I have seen slaves on horseback and princes walking on foot like slaves.

I, the Teacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.

Obey the king’s command, because you took an oath before God to be loyal to him.

Do not be rash with your mouth or hasty in your heart to bring up a matter before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth! Therefore, let your words be few.

If you see the extortion of the poor, or the perversion of justice and fairness in the government, do not be astonished by the matter. For the high official is watched by a higher official, and there are higher ones over them!

So I began to despair about all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so hard on earth.

Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs heavily on people:

For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, for the oppression of the king is severe upon his victim.

Let your clothes always be white, and do not spare precious ointment on your head.

Send your grain overseas, for after many days you will get a return.

and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the life’s breath returns to God who gave it.

I thought to myself, “I have become much wiser than any of my predecessors who ruled over Jerusalem; I have acquired much wisdom and knowledge.”

The wind goes to the south and circles around to the north; round and round the wind goes and on its rounds it returns.

So I loathed life because what happens on earth seems awful to me; for all the benefits of wisdom are futile – like chasing the wind.

I thought to myself, “God will judge both the righteous and the wicked; for there is an appropriate time for every activity, and there is a time of judgment for every deed.

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

Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these days?” for it is not wise to ask that.

When a sentence is not executed at once against a crime, the human heart is encouraged to do evil.

There was once a small city with a few men in it, and a mighty king attacked it, besieging it and building strong siege works against it.

If the anger of the ruler flares up against you, do not resign from your position, for a calm response can undo great offenses.