<p class="poetry">For you know in your own heart<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">that you also have cursed others many times.p>

<p class="poetry">Surely the king&#8217;s authority<n id="1" /> is absolute;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">no one can say<n id="3" /> to him, &#8220;What are you doing?&#8221;p>

<p class="poetry">Surely no one knows the future,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and no one can tell another person what will happen.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">The toil of a stupid fool<n id="1" /> wears him out,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">because he does not even know the way to the city.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">before the sun and the light<n id="1" /> of the moon and the stars grow dark,p> <p class="poetry">and the clouds disappear<n id="2" /> after the rain;p>

<p class="poetry">and the dust returns to the earth as it was,p> <p class="poetry">and the life&#8217;s breath<n id="1" /> returns to God who gave it.p>

<p class="poetry">I thought deeply<n id="1" /> about the effects of<n id="2" /> indulging<n id="3" /> myself<n id="4" /> with winep> <p class="poetry">(all the while<n id="5" /> my mind was guiding me<n id="6" /> with wisdom)<n id="7" />p> <p class="poetry">and the effects of<n id="8" /> behaving foolishly,<n id="9" />p> <p class="poetry">so that<n id="10" /> I might discover what is profitable<n id="11" />p> <p class="poetry">for people<n id="12" /> to do on earth<n id="13" /> during the few days<n id="14" /> of their lives.p>

<p class="poetry">God has made everything fit beautifully<n id="1" /> in its appropriate time,p> <p class="poetry">but<n id="2" /> he has also placed ignorance<n id="3" /> in the human heart<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">so that<n id="5" /> people<n id="6" /> cannot discover what God has ordained,<n id="7" />p> <p class="poetry">from the beginning to the end<n id="8" /> of their lives.<n id="9" />p>

<p class="poetry">God gives a man riches, property, and wealthp> <p class="poetry">so that he lacks nothing that his heart<n id="1" /> desires,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">yet God does not enable<n id="3" /> him to enjoy<n id="4" /> the fruit of his labor<n id="5" /> &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">instead, someone else<n id="6" /> enjoys<n id="7" /> it!<n id="8" />p> <p class="poetry">This is fruitless and a grave misfortune.<n id="9" />p>

<p class="poetry">While applying<n id="1" /> my mind<n id="2" /> to everything<n id="3" /> that happens in this world,<n id="4" /> I have seen all this:p> <p class="poetry">Sometimes one person<n id="5" /> dominates<n id="6" /> other people<n id="7" /> to their harm.<n id="8" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">So I recommend the enjoyment of life,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">for there is nothing better on earth<n id="2" /> for a person to do<n id="3" /> except<n id="4" /> to eat, drink, and enjoy<n id="5" /> life.<n id="6" />p> <p class="poetry">So<n id="7" /> joy<n id="8" /> will accompany him in his toilp> <p class="poetry">during the days of his life which God gives him on earth.<n id="9" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">When I tried<n id="1" /> to gain<n id="2" /> wisdomp> <p class="poetry">and to observe the activity<n id="3" /> on earth &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">even though it prevents anyone from sleeping day or night<n id="4" /> &#8211;p>

<p class="poetry">Just as you do not know the path<n id="1" /> of the wind,p> <p class="poetry">or how the bones form<n id="2" /> in the womb of a pregnant woman,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.p>

<t /><p class="poetry">So remember<n id="1" /> your Creator in the days of your youth &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">before<n id="2" /> the difficult<n id="3" /> days come,p> <p class="poetry">and the years draw near when you will say, &#8220;I have no pleasure in them&#8221;;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">So I perceived there is nothing better than for people<n id="1" /> to enjoy their work,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">because that is their<n id="3" /> reward;p> <p class="poetry">for who can show them what the future holds?<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">I considered all the living who walk on earth,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">as well as the successor<n id="2" /> who would arise<n id="3" /> in his place.p>

<p class="poetry">Just as he came forth from his mother's womb, naked will he return as he came,p> <p class="poetry">and he will take nothing in his hand that he may carry away from his toil.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>