Ecclesiastes 1
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The words of a the Preacher, the son of David, b king in Jerusalem.
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c Vanity of vanities, says a the Preacher,
c vanity of vanities! d All is vanity.
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e What f does man gain by all the toil
at which he toils under the sun?
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A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but g the earth remains forever.
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h The sun rises, and the sun goes down,
and hastens to the place where it rises.
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i The wind blows to the south
and goes around to the north;
around and around goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.
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All j streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they flow again.
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All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
k the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.
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l What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
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Is there a thing of which it is said,
"See, this is new"?
It has been m already
in the ages before us.
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There is no n remembrance of former things,
nor will there be any remembrance
of later things yet to be
among those who come after.
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I o the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.
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And I p applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy q business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.
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I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is r vanity and a striving after wind.
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s What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be counted.
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I said in my heart, "I have acquired great t wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge."
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And I u applied my heart to know wisdom and to know v madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but r a striving after wind.
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For w in much wisdom is much vexation,
and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:12
I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.
Ecclesiastes 7:27
Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things -
Ecclesiastes 12:8 - 10
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:12
I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 12:8
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 12:8
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:1
The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
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Cross References
Romans 8:20
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:14
I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Psalms 144:4
Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.
Job 7:16
I loathe my life; I would not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are a breath.
Psalms 39:5
Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 2:11
Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 2:22
What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun?
Ecclesiastes 3:9
What gain has the worker from his toil?
Ecclesiastes 5:16
This also is a grievous evil: just as he came, so shall he go, and what gain is there to him who toils for the wind?
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Cross References
Psalms 104:5
He set the earth on its foundations, so that it should never be moved.
Psalms 119:90
Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast.
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Cross References
Psalms 19:4 - 6
Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 11:5
As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.
John 3:8
The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.
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Cross References
Psalms 104:8 - 9
The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place that you appointed for them.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 4:8
One person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, "For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?" This also is vanity and an unhappy business.
Proverbs 27:20
Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 3:15
That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.
Ecclesiastes 6:10
Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he.
Ecclesiastes 2:12
So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly. For what can the man do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 3:15
That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 2:16
For of the wise as of the fool there is no enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. How the wise dies just like the fool!
Ecclesiastes 9:5
For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:1
The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:17
And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind.
1 Kings 4:33
He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 2:23
For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity.
Ecclesiastes 2:26
For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Ecclesiastes 3:10
I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.
Genesis 3:19
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:2
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity o...
Ecclesiastes 2:11
Then I considered all that my hands had done an...
Ecclesiastes 2:17
So I hated life, because what is done under the...
Ecclesiastes 2:26
For to the one who pleases him God has given wi...
Ecclesiastes 4:4
Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work ...
Ecclesiastes 6:9
Better is the sight of the eyes than the wander...
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 7:13
Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked?
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 2:9
So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.
1 Kings 3:12 - 13
Behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you.
1 Kings 4:30
So that Solomon's wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.
1 Kings 10:7
But I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard.
1 Kings 10:23
Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:13
And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.
Ecclesiastes 2:3
I searched with my heart how to cheer my body with wine - my heart still guiding me with wisdom - and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life.
Ecclesiastes 2:12
So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly. For what can the man do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done.
Ecclesiastes 7:23
All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, "I will be wise," but it was far from me.
Ecclesiastes 7:25
I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 9:3
This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 1:14
I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
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Cross References
Ecclesiastes 12:12
My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.