<p class="poetry">Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been;p> <p class="poetry">for God will seek to do again<n id="1" /> what has occurred<n id="2" /> in the past.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">So I considered<n id="1" /> those who are dead and gone<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">more fortunate than those who are still alive.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">Is there anything about which someone can say, &#8220;Look at this! It is new!&#8221;?<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">It was already<n id="2" /> done long ago,<n id="3" /> before our time.<n id="4" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">Next, I decided to consider<n id="1" /> wisdom, as well as foolish behavior and ideas.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">For what more can the king&#8217;s successor do than what the king<n id="3" /> has already done?p>

<p class="poetry">For the wise man, like<n id="1" /> the fool, will not be remembered for very long,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">because<n id="3" /> in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten.<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">Alas,<n id="5" /> the wise man dies &#8211; just like<n id="6" /> the fool!p>

<t /><p class="poetry">Whatever has happened was foreordained,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and what happens to a person<n id="2" /> was also foreknown.p> <p class="poetry">It is useless for him to argue with God about his fatep> <p class="poetry">because God is more powerful than he is.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">What they loved,<n id="1" /> as well as what they hated<n id="2" /> and envied,<n id="3" /> perished long ago,p> <p class="poetry">and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth.<n id="4" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">Go, eat your food<n id="1" /> with joy,p> <p class="poetry">and drink your wine with a happy heart,p> <p class="poetry">because God has already approved your works.p>