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¹ For all these thinges purposed I in my mynde to seke out. The righteus and wyse yee and their workes also are in the hande of God: and there is no man that knoweth ether the loue or hate of the thinge that he hath before him.² It happeneth vnto one as vnto another: It goeth with the rightuous as with the vngodly: with the good & cleane as with the vncleane: with him that offereth as with him that offereth not: like as it goeth with the vertuous, so goeth it also with the synner: As it happeneth vnto the periured, so happeneth it also vnto him that is afrayed to be man sworne.³ Amonge all thinges yt come to passe vnder the Sonne, this is a misery, that it happeneth vnto all alyke. This is the cause also that the hertes of men are full of wickednesse, & madd foolishnesse is in their hertes as longe as they lyue, vntill they dye.

⁴ And why? As longe as a man lyueth, he is careles: for a quyck dogg (saye they) is better the a deed lion:⁵ for they that be lyuynge, knowe yt they shall dye: but they yt be deed, knowe nothinge, nether deserue they eny more. For their memoriall is forgotte,⁶ so yt they be nether loued, hated ner envyed: nether haue they eny more parte in ye worlde, in all yt is done vnder the Sonne.⁷ Go thou yi waye then, eate thy bred with ioye, & drynke yi wyne wt gladnesse, for thy workes please God.⁸ Let thy garmetes be all waye whyte, & let yi heade want no oyntmet.⁹ Vse thy self to lyue ioyfully wt thy wife whom thou louest, all ye daies of thy life (which is but vayne) yt God hath geue the vnder the Sonne, all ye dayes of thy vanite: for yt is thy porcion in this life, of all thy labor & trauayle yt thou takest vnder the Sonne.¹⁰ What so euer thou takest in hande to do, that do with all thy power: for amoge the deed (where as thou goest vnto) there is nether worke, councell, knowlege ner wy?dome.

¹¹ So I turned me vnto other thinges vnder ye Sonne, and I sawe, that in runnynge, it helpeth not to be swift: in batayll, it helpeth not to be stronge: to fedynge, it helpeth not to be wyse: to riches, it helpeth not to be sutyll: to be had in fauoure, it helpeth not to be connynge: but that all lyeth in tyme & fortune.¹² For a man knoweth not his tyme, but like as the fyshe are take with the angle, and as the byrdes are catched wt the snare: Eue so are men taken in the perilous tyme, when it commeth sodenly vpon them.

¹³ This wi?dome haue I sene also vnder ye Sone, & me thought it a greate thinge.¹⁴ There was a litle cite, & a few me within it: so there came a greate kynge & beseged it, & made greate bulworkes agaynst it.¹⁵ And in the cite there was founde a poore man (but he was wyse) which wt his wy?dome delyuered the cite: yet was there no body, yt had eny respecte vnto soch a symple man.¹⁶ Then sayde I: wy?dome is better then strength. Neuertheles, a symple mans wy?dome is despysed, & his wordes are not herde.¹⁷ A wise mans councell that is folowed in sylence, is farre aboue the crienge of a captaine amoge fooles.¹⁸ For wy?dome is better then harnesse: but one vnthrift alone destroyeth moch good.