1 Na ka tahuri ahau, a ka titiro ki nga tukinotanga katoa e mahia nei i raro i te ra: na ko nga roimata o te hunga i tukinotia, kahore hoki o ratou kaiwhakamarie; a he kaha kei te ringa o o ratou kaitukino, otiia kahore o ratou kaiwhakamarie.
2 Na, ko taku whakamoemiti ki te hunga mate kua mate noa ake, nui atu i taku ki te hunga ora e ora nei.
3 Engari ia pai atu i a raua te tangata kahore ano i whanau noa, kahore ano i kite noa i te mahi he e mahia nei i raro i te ra.
4 Na ka kite ahau i te mauiui katoa, i nga mahi tohunga katoa, he mea hoki tenei e hae ai te tangata ki tona hoa. He horihori ano hoki tenei, a he whai kau i te hau.
5 Ko te wairangi, kei te kotui i ona ringa, a kainga ana e ia ona kikokiko ake.
6 He pai ke te ringa ki i runga i te ata noho, i nga ringa ki e rua, ki te mea he ruha, he whai noa i te hau.
7 Katahi ahau ka tahuri, a ka kite i te horihori i raro i te ra.
8 He tangata tera, ko ia anake, kahore hoki ona tokorua; ae ra, kahore ano hoki ana tama, ona tuakana, teina ranei; heoi kahore he mutunga o tana mahi katoa, e kore ano hoki ona kanohi e makona i nga taonga. Na ka mea ia, Ki a wai toku whakaaro i a hau ka mahi nei, ka whakatiki nei i toku wairua ki te pai? He horihori ano tenei, he raruraru kino.
9 Erangi te tokorua i te kotahi; no te mea ka whiwhi raua ki te utu pai i ta raua mahi.
10 Ki te hinga hoki tetahi, ma tona hoa ia e whakaara: aue, te mate mo te kotahi, ina hinga, ki te kahore te whakatokorua hei whakaara i a ia!
11 Ki te takoto tahi ano nga tokorua, ka mahana raua; he tangata kotahi ia, ma te aha ka mahana ai tona kotahi?
12 Ki te kaha tetahi i a ia kotahi nei, ka maia te tokorua ki a ia; e kore hoki te aho takitoru e motu wawe.
13 Pai ake te tamaiti rawakore, whakaaro nui i te kingi kua koroheketia, kua wairangi, kua kore nei ona mohio ki te whakarongo ina whakatupatoria.
14 I puta mai hoki tera i roto i te whare herehere, hei kingi; ae ra, ahakoa i roto i tona whenua i kingi ai, i whanau rawakore mai ia.
15 I kite ahau i te hunga ora katoa e haere nei i raro i te ra, kei te tama ratou, kei te tuarua, kua tu nei i te tunga o tera.
16 Kahore he mutunga o te iwi katoa, ara o te hunga ko ia nei to ratou ariki; na e kore o muri iho i a ia e koa ki a ai. He pono, he horihori ano hoki tenei a he whai kau i te hau.
1 And I have turned, and I see all the oppressions that are done under the sun, and lo, the tear of the oppressed, and they have no comforter; and at the hand of their oppressors [is] power, and they have no comforter.
2 And I am praising the dead who have already died above the living who are yet alive.
3 And better than both of them [is] he who hath not yet been, in that he hath not seen the evil work that hath been done under the sun.
4 And I have seen all the labour, and all the benefit of the work, because for it a man is the envy of his neighbour. Even this [is] vanity and vexation of spirit.
5 The fool is clasping his hands, and eating his own flesh:
6 `Better [is] a handful [with] quietness, than two handfuls [with] labour and vexation of spirit.`
7 And I have turned, and I see a vain thing under the sun:
8 There is one, and there is not a second; even son or brother he hath not, and there is no end to all his labour! His eye also is not satisfied with riches, and [he saith not], `For whom am I labouring and bereaving my soul of good?` This also is vanity, it is a sad travail.
9 The two [are] better than the one, in that they have a good reward by their labour.
10 For if they fall, the one raiseth up his companion, but wo to the one who falleth and there is not a second to raise him up!
11 Also, if two lie down, then they have heat, but how hath one heat?
12 And if the one strengthen himself, the two stand against him; and the threefold cord is not hastily broken.
13 Better is a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king, who hath not known to be warned any more.
14 For from a house of prisoners he hath come out to reign, for even in his own kingdom he hath been poor.
15 I have seen all the living, who are walking under the sun, with the second youth who doth stand in his place;
16 there is no end to all the people, to all who were before them; also, the latter rejoice not in him. Surely this also is vanity and vexation of spirit.