Ecclesiastes 4

1 Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun: Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun: And look! The tears of the oppressed, But they have no comforter On the side of their oppressors there is power, But they have no comforter.2 Therefore I praised the dead who were already dead, More than the living who are still alive.3 Yet, better than both is he who has never existed, Who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

The Vanity of Selfish Toil

4 Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbor. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.5 The fool folds his hands And consumes his own flesh.6 Better a handful with quietness Than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:8 There is one alone, without companion: He has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his labors, Nor is his eye satisfied with riches. But he never asks, For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good? This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.

The Value of a Friend

9 Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor.10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up.11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone? 12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Popularity Passes Away

13 Better a poor and wise youth Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no more.14 For he comes out of prison to be king, Although he was born poor in his kingdom.15 I saw all the living who walk under the sun; They were with the second youth who stands in his place.16  There was no end of all the people over whom he was made king; Yet those who come afterward will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

ECCLESIASTES 4

1 I looked again and saw people being mistreated everywhere on earth. They were crying, but no one was there to offer comfort, and those who mistreated them were powerful. 2 I said to myself, “The dead are better off than the living.

3 But those who have never been born are better off than anyone else, because they have never seen the terrible things that happen on this earth.”

4 Then I realized that we work and do wonderful things just because we are jealous of others. This makes no more sense than chasing the wind.t

5 Fools will fold their hands
and starve to death.

6 Yet a very little food
eaten in peace
is better than twice as much
earned from overwork
and chasing the wind.t
7 Once again I saw that nothing on earth makes sense.

8 For example, some people don't have friends or family. But they are never satisfied with what they own, and they never stop working to get more. They should ask themselves, “Why am I always working to have more? Who will get what I leave behind?” What a senseless and miserable life!

It Is Better To Have //a Friend

12 Someone might be able to beat up one of you, but not both of you. As the saying goes, “A rope made from three strands of cord is hard to break.”
13 You may be poor and young, but if you are wise, you are better off than a foolish old king who won't listen to advice. 14 Even if you were not born into the royal family and have been a prisoner and poor, you can still be king. 15 I once saw everyone in the world follow a young leader who came to power after the king was gone. 16 His followers could not even be counted. But years from now, no one will praise him—this makes no more sense than chasing the wind.t