(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
1
I said to myself, "Come on, let's try pleasure. Let's look for the 'good things' in life." But I found that this, too, was meaningless.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
2
So I said, "Laughter is silly. What good does it do to seek pleasure?"
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
3
After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine. And while still seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
4
I also tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
5
I made gardens and parks, filling them with all kinds of fruit trees.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
6
I built reservoirs to collect the water to irrigate my many flourishing groves.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
7
I bought slaves, both men and women, and others were born into my household. I also owned large herds and flocks, more than any of the kings who had lived in Jerusalem before me.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
8
I collected great sums of silver and gold, the treasure of many kings and provinces. I hired wonderful singers, both men and women, and had many beautiful concubines. I had everything a man could desire!
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
9
So I became greater than all who had lived in Jerusalem before me, and my wisdom never failed me.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
10
Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure. I even found great pleasure in hard work, a reward for all my labors.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
11
But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless--like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
12
So I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and madness (for who can do this better than I, the king?).
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
13
I thought, "Wisdom is better than foolishness, just as light is better than darkness.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
14
For the wise can see where they are going, but fools walk in the dark." Yet I saw that the wise and the foolish share the same fate.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
15
Both will die. So I said to myself, "Since I will end up the same as the fool, what's the value of all my wisdom? This is all so meaningless!"
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
16
For the wise and the foolish both die. The wise will not be remembered any longer than the fool. In the days to come, both will be forgotten.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
17
So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun is so troubling. Everything is meaningless--like chasing the wind.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
18
I came to hate all my hard work here on earth, for I must leave to others everything I have earned.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
19
And who can tell whether my successors will be wise or foolish? Yet they will control everything I have gained by my skill and hard work under the sun. How meaningless!
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
20
So I gave up in despair, questioning the value of all my hard work in this world.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
21
Some people work wisely with knowledge and skill, then must leave the fruit of their efforts to someone who hasn't worked for it. This, too, is meaningless, a great tragedy.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
22
So what do people get in this life for all their hard work and anxiety?
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
23
Their days of labor are filled with pain and grief; even at night their minds cannot rest. It is all meaningless.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
24
So I decided there is nothing better than to enjoy food and drink and to find satisfaction in work. Then I realized that these pleasures are from the hand of God.
(NLT)
Ecclesiastes
2
:
26
God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to those who please him. But if a sinner becomes wealthy, God takes the wealth away and gives it to those who please him. This, too, is meaningless--like chasing the wind.