EcclesiastesChapter 4

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¹Again I looked. I saw all the cruel ways people are treated under the sun. I saw the tears of those who were treated badly. No one comforted them. Power was in the hands of those who hurt them. And no one comforted them. ²So I said the dead, who have already died, are better off than the living, who are still alive. ³But better than both is the one who has not been born yet. He has not seen the evil that is done under the sun. ⁴I saw that all hard work and success come from a man's envy of his neighbor. This too is pointless. It is like chasing the wind. ⁵The fool folds his hands and eats up his own flesh. ⁶One handful with peace is better than two handfuls with hard work and chasing the wind. ⁷Again, I saw something pointless under the sun. ⁸There is a man who is all alone. He has no son or brother. His work never ends. Yet his eyes are never happy with his riches. He asks, "Who am I working so hard for? Why am I keeping myself from joy?" This too is pointless. It is a miserable job. ⁹Two are better than one, because they get a good return for their work. ¹⁰If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the one who falls and has no one to help him up! ¹¹Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? ¹²One person may be overpowered, but two can fight back. And a rope of three strands is not quickly broken. ¹³A poor but wise young man is better than an old but foolish king. That king no longer knows how to listen to a warning. ¹⁴The young man came out of prison to become king. Yet he was born poor in his own kingdom. ¹⁵I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed this second one. He was the young man who took the king's place. ¹⁶There was no end to all the people who went before them. Yet those who come later will not be glad about the new king. This too is pointless. It is like chasing the wind.