Ecclesiastes 1

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

The heartfelt sayings of the Preacher, David's son, the ruler in Jerusalem.

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.

The Teacher declares, "All is meaningless, utterly meaningless; everything is just an illusion."

What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?

What's the point of all the hard work a person does under the sun if he gains nothing from it?

One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.

One generation fades, another blossoms, yet the earth remains eternally unchanging.

The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.

The sun joyfully rises, and gently sets, swiftly returning to where its journey began.

The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.

The wind travels south, then swirls back to the north; it dances in endless circles, always returning to its path.

All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.

Every river pours into the ocean, but the ocean never overflows. The rivers always return to their source.

All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.

Life is filled with endless work; it's too overwhelming to express. Our eyes are never satisfied with seeing, nor our ears filled with hearing.

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

What has happened will happen again, what's been done will be done again. There's nothing truly new in this world.

Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.

Can anything truly be called new? Everything we see has existed long before us.

There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.

Past memories fade away; future events will also be forgotten by those who come after us.

I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

As the Preacher, I held the reigns of power over Israel in the heart of Jerusalem.

And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.

I devoted myself to understand everything that happens in this world. It's a tough task God has given us humans, to keep us occupied.

I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

I've witnessed everything that happens in this world, and I tell you, it's all meaningless, just chasing after the wind.

That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.

What's twisted can't be untangled; what's missing can't be counted.

I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.

I had a deep conversation with myself, realizing, wow, I've achieved so much. I've gained more wisdom than anyone before me in Jerusalem. Indeed, my heart is rich with wisdom and knowledge.

And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.

I dedicated myself to understanding wisdom, as well as madness and foolishness. I realized that this too is just chasing after the wind, a frustration to the soul.

For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.

The more wisdom you gain, the more pain you feel; the more you learn, the more sadness you experience.