Ecclesiastes 5
5
Be Careful About Making Promises
1Be careful when you go to worship at the Temple. It is better to listen than to offer foolish sacrifices without even knowing you are doing wrong.
2Think before you speak,
and be careful about what you say to God.
God is in heaven,
and you are on the earth,
so say only a few words to God.
3The saying is true: Bad dreams come from too much worrying,
and too many words come from foolish people.
4If you make a promise to God, don’t be slow to keep it. God is not happy with fools, so give God what you promised. 5It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it. 6Don’t let your words cause you to sin, and don’t say to the priest at the Temple, “I didn’t mean what I promised.” If you do, God will become angry with your words and will destroy everything you have worked for. 7Many useless promises are like so many dreams; they mean nothing. You should respect God.
Officers Cheat Each Other
8In some places you will see poor people mistreated. Don’t be surprised when they are not treated fairly or given their rights. One officer is cheated by a higher officer who in turn is cheated by even higher officers. 9The wealth of the country is divided up among them all. Even the king makes sure he gets his share of the profits.
Wealth Cannot Buy Happiness
10Whoever loves money
will never have enough money;
Whoever loves wealth
will not be satisfied with it.
This is also useless.
11The more wealth people have,
the more friends they have to help spend it.
So what do people really gain?
They gain nothing except to look at their riches.
12Those who work hard sleep in peace;
it is not important if they eat little or much.
But rich people worry about their wealth
and cannot sleep.
13I have seen real misery here on earth:
Money saved is a curse to its owners.
14They lose it all in a bad deal
and have nothing to give to their children.
15People come into this world with nothing,
and when they die they leave with nothing.
In spite of all their hard work,
they leave just as they came.
16This, too, is real misery:
They leave just as they came.
So what do they gain from chasing the wind?
17All they get are days full of sadness and sorrow,
and they end up sick, defeated, and angry.
Enjoy Your Life’s Work
18I have seen what is best for people here on earth. They should eat and drink and enjoy their work, because the life God has given them on earth is short. 19God gives some people the ability to enjoy the wealth and property he gives them, as well as the ability to accept their state in life and enjoy their work. 20They do not worry about how short life is, because God keeps them busy with what they love to do.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Ecclesiastes 5
5
Be Careful How You Worship
1Be careful what you do when you enter the house of God. Fools go there to offer sacrifices, because all they do is sin.#5.1 because … sin: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. But it's best just to listen when you go to worship. 2Don't talk before you think or make promises to God without thinking them through. God is in heaven, and you are on earth, so don't talk too much. 3If you keep thinking about something, you will dream about it. If you talk too much, you will say the wrong thing.
4 #
Ps 66.13,14. God doesn't like fools. So don't be slow to keep your promises to God. 5It's better not to make a promise at all than to make one and not keep it. 6Don't let your mouth get you in trouble! And don't say to the worship leader,#5.6 worship leader: Or “messenger.” “I didn't mean what I said.” God can destroy everything you have worked for, so don't say something that makes God angry.
7Respect and obey God! Daydreaming leads to a lot of senseless talk.#5.7 Daydreaming … talk: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
8Don't be surprised if the poor of your country are abused, and injustice takes the place of justice. After all, the lower officials must do what the higher ones order them to do. 9And since the king is the highest official, he benefits most from the taxes paid on the land.#5.9 land: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 9.
10If you love money and wealth, you will never be satisfied with what you have. This doesn't make a bit of sense. 11The more you have, the more everyone expects from you. Your money won't do you any good—others will just spend it for you. 12If you have to work hard for a living, you can rest well at night, even if you don't have much to eat. But if you are rich, you can't even sleep.
13I have seen something terribly unfair. People get rich, but it does them no good. 14Suddenly they lose everything in a bad business deal, then have nothing to leave for their children. 15#Job 1.21; Ps 49.17; 1 Ti 6.7. They came into this world naked, and when they die, they will be just as naked. They can't take anything with them, and they won't have anything to show for all their work. 16That's terribly unfair. They leave the world just as they came. They gained nothing from running after the wind. 17Besides all this, they are always gloomy at mealtime, and they are troubled, sick, and bitter.#5.17 bitter: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 17.
18What is the best thing to do in the short life God has given us? I think we should enjoy eating, drinking, and working hard. This is what God intends for us to do. 19Suppose you are very rich and able to enjoy everything you own. Then go ahead and enjoy working hard—this is God's gift to you. 20God will keep you so happy that you won't have time to worry about each day.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.