Ecclesiastes 1
New Catholic Bible
Editor’s Note[a]
Chapter 1
1 The words of Qoheleth son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity[b] of vanities, says Qoheleth,
vanity of vanities! Everything is vanity.
3 What profit does anyone gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?[c]
Introductory Poem[d]
There Is Nothing New under the Sun
4 One generation passes away and another generation succeeds it,
but the earth stands firm forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets;
then it returns to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows southward and then veers to the north,
constantly turning as it repeats its course.
7 All the rivers go to the sea,
and yet the sea never overflows,
for the rivers continue to return
to their place of origin.
8 All things[e] are wearisome
and very difficult to express.
The eyes are not satisfied with seeing
and the ears do not have their fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be so again,
and what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Whatever is perceived to be new
has already existed in the ages before us.
11 Those people who died in ages past
are no longer remembered,
and the people yet to be born
will not be remembered by those who come after them.
The Impossible Happiness[f]
12 Much Wisdom, Much Anguish.[g] When I, Qoheleth, ruled as king over Israel in Jerusalem, 13 I applied the wisdom I possessed to study and explore everything that is done under the sun, a thankless task that God has given to men to keep us occupied. 14 I have seen everything that has been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a chase after the wind.[h]
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I thought to myself, “I have acquired great wisdom, far surpassing all those who preceded me in Jerusalem. My mind has mastered every facet of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 However, as I applied my mind to gain a complete understanding of wisdom and knowledge, madness and folly, I came to realize that this too is a chase after the wind.
18 For much wisdom can result in much sorrow,
and those who increase their knowledge also increase their grief.[i]
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 1:1 The author is introduced under the name of Ecclesiastes or Qoheleth, i.e., a person whose function is to speak in the assembly (ekklesia in Greek, qahal in Hebrew). His editor has come up with a happy formula to sum up the author’s thinking (Vanity of vanities . . .); it is so good that he will repeat it as a conclusion. And, since the Book represents a new line of thought, he puts it on the lips of Solomon—without naming him but using the phrase son of David.
- Ecclesiastes 1:2 Vanity: Hebrew word meaning “mist,” “breath,” or “puff of wind” (see Pss 39:6, 12; 62:10; 144:4). The author uses it in the sense of the illusory nature of things. Vanity of vanities: an expression that indicates the greatest degree of uselessness and emptiness.
- Ecclesiastes 1:3 Jesus expands on this same theme in Mk 8:36-38. Under the sun: i.e., the present world and its limits. A synonym is “under heaven” (see v. 13; 2:3; 3:1).
- Ecclesiastes 1:4 The author takes the opposite tack to the wonder and adoration excited by the universe in Job (chs. 38–40); for him, no event can change the course of things: nothing deserves to occupy our memories to this point: there is no history!
- Ecclesiastes 1:8 All things: or “words,” i.e., everything mentioned in verses 4-7.
- Ecclesiastes 1:12 Here is a very unusual interpretation of the success of the great King Solomon. It shows that the current wisdom has been surpassed, namely the wisdom that appeases the torment of people while they await success as a reward for virtue. The ancient ideas about recompense no longer hold, which was a dramatic discovery for Job.
- Ecclesiastes 1:12 Using the first person and speaking as Solomon (use of the third person returns only in the conclusion: Eccl 12:9-14), the author shows that both human endeavor (vv. 12-15; see 2:1-11) and the quest for human wisdom (vv. 16-18; see 2:12-17) are vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 1:14 A chase after the wind: an image of futility, useless effort, and waste of time (see Hos 12:2). The author uses the phrase eight more times in the first half of the Book: v. 17; 2:11, 17, 26; 4:4, 6, 16; 6:9.
- Ecclesiastes 1:18 The author has found that what is wisdom in theory is not so in practice and vice versa.
