8 собрал себе серебра и золота и драгоценностей от царей и областей; завел у себя певцов и певиц и услаждения сынов человеческих - разные музыкальные орудия.

9 И сделался я великим и богатым больше всех, бывших прежде меня в Иерусалиме; и мудрость моя пребыла со мною.

10 Чего бы глаза мои ни пожелали, я не отказывал им, не возбранял сердцу моему никакого веселья, потому что сердце мое радовалось во всех трудах моих, и это было моею долею от всех трудов моих.

11 И оглянулся я на все дела мои, которые сделали руки мои, и на труд, которым трудился я, делая их: и вот, все - суета и томление духа, и нет от них пользы под солнцем!

12 И обратился я, чтобы взглянуть на мудрость и безумие и глупость: ибо что может сделать человек после царя сверх того, что уже сделано?

13 И увидел я, что преимущество мудрости перед глупостью такое же, как преимущество света перед тьмою:

14 у мудрого глаза его - в голове его, а глупый ходит во тьме; но узнал я, что одна участь постигает их всех.

15 And I said in my heart, 'And I shall suffer the same fate as the fool: wherefore have I become very wise?'

16 For the wise shall not be remembered for ever, nor the foolish; In the days to come, all will be forgotten, and alas! the wise die as well as the foolish.

17 And I hated life, because the works that are done under the sun have become abhorrent to me; for all is vanity and anguish of spirit!

18 And I hated all my labor with which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

19 And who knoweth whether he shall be wise or foolish? And he will manage all my work, which I have labored and by which I have shown myself wise under the sun. And this is vanity!

20 And I turned to make my heart renounce all the labour wherewith I had laboured under the sun,

21 For there is a man who laboureth wisely, with knowledge, and with success, and ought to give all things to a man that hath not laboured as a part of him. And this is vanity and great evil!

22 For what shall a man have of all his labor and the care of his heart, that he laboreth under the sun?

23 For all his days are afflictions, and his labors are trouble; even at night his heart knows no rest. And this is vanity!

24 Nor is it in the power of man to eat and drink, and to delight his soul with his labour. I saw that this also was from the hand of God;

25 For who can eat, and who can enjoy without him?

26 For to the man who is good in his sight he giveth wisdom and knowledge and joy; but He gives care to the sinner to gather and accumulate, so that afterwards he may give to the good in the presence of God. And this is vanity and anguish of spirit!

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1 There is a time for everything, and a time for every thing under heaven.