Words of Qoheleth, son of David, king of Israel in Jerusalem
The Koine Bible
The Scriptures in Greek with direct English translation.
Rahlfs Septuagint
Ecclesiastes 1
Greek text followed verse by verse by a direct English translation.
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Vanity of vanities, said the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
What profit is there for man in all his labor in which he labors under the sun?
A generation goes and a generation comes, and the earth stands for ever.
And the sun rises and the sun sets, and to its place it draws.
αὐτὸς ἐκεῖ πορεύεται πρὸς νότον καὶ κυκλοῖ πρὸς βορρᾶν κυκλοῖ κυκλῶν πορεύεται τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ ἐπὶ κύκλους αὐτοῦ ἐπιστρέφει τὸ πνεῦμα
Rising, it goes there toward the south and circles toward the north; circling, circling, the wind goes, and on its circuits the wind returns.
οἱ χείμαρροι πορεύονται εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν καὶ ἡ θάλασσα οὐκ ἔσται ἐμπιμπλαμένη εἰς τόπον οὗ οἱ χείμαρροι πορεύονται ἐκεῖ αὐτοὶ ἐπιστρέφουσιν τοῦ πορευθῆναι
All the streams go into the sea, and the sea is not filled; to the place where the streams go, there they return to go.
οἱ λόγοι ἔγκοποι οὐ δυνήσεται ἀνὴρ τοῦ λαλεῖν καὶ οὐκ ἐμπλησθήσεται ὀφθαλμὸς τοῦ ὁρᾶν καὶ οὐ πληρωθήσεται οὖς ἀπὸ ἀκροάσεως
All the words are wearisome; a man will not be able to speak, and the eye will not be satisfied with seeing, and the ear will not be filled from hearing.
τὸ γεγονός αὐτὸ τὸ γενησόμενον καὶ τί τὸ πεποιημένον αὐτὸ τὸ ποιηθησόμενον καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν πᾶν πρόσφατον ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον
What has been, it is what will be, and what has been done, it is what will be done; and there is nothing new under the sun.
λαλήσει καὶ ἐρεῖ ἰδὲ τοῦτο καινόν ἐστιν ἤδη γέγονεν ἐν τοῖς αἰῶσιν τοῖς γενομένοις ἀπὸ ἔμπροσθεν ἡμῶν
Who will speak and say, Behold, this is new? It has already come to be in the ages that were before us.
ἔστιν μνήμη τοῖς πρώτοις καί γε τοῖς ἐσχάτοις γενομένοις οὐκ ἔσται αὐτοῖς μνήμη μετὰ τῶν γενησομένων εἰς τὴν ἐσχάτην
There is no remembrance of the former ones, and indeed for the later ones who will come to be there will be no remembrance of them with those who will come into the last thing.
I, Qoheleth, became king over Israel in Jerusalem.
ἔδωκα τὴν καρδίαν μου τοῦ ἐκζητῆσαι καὶ τοῦ κατασκέψασθαι ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ περὶ πάντων τῶν γινομένων ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανόν ὅτι περισπασμὸν πονηρὸν ἔδωκεν ὁ θεὸς τοῖς υἱοῖς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοῦ περισπᾶσθαι ἐν αὐτῷ
And I gave my heart to seek out and to examine in wisdom concerning all things that are being done under heaven, because God has given an evil affliction to the sons of man to be distracted by it.
σὺν πάντα τὰ ποιήματα τὰ πεποιημένα ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον καὶ ἰδοὺ τὰ πάντα ματαιότης καὶ προαίρεσις πνεύματος
I saw all the works that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind
What is bent cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted.
ἐγὼ ἐν καρδίᾳ μου τῷ λέγειν ἐγὼ ἰδοὺ ἐμεγαλύνθην καὶ προσέθηκα σοφίαν ἐπὶ πᾶσιν οἳ ἐγένοντο ἔμπροσθέν μου ἐν Ιερουσαλημ καὶ καρδία μου εἶδεν πολλά σοφίαν καὶ γνῶσιν
I spoke in my heart, saying: Behold, I was magnified and I added wisdom above all who were before me in Jerusalem, and my heart saw much wisdom and knowledge
ἔδωκα καρδίαν μου τοῦ γνῶναι σοφίαν καὶ γνῶσιν παραβολὰς καὶ ἐπιστήμην ἔγνων ὅτι καί γε τοῦτ᾿ ἔστιν προαίρεσις πνεύματος
And I gave my heart to know wisdom and knowledge, parables and understanding; I knew that this also is a choosing of spirit.
For in abundance of wisdom is abundance of knowledge, and the one who adds knowledge will add pain