Everything Is Meaningless
1The words of the Teacher,1:1 Or the leader of the assembly; also in verses 2 and 12 son of David, king in Jerusalem:
2“Meaningless! Meaningless!”
says the Teacher.
“Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.”
3What do people gain from all their labors
at which they toil under the sun?
4Generations come and generations go,
but the earth remains forever.
5The sun rises and the sun sets,
and hurries back to where it rises.
6The wind blows to the south
and turns to the north;
round and round it goes,
ever returning on its course.
7All streams flow into the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
there they return again.
8All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
10Is there anything of which one can say,
“Look! This is something new”?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.
11No one remembers the former generations,
and even those yet to come
will not be remembered
by those who follow them.
Wisdom Is Meaningless
12I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! 14I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
15What is crooked cannot be straightened;
what is lacking cannot be counted.
16I said to myself, “Look, I have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” 17Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
18For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;
the more knowledge, the more grief.
Obutaliimu bw’Amagezi g’Abantu
11:1 a nny 12; Mub 7:27; 12:10 b Nge 1:1Ebigambo by’Omubuulizi, mutabani wa Dawudi kabaka mu Yerusaalemi.
21:2 Zab 39:5-6; 62:9; 144:4; Mub 12:8; Bar 8:20-21“Obutaliimu! Obutaliimu!” bw’ayogera Omubuulizi.
Byonna butaliimu.
31:3 Mub 2:11, 22; 3:9; 5:15-16Omuntu afuna ki mu byonna by’akola,
mu byonna ebimukooya wansi w’enjuba?
41:4 Zab 104:5; 119:90Omulembe ogumu gugenda, omulala ne gujja,
naye ensi ebeerera emirembe gyonna.
51:5 Zab 19:5-6Enjuba evaayo era n’egwa,
ate n’eyanguwa okutuuka mu kifo mw’eviirayo.
6Empewo ekunta ng’eraga obukiikaddyo,
ne yeetooloola okutuuka obukiikakkono;
empewo yeetooloola ne yeetooloola,
n’ekomerawo ku biwaawaatiro byayo.
71:7 Yob 36:28Emigga gyonna gikulukuta nga giraga mu nnyanja,
naye ennyanja tejjula;
ekifo emigga gye gikulukutira
era gye gyeyongera okukulukutira.
81:8 Nge 27:20Ebintu byonna bijjudde obukoowu
omuntu bw’atasobola kutenda!
Eriiso terimatira kulaba,
wadde okutu okukoowa okuwulira.
91:9 Mub 2:12; 3:15Ekyo ekyabaawo era kye kigenda okubaawo,
n’ekyo ekikoleddwa era kye kigenda okukolebwa;
era tewali kintu kiggya wansi w’enjuba.
10Waali wabaddewo ekintu ekyali kigambiddwa nti,
“Laba kino kiggya”?
Kyaliwo dda
mu mirembe egyatusooka?
111:11 Mub 2:16Tewali kujjukira bintu byasooka
era tewaliba kujjukira bintu ebyo ebitanabaawo mu ebyo ebijja oluvannyuma.
Amagezi Agatali ga Katonda Butaliimu
121:12 nny 1Nze Omubuulizi nali kabaka wa Isirayiri mu Yerusaalemi. 131:13 Lub 3:17; Mub 3:10Nagezaako n’omutima gwange okuyiga n’okwetegereza n’amagezi gange gonna mu ebyo ebikolebwa wansi w’eggulu; omulimu Katonda gwe yawa abaana b’abantu okukola, guteganya. 141:14 Mub 2:11, 17Ndabye ebintu byonna ebikolebwa wansi w’enjuba; era laba, byonna butaliimu na kugoberera mpewo.
151:15 Mub 7:13Ekyo ekyakyama tekisoboka kugololebwa,
n’ekibulako tekibalibwa.
161:16 1Bk 3:12; 4:30; Mub 2:9Nayogera munda yange nti, “Nfunye amagezi mangi agasinga ag’abo bonna abaali babadde mu Yerusaalemi, era nfunye amagezi n’okumanya kungi.” 171:17 a Mub 7:23 b Mub 2:3, 12; 7:25Era omutima gwange ne gumanya okwawula amagezi n’eddalu, n’obutategeera. Ne ntegeera nti na kino nakyo kugoberera mpewo.
181:18 Mub 2:23; 12:12Kubanga mu magezi amangi mujjiramu okunakuwala kungi;
amagezi gye gakoma obungi, n’okunakuwala gye gukoma.
