12I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one’s lifetime; 13moreover, that every person who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—this is the gift of God. 14I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it. And God has so worked, that people will [b]fear Him. 15That which is, is what has already been, and that which will be has already been; and God [c]seeks what has passed by.

16Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness. 17I said [d]to myself, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked,” for a time for every matter and for every deed [e]is there. 18I said [f]to myself regarding the sons of mankind, “God is testing them in order for them to see that they are as animals, they to themselves.” 19For the fate of the sons of mankind and the fate of animals [g]is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath, and there is no advantage for mankind over animals, for all is futility. 20All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all return to the dust. 21Who knows that the spirit of the sons of mankind ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward to the earth? 22I have seen that nothing is better than when a person is happy in his activities, for that is his [h]lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him?