¹Misli Propovjednika, Davidova sina, kralja u Jeruzalemu.

¹The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

²Ispraznost nad ispraznošću, veli Propovjednik, ispraznost nad ispraznošću, sve je ispraznost!

²Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities! all is vanity.

³Kakva je korist čovjeku od svega truda njegova kojim se trudi pod suncem?

³What profit hath man of all his labour wherewith he laboureth under the sun?

⁴Jedan naraštaj odlazi, drugi dolazi, a zemlja uvijek ostaje.

⁴[One] generation passeth away, and [another] generation cometh, but the earth standeth for ever.

⁵Sunce izlazi, sunce zalazi i onda hiti svojem mjestu odakle izlazi.

⁵The sun also riseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to its place where it ariseth.

⁶Vjetar puše na jug i okreće se na sjever, kovitla sad ovamo sad onamo i vraća se u novom vrtlogu.

⁶The wind goeth towards the south, and turneth about towards the north: it turneth about continually, and the wind returneth again to its circuits.

⁷Sve rijeke teku u more i more se ne prepunja; odakle teku rijeke, onamo se vraćaju da ponovo počnu svoj tok.

⁷All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full: unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.

⁸Sve je mučno. Nitko ne može reći da se oči nisu do sita nagledale i uši dovoljno naslušale.

⁸All things are full of toil; none can express it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.

⁹Što je bilo, opet će biti, i što se činilo, opet će se činiti, i nema ništa novo pod suncem.

⁹That which hath been is that which shall be; and that which hath been done is that which will be done: and there is nothing new under the sun.

¹⁰Ima li išta o čemu bi se moglo reći: "Gle, ovo je novo!" Sve je već davno prije nas postojalo.

¹⁰Is there a thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? It hath been already in the ages which were before us.

¹¹Samo, od prošlosti ne ostade ni spomena, kao što ni u budućnosti neće biti sjećanja na ono što će poslije doći.

¹¹There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be remembrance of things that are to come with those who shall live afterwards.

¹²Ja, Propovjednik, bijah kralj nad Izraelom u Jeruzalemu.

¹²I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

¹³I trudih se da mudrošću istražim i dokučim sve što biva pod nebom; o, kako mučnu zadaću zadade Bog sinovima ljudskim.

¹³And I applied my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: this grievous occupation hath God given to the children of men to weary themselves therewith.

¹⁴Vidjeh sve što se čini pod suncem: kakve li ispraznosti i puste tlapnje!

¹⁴I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and pursuit of the wind.

¹⁵Što je krivo, ne može se ispraviti; čega nema, izbrojiti se ne može.

¹⁵That which is crooked cannot be made straight; and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.

¹⁶Rekoh onda sam sebi: "Gle, stekao sam veću mudrost nego bilo tko od mojih prethodnika u Jeruzalemu. Duh moj sabrao je golemu mudrost i znanje."

¹⁶I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I have become great and have acquired wisdom more than all they that have been before me over Jerusalem; and my heart hath seen much of wisdom and knowledge.

¹⁷Mudrost pomnjivo proučih, a tako i glupost i ludost, ali sam spoznao da je to pusta tlapnja.

¹⁷And I applied my heart to the knowledge of wisdom, and to the knowledge of madness and folly: I perceived that this also is a striving after the wind.

¹⁸Mnogo mudrosti - mnogo jada; što više znanja, to više boli.

¹⁸For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.