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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"/><title>Ecclesiastes 4 New American Bible</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/ecclesiastes/4.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcc/ecclesiastes/4-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com/catholic">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NABRE</a> > Ecclesiastes 4</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../ecclesiastes/3.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 3">◄</a> Ecclesiastes 4 <a href="../ecclesiastes/5.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 5">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New American Bible Revised Edition</td><td width="1%" valign="top"></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><section id="ch25004" class="chapter"> <h1 id="cn25004" class="cn"></h1> <p class="pf"><span class="hemb">Vanity of Toil.</span> <span id="v25004001" class="ver">1</span>Again I saw all the oppressions that take place under the sun: the tears of the victims with none to comfort<a id="rfn25004001-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004001-1">*</a> them! From the hand of their oppressors comes violence, and there is none to comfort them!<a id="ren25004001-a" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en25004001-a">a</a> <span id="v25004002" class="ver">2</span>And those now dead, I declared more fortunate in death than are the living to be still alive.<a id="ren25004002-b" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en25004002-b">b</a> <span id="v25004003" class="ver">3</span>And better off than both is the yet unborn, who has not seen the wicked work that is done under the sun. <span id="v25004004" class="ver">4</span>Then I saw that all toil and skillful work is the rivalry of one person with another. This also is vanity and a chase after wind.</p> <div class="senseline"> <p class="slf"><span id="v25004005" class="ver">5</span>“Fools fold their arms</p> <p class="sl1">and consume their own flesh”—<a id="rfn25004005-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004005-1">*</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v25004006" class="ver">6</span>Better is one handful with tranquility</p> <p class="sl1">than two with toil and a chase after wind!</p> </div> <p class="psec"><span class="hemb">Companions and Successors.</span> <span id="v25004007" class="ver">7</span>Again I saw this vanity under the sun: <span id="v25004008" class="ver">8</span>those all alone with no companion, with neither child nor sibling—with no end to all their toil, and no satisfaction from riches. For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good things? This also is vanity and a bad business. <span id="v25004009" class="ver">9</span>Two are better than one: They get a good wage for their toil. <span id="v25004010" class="ver">10</span>If the one falls, the other will help the fallen one. But woe to the solitary person! If that one should fall, there is no other to help. <span id="v25004011" class="ver">11</span>So also, if two sleep together, they keep each other warm. How can one alone keep warm? <span id="v25004012" class="ver">12</span>Where one alone may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord<a id="rfn25004012-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004012-1">*</a> is not easily broken.</p> <p><span id="v25004013" class="ver">13</span><a id="rfn25004013-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004013-1">*</a> Better is a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows caution; <span id="v25004014" class="ver">14</span>for from a prison house he came forth to reign; despite his kingship he was born poor. <span id="v25004015" class="ver">15</span>I saw all the living, those who move about under the sun, with the second youth who will succeed him.<a id="rfn25004015-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004015-1">*</a> <span id="v25004016" class="ver">16</span>There is no end to all this people, to all who were before them; yet the later generations will not have joy in him. This also is vanity and a chase after wind.</p> <p class="psec"><span class="hemb">Vanity of Many Words.</span> <span id="v25004017" class="ver">17</span><a id="ren25004017-c" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en25004017-c">c</a> Guard your step when you go to the house of God.<a id="rfn25004017-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn25004017-1">*</a> Draw near for obedience, rather than for the fools’ offering of sacrifice; for they know not how to keep from doing evil.</p> </section> <br /><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="intro.htm"><span class="ac">Book Introduction</span></a></h1><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="footnotes.htm"><span class="ac">Footnotes</span></a></h1></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the <i>New American Bible, revised edition</i> © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/">Bible Hub</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span></div></div></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="../ecclesiastes/3.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Ecclesiastes 3"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Ecclesiastes 3" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="../ecclesiastes/5.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Ecclesiastes 5"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Ecclesiastes 5" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhchap.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>