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Ecclesiastes 5

Your Attitude Toward God

1

 1 aGuard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the  bsacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil.

2

 1Do not be  ahasty  2in word or  3impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your  bwords be few.

3

For the dream comes through much  1effort and the voice of a  afool through many words.

4

When you  amake a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools.  bPay what you vow!

5

It is  abetter that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.

6

Do not let your  1speech cause  2you to sin and do not say in the presence of the messenger of God that it was a  amistake. Why should God be angry on account of your voice and destroy the work of your hands?

7

For in many dreams and in many words there is  1emptiness. Rather,  2 afear God.

8

If you see  aoppression of the poor and  bdenial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be  cshocked at the  1sight; for one  2official watches over another  2official, and there are higher  3officials over them.

9

After all, a king who cultivates the field is an advantage to the land.

The Folly of Riches

10

 aHe who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is  1vanity.

11

 aWhen good things increase, those who consume them increase. So what is the advantage to their owners except to  1look on?

12

The sleep of the working man is  apleasant, whether he eats little or much; but the  1full stomach of the rich man does not allow him to sleep.

13

There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun:  ariches being  1hoarded by their owner to his hurt.

14

When those riches were lost through  1a bad investment and he had fathered a son, then there was nothing  2to support him.

15

 aAs he had come naked from his mother's womb, so will he return as he came. He will  btake nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand.

16

This also is a grievous evil--exactly as a man  1is born, thus will he  2die. So  awhat is the advantage to him who  btoils for the wind?

17

Throughout his life  ahe also eats in darkness with  bgreat vexation, sickness and anger.

18

Here is what I have seen to be  agood and  1fitting: to eat, to drink and  2enjoy oneself in all one's labor in which he toils under the sun during the few  3years of his life which God has given him; for this is his  4 breward.

19

Furthermore, as for every man to whom  aGod has given riches and wealth, He has also  bempowered him to eat from them and to receive his  1reward and rejoice in his labor; this is the  cgift of God.

20

For he will not often  1consider the  2years of his life, because  aGod keeps  3him occupied with the gladness of his heart.



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(Produced: Sat Dec 22 11:23:36 2007)

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