¹ Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? the wisedome of a man doth make his face to shine: and the strength of his face shalbe changed.

² I aduertise thee to take heede to ye mouth of the King, and to the worde of the othe of God.

³ Haste not to goe forth of his sight: stand not in an euill thing: for he will doe whatsoeuer pleaseth him.

⁴ Where the word of ye King is, there is power, and who shall say vnto him, What doest thou?

⁵ He that keepeth the commandement, shall knowe none euill thing, and the heart of the wise shall knowe the time and iudgement.

⁶ For to euery purpose there is a time and iudgement, because the miserie of man is great vpon him.

⁷ For he knoweth not that which shalbe: for who can tell him when it shalbe?

⁸ Man is not lorde ouer the spirit to retaine the spirite: neither hath hee power in the day of death, nor deliuerance in the battell, neither shall wickednesse deliuer the possessers thereof.

⁹ All this haue I seene, and haue giuen mine heart to euery worke, which is wrought vnder the sunne, and I sawe a time that man ruleth ouer man to his owne hurt.

¹⁰ And likewise I sawe the wicked buried, and they returned, and they that came from the holy place, were yet forgotten in the citie where they had done right: this also is vanitie.

¹¹ Because sentence against an euill worke is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to doe euill.

¹² Though a sinner doe euill an hundreth times, and God prolongeth his dayes, yet I knowe that it shalbe well with them that feare the Lord, and doe reuerence before him.

¹³ But it shall not be well to the wicked, neither shall he prolong his dayes: he shall be like a shadowe, because he feareth not before God.

¹⁴ There is a vanitie, which is done vpon the earth, that there be righteous men to whom it commeth according to the worke of the wicked: and there be wicked men to whom it commeth according to the worke of the iust: I thought also that this is vanitie.

¹⁵ And I praysed ioy: for there is no goodnesse to man vnder the sunne, saue to eate and to drinke and to reioyce: for this is adioyned to his labour, the dayes of his life that God hath giuen him vnder the sunne.

¹⁶ When I applied mine heart to knowe wisedome, and to behold the busines that is done on earth, that neither day nor night the eyes of man take sleepe,

¹⁷ Then I behelde the whole worke of God, that man cannot finde out ye worke that is wrought vnder the sunne: for the which man laboureth to seeke it, and cannot finde it: yea, and though the wise man thinke to knowe it, he cannot finde it.