| New King James Version | Berean Study Bible |
| 1The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. | 1These are the words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem: |
| 2“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher; “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” | 2“Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher, “futility of futilities! Everything is futile!” |
| 3What profit has a man from all his labor In which he toils under the sun? | 3What does a man gain from all his labor, at which he toils under the sun? |
| 4One generation passes away, and another generation comes; But the earth abides forever. | 4Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. |
| 5The sun also rises, and the sun goes down, And hastens to the place where it arose. | 5The sun rises and the sun sets; it hurries back to where it rises. |
| 6The wind goes toward the south, And turns around to the north; The wind whirls about continually, And comes again on its circuit. | 6The wind blows southward, then turns northward; round and round it swirls, ever returning on its course. |
| 7All the rivers run into the sea, Yet the sea is not full; To the place from which the rivers come, There they return again. | 7All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full; to the place from which the streams come, there again they flow. |
| 8All things are full of labor; Man cannot express it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, Nor the ear filled with hearing. | 8All things are wearisome, more than one can describe; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear content with hearing. |
| 9That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. | 9What has been will be again, and what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. |
| 10Is there anything of which it may be said, “See, this is new”? It has already been in ancient times before us. | 10Is there a case where one can say, “Look, this is new”? It has already existed in the ages before us. |
| 11There is no remembrance of former things, Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come By those who will come after. | 11There is no remembrance of those who came before, and those yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow after. |
| 12I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. | 12I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. |
| 13And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised. | 13And I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid upon the sons of men to occupy them! |
| 14I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind. | 14I have seen all the things that are done under the sun, and have found them all to be futile, a pursuit of the wind. |
| 15What is crooked cannot be made straight, And what is lacking cannot be numbered. | 15What is crooked cannot be straightened, and what is lacking cannot be counted. |
| 16I communed with my heart, saying, “Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has understood great wisdom and knowledge.” | 16I said to myself, “Behold, I have grown and increased in wisdom beyond all those before me who were over Jerusalem, and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.” |
| 17And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind. | 17So I set my mind to know wisdom and madness and folly; I learned that this, too, is a pursuit of the wind. |
| 18For in much wisdom is much grief, And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow. | 18For with much wisdom comes much sorrow, and as knowledge grows, grief increases. |
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