Ecclesiastes 5
Fear God
51,aGuard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the bsacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil. 21Do not be ahasty with your mouth or 2impulsive in your heart to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven but you are on the earth; therefore let your bwords be few. 3For the dream comes through abundant endeavor and the voice of a afool through abundant words.
4When you amake a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools. bPay what you vow! 5It is abetter that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. 6Do not allow your mouth to cause your flesh to sin, and do not say in the presence of the messenger of God that it was a amistake. Why should God be angry on account of your voice and wreak destruction on the work of your hands? 7For in many dreams and vanities are many words. Rather, 1,afear God.
The Vanity of Riches
8If you see aoppression of the poor and brobbery of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be castonished over the 1matter; for a lofty one keeps watch over another lofty one, and there are loftier ones over them. 9But the advantage of the land in everything is this—a king committed to a cultivated field.
10aHe who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its produce. This too is 1vanity. 11aWhen good things increase, those who consume them increase. So what is the success to their masters except to look on with their eyes? 12The sleep of the laboring man is asweet, whether he eats little or much; but the satisfaction of the rich man does not 1allow him to sleep.
13There is a sickening evil which I have seen under the sun: ariches being 1hoarded by their master to his own evil demise. 14And those riches were lost through a bad endeavor; and he became the father of a son, but there was nothing in his hand for him. 15aAs he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so will he return as he came. He will bcarry nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can bring in his hand. 16This also is a sickening evil—exactly as a man came, so will he go. So awhat is the advantage to him who blabors for the wind? 17Also, all his days ahe eats in darkness with bmuch vexation, and his sickness and anger.
18Here is what I have seen to be agood, which is 1beautiful: to eat, to drink, and to see good in all one’s labor in which he labors under the sun during the few days of his life which God has given him; for this is his bportion. 19Furthermore, as for every man to whom aGod has given riches and wealth, He has also bempowered him to eat from them and to take up his portion and be glad in his labor; this is the cgift of God. 20For he will not remember much the days of his life because aGod allows 1him to occupy himself with the gladness of his heart.