66 lines
1.9 KiB
Markdown
66 lines
1.9 KiB
Markdown
Everything Is Futile
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# Chapter 1
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1. The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem.
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2. "Absolute futility," says the Teacher.
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"Absolute futility. Everything is futile."
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3. What does a person gain for all his efforts
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that he labors at under the sun?
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4. A generation goes and a generation comes,
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but the earth remains forever.
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5. The sun rises and the sun sets;
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panting, it hurries back to the place
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where it rises.
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6. Gusting to the south,
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turning to the north,
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turning, turning, goes the wind,
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and the wind returns in its cycles.
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7. All the streams flow to the sea,
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yet the sea is never full;
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to the place where the streams flow,
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there they flow again.
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8. All things are wearisome,
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more than anyone can say.
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The eye is not satisfied by seeing
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or the ear filled with hearing.
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9. What has been is what will be,
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and what has been done is what will be done;
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there is nothing new under the sun.
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10. Can one say about anything,
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"Look, this is new"?
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It has already existed in the ages before us.
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11. There is no remembrance of those who came before;
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and of those who will come after
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there will also be no remembrance
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by those who follow them.
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The Limitations of Wisdom
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12. I, the Teacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.
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13. I applied my mind to examine and explore through wisdom all that is done under heaven. God has given people this miserable task to keep them occupied.
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14. I have seen all the things that are done under the sun and have found everything to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.
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15. What is crooked cannot be straightened;
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what is lacking cannot be counted.
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16. I said to myself, "See, I have amassed wisdom far beyond all those who were over Jerusalem before me, and my mind has thoroughly grasped wisdom and knowledge."
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17. I applied my mind to know wisdom and knowledge, madness and folly; I learned that this too is a pursuit of the wind.
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18. For with much wisdom is much sorrow;
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as knowledge increases, grief increases.
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