| King James Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; | 1So remember your Creator during your youth! Otherwise, troublesome days will come and years will creep up on you when you'll say, "I find no pleasure in them," |
| 2While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: | 2Otherwise, when the sun, daylight, moon, or stars turn dark, or when clouds fail to return after the rain— |
| 3In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, | 3when that day comes, the palace guards will tremble, strong men will stoop down, women grinders will cease because they are few, and the sight of those who peer through the lattice will grow dim. |
| 4And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low; | 4The doors to the street will be shut when the sound of grinding decreases, when one wakes up at the song of a bird, and all of the singing women are silenced. |
| 5Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets: | 5At that time they will fear climbing heights and dangers along the road while the almond tree will blossom, and the grasshopper is weighed down. Desire will cease, because the person goes to his eternal home, and mourners will gather in the marketplace. |
| 6Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern. | 6When the silver cord is severed, the golden vessel is broken, the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, and the wheel is broken at the cistern, |
| 7Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. | 7then man's dust will go back to the earth, returning to what it was, and the spirit will return to the God who gave it. |
| 8Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity. | 8"Utterly pointless," says the Teacher. "Everything is pointless." |
| 9And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. | 9Moreover, besides being wise himself, the Teacher taught people what he had learned by listening, making inquiries, and composing many proverbs. |
| 10The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth. | 10The Teacher searched to find appropriate expressions, and what is written here is right and truthful. |
| 11The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd. | 11Sayings from the wise are like cattle prods and well fastened nails; this masterful collection was given by one shepherd. |
| 12And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh. | 12So learn from them, my son. There is no end to the crafting of many books, and too much study wearies the body. |
| 13Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. | 13Let the conclusion of all of these thoughts be heard: Fear God and obey his commandments, for this is what it means to be human. |
| 14For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. | 14For God will judge every deed, along with every secret, whether good or evil. |
| King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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