Proverbs 9:12

9:12 If you are wise, you are wise to your own advantage,

but if you are a mocker, you alone must bear it.

Proverbs 14:23

14:23 In all hard work there is profit,

but merely talking about it only brings poverty.

6:7 All of man’s labor is for nothing more than to fill his stomach –

yet his appetite is never satisfied!

Not Everyone Enjoys Life

6:1 Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth,

and it weighs heavily on people:

4:11 Furthermore, if two lie down together, they can keep each other warm,

but how can one person keep warm by himself?

4:12 Although an assailant may overpower one person,

two can withstand him.

Moreover, a three-stranded cord is not quickly broken.

4:2 So I considered those who are dead and gone

more fortunate than those who are still alive.

3:8 A time to love, and a time to hate;

a time for war, and a time for peace.

Man is Ignorant of God’s Timing

3:9 What benefit can a worker gain from his toil?

3:10 I have observed the burden

that God has given to people to keep them occupied.

3:11 God has made everything fit beautifully in its appropriate time,

but he has also placed ignorance in the human heart

so that people cannot discover what God has ordained,

from the beginning to the end of their lives.

Enjoy Life in the Present

3:12 I have concluded that there is nothing better for people

than to be happy and to enjoy

themselves as long as they live,