Ecclesiastes 9

1 For all this I laid to my heart, even to explore all this: that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hatred, man doesn't know it; all is before them.

ὅτι σὺν πᾶν τοῦτο ἔδωκα εἰς καρδίαν μου καὶ καρδία μου σὺν πᾶν εἶδεν τοῦτο ὡς οἱ δίκαιοι καὶ οἱ σοφοὶ καὶ ἐργασίαι αὐτῶν ἐν χειρὶ τοῦ θεοῦ καί γε ἀγάπην καί γε μῖσος οὐκ ἔστιν εἰδὼς ὁ ἄνθρωπος τὰ πάντα πρὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν

2 It is the same for all: one event to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good and to the evil, and to the clean and to the unclean, to him who sacrifices, and to him who doesn't sacrifice. As is the good, so is the sinner; he who swears is as he who fears an oath.

ματαιότης ἐν τοῖς πᾶσιν συνάντημα ἓν τῷ δικαίῳ καὶ τῷ ἀσεβεῖ τῷ ἀγαθῷ καὶ τῷ κακῷ καὶ τῷ καθαρῷ καὶ τῷ ἀκαθάρτῳ καὶ τῷ θυσιάζοντι καὶ τῷ μὴ θυσιάζοντι ὡς ὁ ἀγαθός ὧς ὁ ἁμαρτάνων ὧς ὁ ὀμνύων καθὼς ὁ τὸν ὅρκον φοβούμενος

3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one event to all: yes also, the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

τοῦτο πονηρὸν ἐν παντὶ πεποιημένῳ ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον ὅτι συνάντημα ἓν τοῖς πᾶσιν καί γε καρδία υἱῶν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπληρώθη πονηροῦ καὶ περιφέρεια ἐν καρδίᾳ αὐτῶν ἐν ζωῇ αὐτῶν καὶ ὀπίσω αὐτῶν πρὸς τοὺς νεκρούς

4 For to him who is joined with all the living there is hope; for a living dog is better than a dead lion.

ὅτι τίς ὃς κοινωνεῖ πρὸς πάντας τοὺς ζῶντας ἔστιν ἐλπίς ὅτι ὁ κύων ὁ ζῶν αὐτὸς ἀγαθὸς ὑπὲρ τὸν λέοντα τὸν νεκρόν

5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything, neither do they have any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.

ὅτι οἱ ζῶντες γνώσονται ὅτι ἀποθανοῦνται καὶ οἱ νεκροὶ οὔκ εἰσιν γινώσκοντες οὐδέν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτοῖς ἔτι μισθός ὅτι ἐπελήσθη ἡ μνήμη αὐτῶν

6 Also their love, their hatred, and their envy has perished long ago; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.

καί γε ἀγάπη αὐτῶν καί γε μῖσος αὐτῶν καί γε ζῆλος αὐτῶν ἤδη ἀπώλετο καὶ μερὶς οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτοῖς ἔτι εἰς αἰῶνα ἐν παντὶ τῷ πεποιημένῳ ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον

7 Go your way—eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works.

δεῦρο φάγε ἐν εὐφροσύνῃ ἄρτον σου καὶ πίε ἐν καρδίᾳ ἀγαθῇ οἶνόν σου ὅτι ἤδη εὐδόκησεν ὁ θεὸς τὰ ποιήματά σου

8 Let your garments be always white, and do not let your head lack oil.

ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ ἔστωσαν ἱμάτιά σου λευκά καὶ ἔλαιον ἐπὶ κεφαλήν σου μὴ ὑστερησάτω

9 Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your life of vanity, which he has given you under the sun, all your days of vanity: for that is your portion in life, and in your labor in which you labor under the sun.

ἰδὲ ζωὴν μετὰ γυναικός ἧς ἠγάπησας πάσας ἡμέρας ζωῆς ματαιότητός σου τὰς δοθείσας σοι ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον πάσας ἡμέρας ματαιότητός σου ὅτι αὐτὸ μερίς σου ἐν τῇ ζωῇ σου καὶ ἐν τῷ μόχθῳ σου ᾧ σὺ μοχθεῖς ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον

10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, where you are going. (Sheol h7585)

πάντα ὅσα ἂν εὕρῃ ἡ χείρ σου τοῦ ποιῆσαι ὡς ἡ δύναμίς σου ποίησον ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ποίημα καὶ λογισμὸς καὶ γνῶσις καὶ σοφία ἐν ᾅδῃ ὅπου σὺ πορεύῃ ἐκεῖ (Sheol h7585)

11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all.

ἐπέστρεψα καὶ εἶδον ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον ὅτι οὐ τοῖς κούφοις ὁ δρόμος καὶ οὐ τοῖς δυνατοῖς ὁ πόλεμος καί γε οὐ τοῖς σοφοῖς ἄρτος καί γε οὐ τοῖς συνετοῖς πλοῦτος καί γε οὐ τοῖς γινώσκουσιν χάρις ὅτι καιρὸς καὶ ἀπάντημα συναντήσεται τοῖς πᾶσιν αὐτοῖς

12 For man also doesn't know his time. As the fish that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare, even so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falls suddenly on them.

ὅτι καί γε οὐκ ἔγνω ὁ ἄνθρωπος τὸν καιρὸν αὐτοῦ ὡς οἱ ἰχθύες οἱ θηρευόμενοι ἐν ἀμφιβλήστρῳ κακῷ καὶ ὡς ὄρνεα τὰ θηρευόμενα ἐν παγίδι ὡς αὐτὰ παγιδεύονται οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εἰς καιρὸν πονηρόν ὅταν ἐπιπέσῃ ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἄφνω

13 I have also seen wisdom under the sun in this way, and it seemed great to me.

καί γε τοῦτο εἶδον σοφίαν ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον καὶ μεγάλη ἐστὶν πρός με

14 There was a little city, and few men within it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great siege works against it.

πόλις μικρὰ καὶ ἄνδρες ἐν αὐτῇ ὀλίγοι καὶ ἔλθῃ ἐπ’ αὐτὴν βασιλεὺς μέγας καὶ κυκλώσῃ αὐτὴν καὶ οἰκοδομήσῃ ἐπ’ αὐτὴν χάρακας μεγάλους

15 Now a poor wise man was found in it, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.

καὶ εὕρῃ ἐν αὐτῇ ἄνδρα πένητα σοφόν καὶ διασώσει αὐτὸς τὴν πόλιν ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἄνθρωπος οὐκ ἐμνήσθη σὺν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τοῦ πένητος ἐκείνου

16 Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength. Nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.

καὶ εἶπα ἐγώ ἀγαθὴ σοφία ὑπὲρ δύναμιν καὶ σοφία τοῦ πένητος ἐξουδενωμένη καὶ λόγοι αὐτοῦ οὔκ εἰσιν ἀκουόμενοι

17 The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the cry of him who rules among fools.

λόγοι σοφῶν ἐν ἀναπαύσει ἀκούονται ὑπὲρ κραυγὴν ἐξουσιαζόντων ἐν ἀφροσύναις

18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war; but one sinner destroys much good.

ἀγαθὴ σοφία ὑπὲρ σκεύη πολέμου καὶ ἁμαρτάνων εἷς ἀπολέσει ἀγαθωσύνην πολλήν