Ecclesiastes 6:10–11

³²For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment.

⁹Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?

¹⁰Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou? or to the woman, What hast thou brought forth?

²Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it.

¹⁵That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past.

¹⁷And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

¹⁸Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

¹⁹In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

¹⁹Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?

¹³Why dost thou strive against him? for he giveth not account of any of his matters.

¹⁹Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?

²⁰Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?

⁹The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

¹⁰Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.

¹¹There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.

¹MAN that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.

²He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.

³And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee?

⁴Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one.

³If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.

⁴He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?

⁶Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.

⁶I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.

⁷But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.

¹⁵As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

⁹And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

¹⁶There is no end of all the people, even of all that have been before them: they also that come after shall not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁷For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God.

¹⁷And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.

¹⁸For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.

⁶The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.

⁷All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.

⁸All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.

⁹The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

³I sought in mine heart to give myself unto wine, yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom; and to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was that good for the sons of men, which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life.

⁴I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards:

⁵I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits:

⁶I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees:

⁷I got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me:

⁸I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.

⁹So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me.

¹⁰And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.

¹¹Then 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.

¹⁹For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.

¹SO I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter.

²Wherefore I praised the dead which are already dead more than the living which are yet alive.

³Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

⁴¶ Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁸There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

¹EPHRAIM feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.

⁶Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.