Книга Екклесиаста

CHAPTER 4

I saw the tears of the oppressed—
    and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
    and they have no comforter.
And I declared that the dead,
    who had already died,
are happier than the living,
    who are still alive.
But better than both
    is the one who has never been born,
who has not seen the evil
    that is done under the sun.

And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Fools fold their hands
    and ruin themselves.
Better one handful with tranquillity
    than two handfuls with toil
    and chasing after the wind.

Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

There was a man all alone;
    he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
    yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
    “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”
This too is meaningless—
    a miserable business!

Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Книга Екклесиаста

CHAPTER 3

There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

* a time to be born and a time to die,
* a time to plant and a time to uproot,
* a time to kill and a time to heal,
* a time to tear down and a time to build,
* a time to weep and a time to laugh,
* a time to mourn and a time to dance,
* a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
* a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
* a time to search and a time to give up,
* a time to keep and a time to throw away,
* a time to tear and a time to mend,
* a time to be silent and a time to speak,
* a time to love and a time to hate,
* a time for war and a time for peace.