Ecclesiastes 4
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 4
The Victor and the Tyrant. 1 Then I contemplated all the acts of oppression that are committed under the sun:
I saw the tears of the oppressed,
with no one present to comfort them.
Power was wielded by their oppressors,
and no one was there to comfort them.
2 As a result, I regarded the dead as fortunate,
because they had already died
and thus were happier than the living
who were still alive.
3 But happier than both of these
is the one yet unborn
who has not witnessed the evil deeds
that are done under the sun.
Concurrence of Toil and Envy.[a] 4 Then I came to realize that all toil and skill in work derive from one person’s envy of another. This also is vanity and a chase after the wind.
5 The fool folds his arms
and consumes his own flesh.[b]
6 Better is one handful with peace of mind
than two handfuls with toil
and a chase after the wind.
Union Builds Strength. 7 Again I observed vanity under the sun:
8 There was a solitary individual,
without a friend, with neither a son nor a brother.
Yet there was no end to his toil,
and wealth did not satisfy his greed.
“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
“and depriving myself of pleasures?”
This also is vanity
and a worthless task.
9 Two are better than one:
they earn a far greater reward for their toil.
10 And if one should fall,
his companion will help him up.
How pathetic is the man who is alone and falls
and has no one to assist him to his feet.
11 In the same way, if two sleep together, they keep warm,
but how can one who sleeps by himself keep warm?
12 And where a single man can be overcome,
two together will be able to resist.
A cord with three strands is not easily broken.
13 Deception of Political Regimes.[c] Better is a poor but wise youth than an old and foolish king who will no longer take advice. 14 One can emerge from prison to be crowned as a king, even though he was born in poverty in that kingdom.
15 And I observed all those who live and move under the sun willingly give their support to that young man who succeeded the king.[d] 16 There was a mass of people beyond counting over whom he reigned. And yet those who succeed him will not venerate his memory. This also is vanity and a chase after the wind.
17 The Religious Illusion. Be circumspect when you visit the house of God. Drawing near to listen is far better than the offering of a sacrifice by fools, for fools do not know how to avoid doing wrong.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 4:4 Certainly labor and success would merit our praise if the desire to possess would not introduce the poison of jealousy therein. Observe how the two sayings in verses 5-6 are contradictory; the first was undoubtedly inserted later on by a scrupulous scribe.
- Ecclesiastes 4:5 Consumes his own flesh: i.e., refuses to work, thus going hungry and bringing on ill health (see Eccl 10:18; Prov 6:6-11; 24:30-34).
- Ecclesiastes 4:13 A government becomes entrenched in solitude, and it must be stripped of power through sedition. The history of Israel gives us nothing but too many examples of the terrible temptations of power.
- Ecclesiastes 4:15 Even a ruler is scarcely remembered after he has died.
