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Ecclesiastes 2:11
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9 aSo I became great and1 excelled bmore than all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me. 
10 Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.
I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure,
For my heart rejoiced in all my labor;
And athis was my reward from all my labor. 
11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was avanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun. 

The End of the Wise and the Fool

12 Then I turned myself to consider wisdom aand madness and folly;
For what can the man do who succeeds the king?—
Only what he has already bdone. 
13 Then I saw that wisdom aexcels folly
As light excels darkness. 
14 aThe wise man’s eyes are in his head,
But the fool walks in darkness.
Yet I myself perceived
That bthe same event happens to them all. 
15 So I said in my heart,
“As it happens to the fool,
It also happens to me,
And why was I then more wise?”
Then I said in my heart,
“This also is vanity.”
16 For there is ano more remembrance of the wise than of the fool forever,
Since all that now is will be forgotten in the days to come.
And how does a wise man die?
As the fool!  
17 Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
18 Then I hated all my labor in which I had toiled under the sun, because aI must leave it to the man who will come after me.  
19 And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will rule over all my labor in which I toiled and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.
20 Therefore I turned my heart and despaired of all the labor in which I had toiled under the sun.
21 For there is a man whose labor is with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; yet he must leave his1 heritage to a man who has not labored for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.  
22 aFor what has man for all his labor, and for the striving of his heart with which he has toiled under the sun?  
Verse Comparison: Ecclesiastes 2:11

<< Ecclesiastes 2:10   Ecclesiastes 2:12 >>

American Standard Version
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.

Amplified® Bible
Then I looked on all that my hands had done and the labor I had spent in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after the wind {and} a feeding on it, and there was no profit under the sun.

Contemporary English Version
Then I thought about everything I had done, including the hard work, and it was simply chasing the wind. Nothing on earth is worth the trouble.

Darby English Version
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that it had cost me to do [them]; and behold, all was vanity and pursuit of the wind, and there was no profit under the sun.

Good News Bible
Then I thought about all that I had done and how hard I had worked doing it, and I realized that it didn't mean a thing. It was like chasing the wind---of no use at all.

King James Version
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.

New American Standard Bible
Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.

New International Version
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.

New King James Version
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun.

N.A.S.B. in E-Prime
Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all seemed like vanity and striving after wind and there seemed no profit under the sun.

Revised Standard Version
Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

Young's Literal Translation
and I have looked on all my works that my hands have done, and on the labour that I have laboured to do, and lo, the whole `is' vanity and vexation of spirit, and there is no advantage under the sun!

New English Translation
Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished1 and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it,2 I concluded:3 “All these4 achievements and possessions5 are ultimately6 profitless7 – like chasing the wind! There is nothing gained8 from them9 on earth.”10


<< Ecclesiastes 2:10   Ecclesiastes 2:12 >>

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