, man does not ^(C1)know his time: like fish seized in an evil net and ^(C2)birds seized in a trap, so the sons of men are ^(C3)ensnared at an evil time when it ^(C4)suddenly falls on them.

¹³ Also this I came to see as wisdom under the sun, and ^(F1)it was great to me.¹⁴ There ^(C1)was a small city with few men in it, and a great king came to it, surrounded it, and built large siegeworks against it.¹⁵ But there was found in it a ^(C1)poor wise man, and he provided a way of escape for the city ^(C2)by his wisdom. Yet ^(C3)no one remembered that poor man.¹⁶ So I said, "^(C1)Wisdom is better than strength." But the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heard.¹⁷ The ^(C1)words of the wise heard in restfulness are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools.^18 (C1)Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but ^(C2)one sinner destroys much good.