The IX. Chapter.
[ A] FOr all these thinges purposed I in my mynde to seke out. The righte∣us and wyse yee and their workes al¦so are in the hande of God: and there is no man that knoweth ether the loue or hate of the thinge that he hath before him. It hap¦peneth vnto one as vnto another: It goeth with the rightuous as with the vngodly:* 1.1 with the good & cleane as with the vnclea∣ne: with him that offereth as with him that offereth not: like as it goeth with the ver∣tuous, so goeth it also with the synner: As it happeneth vnto the periured, so happeneth it also vnto him that is afrayed to be man sworne. Amonge all thinges yt come to pas∣se vnder the Sonne, this is a misery, that it happeneth vnto all alyke. This is the cau∣se also that the hertes of men are full of wic¦kednesse, & madd foolishnesse is in their her∣tes as longe as they lyue, vntill they dye.
[ B] And why? As longe as a man lyueth, he is careles: for a quyck dogg (saye they) is bet¦ter thē a deed lion: for they that be lyuynge, knowe yt they shall dye: but they yt be deed, knowe nothinge, nether deserue they eny mo¦re. For their memoriall is forgottē, so yt they be nether loued, hated ner envyed: nether ha¦ue they eny more parte in ye worlde, in all yt is done vnder the Sonne. Go thou ye waye then, eate thy bred with ioye, & drynke yt wy¦ne wt gladnesse, for thy workes please God. Let thy garmētes be allwaye whyte, & let ye heade want no oyntmēt.* 1.2 Vse thy self to lyue ioyfully wt thy wife whom thou louest,* 1.3 all ye daies of thy life (which is but vayne) yt God [ C] hath geuē the vnder the Sonne, all ye dayes of thy vanite: for yt is thy porcion in this li∣fe, of all thy labor & trauayle yt thou takest vnder the Sonne. What so euer thou takest in hande to do, that do with all thy power: for amōge the deed (where as thou goest vn¦to) there is nether worke, councell, knowlege ner wyszdome.
So I turned me vnto other thinges vn∣der ye Sonne, and I sawe, that in runnynge, it helpeth not to be swift: in batayll, it hel∣peth not to be stronge: to fedynge, it helpeth not to be wyse: to riches, it helpeth not to be sutyll: to be had in fauoure, it helpeth not to be connynge: but that all lyeth in tyme & for∣tune.* 1.4 For a man knoweth not his tyme, but li¦ke as the fyshe are takē with the angle, and as the byrdes are catched wt the snare: Euē so are men taken in the perilous tyme, when it commeth sodenly vpon them.
This wiszdome haue I sene also vnder ye [ D] Sōne, & me thought it a greate thinge. The¦re was a litle cite, & a few mē within it: so the¦re came a greate kynge & beseged it, & made greate bulworkes agaynst it. And in the cite there was founde a poore man (but he was wyse) which wt his wyszdome delyuered the cite: yet was there no body, yt had eny respec¦te vnto soch a symple man. Then sayde I: wyszdome is better then strength.* 1.5 Neuerthe¦les, a symple mans wyszdome is despysed, & his wordes are not herde. A wise mans coun¦cell that is folowed in sylence, is farre aboue the crienge of a captaine amōge fooles. For wyszdome is better then harnesse:* 1.6 but one vn¦thrift alone destroyeth moch good.