<t /><p class="poetry">Here is<n id="1" /> a misfortune<n id="2" /> on earth<n id="3" /> that I have seen:p> <p class="poetry">Wealth hoarded by its owner to his own misery.p>

<p class="poetry">When<n id="1" /> a sentence<n id="2" /> is not executed<n id="3" /> at once against a crime,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">the human heart<n id="5" /> is encouraged to do evil.<n id="6" />p>

<p class="poetry">At the beginning his words<n id="1" /> are foolishp> <p class="poetry">and at the end<n id="2" /> his talk<n id="3" /> is wicked madness,<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">Then that wealth was lost through bad luck;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">although he fathered a son, he has nothing left to give him.<n id="2" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">Here is<n id="1" /> another misfortune<n id="2" /> that I have seen on earth,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and it weighs<n id="4" /> heavily on people:<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">Whoever obeys his<n id="1" /> command will not experience harm,p> <p class="poetry">and a wise person<n id="2" /> knows the proper time<n id="3" /> and procedure.p>

<p class="poetry">For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter,p> <p class="poetry">for the oppression<n id="1" /> of the king<n id="2" /> is severe upon his victim.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">I have seen another<n id="1" /> misfortune<n id="2" /> on the earth:<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">It is an error a ruler makes.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">Banish<n id="1" /> emotional stress<n id="2" /> from your mind.<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and put away pain<n id="4" /> from your body;<n id="5" />p> <p class="poetry">for youth<n id="6" /> and the prime of life<n id="7" /> are fleeting.<n id="8" />p>

<p class="poetry">This is the unfortunate fact<n id="1" /> about everything that happens on earth:<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">the same fate awaits<n id="3" /> everyone.p> <p class="poetry">In addition to this, the hearts of all people<n id="4" /> are full of evil,p> <p class="poetry">and there is folly in their hearts during their lives &#8211; then they die.<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">Surely, no one<n id="1" /> knows his appointed time!<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Like fish that are caught in a deadly<n id="3" /> net, and like birds that are caught in a snare &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">just like them, all people<n id="4" /> are ensnared<n id="5" /> at an unfortunate<n id="6" /> time that falls upon them suddenly.p>

<p class="poetry">So I loathed<n id="1" /> life<n id="2" /> because whatp> <p class="poetry">happens<n id="3" /> on earth<n id="4" /> seems awful to me;p> <p class="poetry">for all the benefits of wisdom<n id="5" /> are futile &#8211; like chasing the wind.p>

<p class="poetry">For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge, and skill;p> <p class="poetry">however, he must hand over<n id="1" /> the fruit of his labor<n id="2" /> as an inheritance<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">to someone else who did not work for it.p> <p class="poetry">This also is futile, and an awful injustice!<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">But better than both is the one who has not been born<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and has not seen the evil things that are done on earth.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">This is another misfortune:<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Just as he came, so will he go.p> <p class="poetry">What did he gain from toiling for the wind?p>

<t /><p class="poetry">During the days of my fleeting life<n id="1" /> I have seen both<n id="2" /> of these things:p> <p class="poetry">Sometimes<n id="3" /> a righteous person dies prematurely<n id="4" /> in spite of<n id="5" /> his righteousness,p> <p class="poetry">and sometimes<n id="6" /> a wicked person lives long<n id="7" /> in spite of his evil deeds.p>

<p class="poetry">Do not rush out of the king&#8217;s presence in haste &#8211; do not delay when the matter is unpleasant,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">for he can do whatever he pleases.p>

<p class="poetry">Divide your merchandise<n id="1" /> among seven or even eight<n id="2" /> investments,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">for you do not know<n id="4" /> what calamity<n id="5" /> may happen on earth.p>

<p class="poetry">For God will evaluate every deed,<n id="1" />p> <p class="bodytext">including every secret thing, whether good or evil.p>

<p class="poetry">I decided<n id="1" /> to carefully<n id="2" /> and thoroughly examine<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">all that has been accomplished on earth.<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">I concluded:<n id="5" /> God has given people<n id="6" /> a burdensome task<n id="7" />p> <p class="poetry">that keeps them<n id="8" /> occupied.<n id="9" />p>