| 1 من كالحكيم ومن يفهم تفسير امر. حكمة الانسان تنير وجهه وصلابة وجهه تتغيّر. | 1 Who is like the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man's wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his countenance is changed. |
| 2 انا اقول احفظ امر الملك وذلك بسبب يمين الله. | 2 Keep the king's command, and because of your sacred oath be not dismayed; |
| 3 لا تعجل الى الذهاب من وجهه. لا تقف في أمر شاق لانه يفعل كل ما شاء. | 3 go from his presence, do not delay when the matter is unpleasant, for he does whatever he pleases. |
| 4 حيث تكون كلمة الملك فهناك سلطان. ومن يقول له ماذا تفعل. | 4 For the word of the king is supreme, and who may say to him, "What are you doing?" |
| 5 حافظ الوصية لا يشعر بامر شاق وقلب الحكيم يعرف الوقت والحكم. | 5 He who obeys a command will meet no harm, and the mind of a wise man will know the time and way. |
| 6 لان لكل أمر وقتا وحكما لان شر الانسان عظيم عليه. | 6 For every matter has its time and way, although man's trouble lies heavy upon him. |
| 7 لانه لا يعلم ما سيكون. لانه من يخبره كيف يكون. | 7 For he does not know what is to be, for who can tell him how it will be? |
| 8 ليس لانسان سلطان على الروح ليمسك الروح ولا سلطان على يوم الموت ولا تخلية في الحرب ولا ينجي الشر اصحابه | 8 No man has power to retain the spirit, or authority over the day of death; there is no discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it. |
| 9 كل هذا رأيته اذ وجهت قلبي لكل عمل عمل تحت الشمس وقتما يتسلط انسان على انسان لضرر نفسه. | 9 All this I observed while applying my mind to all that is done under the sun, while man lords it over man to his hurt. |
| 10 وهكذا رأيت اشرارا يدفنون وضمّوا والذين عملوا بالحق ذهبوا من مكان القدس ونسوا في المدينة. هذا ايضا باطل. | 10 Then I saw the wicked buried; they used to go in and out of the holy place, and were praised in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity. |
| 11 لان القضاء على العمل الرديء لا يجرى سريعا فلذلك قد امتلأ قلب بني البشر فيهم لفعل الشر. | 11 Because sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the sons of men is fully set to do evil. |
| 12 الخاطئ وان عمل شرا مئة مرة وطالت ايامه الا اني اعلم انه يكون خير للمتقين الله الذين يخافون قدامه. | 12 Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him; |
| 13 ولا يكون خير للشرير وكالظل لا يطيل ايامه لانه لا يخشى قدام الله | 13 but it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow, because he does not fear before God. |
| 14 يوجد باطل يجرى على الارض. ان يوجد صديقون يصيبهم مثل عمل الاشرار ويوجد اشرار يصيبهم مثل عمل الصديقين. فقلت ان هذا ايضا باطل. | 14 There is a vanity which takes place on earth, that there are righteous men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity. |
| 15 فمدحت الفرح لانه ليس للانسان خير تحت الشمس الا ان يأكل ويشرب ويفرح وهذا يبقى له في تعبه مدة ايام حياته التي يعطيه الله اياها تحت الشمس | 15 And I commend enjoyment, for man has no good thing under the sun but to eat and drink, and enjoy himself, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of life which God gives him under the sun. |
| 16 لما وجهت قلبي لاعرف الحكمة وانظر العمل الذي عمل على الارض وانه نهارا وليلا لا يرى النوم بعينيه | 16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on earth, how neither day nor night one's eyes see sleep; |
| 17 رأيت كل عمل الله ان الانسان لا يستطيع ان يجد العمل الذي عمل تحت الشمس. مهما تعب الانسان في الطلب فلا يجده والحكيم ايضا وان قال بمعرفته لا يقدر ان يجده | 17 then I saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. However much man may toil in seeking, he will not find it out; even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out. |
