Ecclesiastes 6
1 Est et aliud malum, quod vidi sub sole, et quidem frequens apud homines:
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it [is] common among men:
2 Vir, cui dedit Deus divitias, et substantiam, et honorem, et nihil deest animæ suæ ex omnibus, quæ desiderat: nec tribuit ei potestatem Deus ut comedat ex eo, sed homo extraneus vorabit illud. hoc vanitas, et miseria magna est.
A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honor, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat of it, but a stranger eateth it: this [is] vanity, and it [is] an evil disease.
3 Si genuerit quispiam centum liberos, et vixerit multos annos, et plures dies ætatis habuerit, et anima illius non utatur bonis substantiæ suæ, sepulturaque careat: de hoc ergo pronuncio quod melior illo sit abortivus.
If a man begetteth a hundred [children], and liveth many years, so that the days of his years are many, and his soul is not filled with good, and also [that] he hath no burial; I say, [that] an untimely birth [is] better than he.
4 Frustra enim venit, et pergit ad tenebras, et oblivione delebitur nomen eius.
For he cometh with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness.
5 Non vidit solem, neque cognovit distantiam boni et mali:
Moreover he hath not seen the sun, nor known [any thing]: this hath more rest than the other.
6 etiam si duobus millibus annis vixerit, et non fuerit perfruitus bonis: nonne ad unum locum properant omnia?
Yes, though he liveth a thousand years twice [told], yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?
7 Omnis labor hominis in ore eius: sed anima eius non implebitur.
All the labor of man [is] for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
8 Quid habet amplius sapiens a stulto? et quid pauper nisi ut pergat illuc, ubi est vita?
For what hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living?
9 Melius est videre quod cupias, quam desiderare quod nescias. sed et hoc vanitas est, et præsumptio spiritus.
Better [is] the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this [is] also vanity and vexation of spirit.
10 Qui futurus est, iam vocatum est nomen eius: et scitur quod homo sit, et non possit contra fortiorem se in iudicio contendere.
That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it [is] man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.
11 Verba sunt plurima, multamque in disputando habentia vanitatem.
Seeing there are many things that increase vanity, what [is] man the better?
12 Quid necesse est homini maiora se quærere, cum ignoret quid conducat sibi in vita sua numero dierum peregrinationis suæ, et tempore, quod velut umbra præterit? Aut quis ei poterit indicare quod post eum futurum sub sole sit?
For who knoweth what [is] good for man in [this] life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?
