I also thought to myself, “It is for the sake of people, so God can clearly show them that they are like animals.

I constructed pools of water for myself, to irrigate my grove of flourishing trees.

So I considered those who are dead and gone more fortunate than those who are still alive.

Two people are better than one, because they can reap more benefit from their labor.

All the streams flow into the sea, but the sea is not full, and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again.

No one remembers the former events, nor will anyone remember the events that are yet to happen; they will not be remembered by the future generations.

This alone have I discovered: God made humankind upright, but they have sought many evil schemes.

What they loved, as well as what they hated and envied, perished long ago, and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth.

Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. There is no end to the making of many books, and much study is exhausting to the body.

I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. So all my accomplishments gave me joy; this was my reward for all my effort.

Surely, no one knows his appointed time! Like fish that are caught in a deadly net, and like birds that are caught in a snare – just like them, all people are ensnared at an unfortunate time that falls upon them suddenly.