| International Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1There exists another misfortune that I have observed on earth, and it is a heavy burden upon human beings: | 1There is another serious tragedy I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily on humanity. |
| 2a man to whom God gives wealth, riches, and honor, so that he lacks none of his heart's desires—but God does not give him the capability to enjoy them. Instead, a stranger consumes them. This is pointless and a grievous affliction. | 2God gives some people great wealth and honor and everything they could ever want, but then he doesn’t give them the chance to enjoy these things. They die, and someone else, even a stranger, ends up enjoying their wealth! This is meaningless—a sickening tragedy. |
| 3A man might father a hundred children, and live for many years, so that the length of his life is long—but if his life does not overflow with goodness, and he doesn't receive a proper burial, I maintain that stillborn children are better off than he is, | 3A man might have a hundred children and live to be very old. But if he finds no satisfaction in life and doesn’t even get a decent burial, it would have been better for him to be born dead. |
| 4because stillborn children arrive in pointlessness, leave in darkness, and their names are covered in darkness. | 4His birth would have been meaningless, and he would have ended in darkness. He wouldn’t even have had a name, |
| 5Furthermore, though they never saw the sun nor learned anything, they are more content than the other. | 5and he would never have seen the sun or known of its existence. Yet he would have had more peace than in growing up to be an unhappy man. |
| 6Even if he lives a thousand years twice over without experiencing the best—aren't all of them going to the same place? | 6He might live a thousand years twice over but still not find contentment. And since he must die like everyone else—well, what’s the use? |
| 7Every person works for his own self-interests, but his desires remain unsatisfied. | 7All people spend their lives scratching for food, but they never seem to have enough. |
| 8For what advantage has the wise person over the fool? What advantage does the poor man have in knowing how to face life? | 8So are wise people really better off than fools? Do poor people gain anything by being wise and knowing how to act in front of others? |
| 9It is better to focus on what you can see than to meander after your self-interest; this also is pointless and a chasing after wind. | 9Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind. The Future—Determined and Unknown |
| 10Whatever exists has been named already; people know what it means to be human— and a person cannot defeat one who is more powerful than he. | 10Everything has already been decided. It was known long ago what each person would be. So there’s no use arguing with God about your destiny. |
| 11Because many words lead to pointlessness, how do people benefit from this? | 11The more words you speak, the less they mean. So what good are they? |
| 12Who knows what is best for people in this life, every day of their pointless lives that they pass through like a shadow? Who informs people on earth what will come along after them? | 12In the few days of our meaningless lives, who knows how our days can best be spent? Our lives are like a shadow. Who can tell what will happen on this earth after we are gone? |
The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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