(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 1 The words of the spokesman, the son of David and the king in Jerusalem.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 2 "Absolutely pointless!" says the spokesman. "Absolutely pointless! Everything is pointless."
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 3 What do people gain from all their hard work under the sun?
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 4 Generations come, and generations go, but the earth lasts forever.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 5 The sun rises, and the sun sets, and then it rushes back to the place where it will rise [again].
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 6 The wind blows toward the south and shifts toward the north. Round and round it blows. It blows in a full circle.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 7 All streams flow into the sea, but the sea is never full. The water goes back to the place where the streams began in order to [start] flowing again.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 8 All of these sayings are worn-out phrases. They are more than anyone can express, comprehend, or understand.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 9 Whatever has happened before will happen [again]. Whatever has been done before will be done [again]. There is nothing new under the sun.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 10 Can you say that anything is new? It has already been here long before us.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 11 Nothing from the past is remembered. Even in the future, nothing will be remembered by those who come after us.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 12 I, the spokesman, have been king of Israel in Jerusalem.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 13 With all my heart I used wisdom to study and explore everything done under heaven. Mortals are weighed down with a terrible burden that God has placed on them.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 14 I have seen everything that is done under the sun. Look at it! It's all pointless. [It's like] trying to catch the wind.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 15 No one can straighten what is bent. No one can count what is not there.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 16 I thought to myself, "I have grown wiser than anyone who [has ruled] Jerusalem before me. I've had a lot of experience with wisdom and knowledge."
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 17 I've used my mind to understand wisdom and knowledge as well as madness and stupidity. [Now] I know that this is [like] trying to catch the wind.
(GWT) Ecclesiastes 1 : 18 With a lot of wisdom [comes] a lot of heartache. The greater [your] knowledge, the greater [your] pain.