The Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, with the Apocryphal books,

CAP. II.

[verse 1] I seide in myn herte, I shal go, and flowe [folewe A.] delices [with delices AEGH.] , and I shal take the frutis in [of AG pr. m. H.] goodis; and I saȝ also that that was vanyte. [verse 2] And laȝhing I heeld errour, and to ioȝe I seide, Wherto in veyn thou art bigilid? [verse 3] I thoȝte in myn herte to with|drawe fro wyn my flesh, and myn inwit to bern ouer to wisdam, and that I shulde eschewe folie, to the tyme that I shulde seen, what were profitable to the sonus of men; the whiche thing don, nede is to ther lif in the noumbre of daȝes vnder the sunne. [verse 4] I magnefiede my werkis, I bilde to me houses, and plauntide vynes; [verse 5] I made gardynes and appil gardynes, and I plauntide them with the trees of [verse 6] alle kinde; and I made out to me cys|ternes [fishpondis C pr. m. E pr. m.] of watris, that I shulde watren the wode of the buriounynge tres. [verse 7] I weldide seruauns and hand wymmen, and myche [mychel E.] meyne I hadde; droues also, and grete flockis of sheep, ouer alle men that weren befor me in Jerusalem. [verse 8] I hepede to me siluer and gold, and sub|staunces of kingus and of prouynces; I made to me singeris and singeresses, and the delices of sonus of men, cuppis and

pottis in seruise, to wynes to ben held; [verse 9] and I passede in richesses alle, that be|forn me weren in Jerusalem. Wisdam [verse 10] also abod stille with me, and alle thingus that desireden myn eȝen, I denyede not to them; ne I forfendide [forfendide not E pr. m.] myn herte, but that of alle voluptuouste he shulde take frut, and al delicen hym self in these thingus that I hadde greithid; and this I alouwide my part, for I shulde vsen my trauaile. [verse 11] And whan me I hadde turned to alle the werkis that myn hondis hadden don, and to the [Om. A.] trauailes in whiche in veyn I hadde swat, I saȝ in alle thingus vanyte and tormenting of inwit, and no thing to dwelle stille vnder the sunne. [verse 12] I passede, and to ben be|holden wisdam, and erroures, and folie; what is forsothe a man, that he mowe folewen the king, his makere? [verse 13] And I saȝ, that so myche wisdam wente beforn folie, hou myche liȝt is in difference fro dercnesses. [verse 14] Of the wise man the eȝen in his hed, the fool goth in dercnesses; and I lernede, that o diyng was of euere either. [verse 15] And I seide in myn herte, If oon and of the fool and my diyng shal be, what to me profiteth, that more bisy|nesse I ȝaf to wisdam? And spoken with my mynde, I toc heed, that that also was vanyte. [verse 16] Forsothe ther shal not be the [Om. C pr. m.] mynde of the wise man, lic maner as of the fool in to withoute ende, and the times to come with forȝeting alle thingus shul couere togidere; the taȝt man dieth also and the vntaȝt. [verse 17] And therfore it noȝede me of my lif, seende alle euelis to ben vnder the sunne, and alle thingus va|nytes [vanyte AGH.] and tormenting of spirit. [verse 18] Eft I wlatede alle my bisynesse, that vnder the sunne most studiousli I trauailede, to han [haunge E pr. m.] [verse 19] an eir after me, whom I knowe [knewe AGH.] not, whe|ther wis or fool he be to ben; and shal lordshipen in my trauailes, in the whiche

I haue myche swat, and ben bisy; and [verse 20] alle thing [thingus C.] is so [also A.] veyn. Wherfore I cesede, and myn herte forsoc more to trauailen vnder the sunne. [verse 21] For whan an other shal trauailen in wisdam, and doctrine, and besynesse, and to an idil man the purchasid thingus lefeth; and that thanne vanyte [gret vanyte E pr. m.] , and gret euel. [verse 22] What forsothe shal profite to a man of al his trauaile, and of the tormenting of spirit, that vnder the sunne he is tormentid? [verse 23] Alle the daȝes of hym of sorewes and myseyse [of miseyse C pr. m.] ben ful, and bi the nyȝt in mynde he resteth not; and whether is not that vanyte? [verse 24] Whether is it [Om. AG pr. m. H.] not betere to eten and drinke [to drinke E.] , and to shewe to his lif the goodis of his trauailes? and that is of the hond of God. [verse 25] Who shal so [thanne A.] deuouren, and de|licis flowen, as I? [verse 26] To a good man in his siȝte God ȝaf wisdam, and kunnyng, and vnderstonding; to the synnere forsothe he ȝaf tormenting, and wast bisynesse, that he adde, and gedere togidere, and take to hym that shal plesen to God; but and this vanite, and wast [brosed E pr. m.] besynesse of mynde.