| Berean Study Bible | New International Version |
| 1So I took all this to heart and concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their deeds, are in God’s hands. Man does not know what lies ahead, whether love or hate. | 1So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God's hands, but no one knows whether love or hate awaits them. |
| 2It is the same for all: There is a common fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not. As it is for the good, so it is for the sinner; as it is for the one who makes a vow, so it is for the one who refuses to take a vow. | 2All share a common destiny--the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. As it is with the good, so with the sinful; as it is with those who take oaths, so with those who are afraid to take them. |
| 3This is an evil in everything that is done under the sun: There is one fate for everyone. Furthermore, the hearts of men are full of evil and madness while they are alive, and afterward they join the dead. | 3This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of people, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead. |
| 4There is hope, however, for anyone who is among the living; for even a live dog is better than a dead lion. | 4Anyone who is among the living has hope --even a live dog is better off than a dead lion! |
| 5For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, because the memory of them is forgotten. | 5For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten. |
| 6Their love, their hate, and their envy have already vanished, and they will never again have a share in all that is done under the sun. | 6Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun. |
| 7Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has already approved your works: | 7Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. |
| 8Let your garments always be white, and never spare the oil for your head. | 8Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. |
| 9Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your labor under the sun. | 9Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun--all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. |
| 10Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom. | 10Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. |
| 11I saw something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; neither is the bread to the wise, nor the wealth to the intelligent, nor the favor to the skillful. For time and chance happen to all. | 11I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. |
| 12For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them. | 12Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them. |
| 13I have also seen this wisdom under the sun, and it was great to me: | 13I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: |
| 14There was a small city with few men. A mighty king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege ramps against it. | 14There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. |
| 15Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man. | 15Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. |
| 16And I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.” | 16So I said, "Wisdom is better than strength." But the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. |
| 17The calm words of the wise are heeded over the shouts of a ruler among fools. | 17The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools. |
| 18Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good. | 18Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good. |
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