1Guard your steps when you go to God’s house; for to draw near to listen is better than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they don’t know that they do evil.
1Ne nagli ustima svojim i ne žuri se s riječima pred Bogom, jer je Bog na nebu, a ti si na zemlji; zato štedi svoje riječi.
2Don’t be rash with your mouth, and don’t let your heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and you on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
2San dolazi od mnogih briga, a lud govor od mnoštva riječi.
3For as a dream comes with a multitude of cares, so a fool’s speech with a multitude of words.
3Kad zavjetuješ štogod Bogu, odmah to izvrši, jer njemu nisu mili bezumnici. Zato ispuni svaki svoj zavjet.
4When you vow a vow to God, don’t defer to pay it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you vow.
4Bolje je ne zavjetovati, nego zavjetovati a ne izvršiti zavjeta.
5It is better that you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.
5Ne daj ustima svojim da te navode na grijeh i ne reci kasnije pred anđelom da je bilo nehotice. Zašto pružati Bogu priliku da se srdi na riječ tvoju i uništi djelo tvojih ruku?
6Don’t allow your mouth to lead you into sin. Don’t protest before the messenger that this was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice, and destroy the work of your hands?
6Koliko sanja, toliko i ispraznosti; mnogo riječi - isprazna tlapnja. Zato boj se Boga.
7For in the multitude of dreams there are vanities, as well as in many words: but you must fear God.
7Ako vidiš gdje tlače siromaha i gaze pravo i pravicu u zemlji, ne čudi se tomu, jer nad visokim straži viši, a nad njim najviši.
8If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don’t marvel at the matter: for one official is eyed by a higher one; and there are officials over them.
8Korist zemlje je nada sve; i kralj ovisi o zemljištu.
9Moreover the profit of the earth is for all. The king profits from the field.
9Tko novce ljubi, nikad ih dosta nema; tko bogatstvo ljubi, nikad mu dosta probitka. I to je ispraznost.
10He who loves silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase: this also is vanity.
10Gdje je mnogo bogatstva, mnogo je i gotovana, pa kakva je korist od toga gospodaru, osim što ga očima gleda?
11When goods increase, those who eat them are increased; and what advantage is there to its owner, except to feast on them with his eyes?
11Sladak je dan radiši, jeo malo ili mnogo, dok bogatstvo ne da bogatašu zaspati.
12The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not allow him to sleep.
12I vidjeh teško zlo pod suncem: skupljeno blago što je na propast svojemu vlasniku.
13There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owner to his harm.
13Jer zlom nezgodom propadne takvo bogatstvo te sinu što mu se rodi ne ostane ništa.
14Those riches perish by misfortune, and if he has fathered a son, there is nothing in his hand.
14Gol je izašao iz utrobe majke svoje i tako će gol i otići kakav je i došao; ništa nema od svega svojeg truda da ponese.
15As he came forth from his mother’s womb, naked shall he go again as he came, and shall take nothing for his labor, which he may carry away in his hand.
15I to je teško zlo što tako odlazi kako je i došao; pa kakva mu je korist što se u vjetar mučio.
16This also is a grievous evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go. And what profit does he have who labors for the wind?
16Sve svoje dane živi u tami, nevolji, brizi, bolesti i srdžbi.
17All his days he also eats in darkness, he is frustrated, and has sickness and wrath.
17Ovo, stoga, zaključujem: prava je sreća čovjeku jesti i piti i biti zadovoljan sa svim svojim trudom kojim se muči pod suncem za kratka vijeka koji mu je dao Bog, jer takva mu je sudbina dosuđena.
18Behold, that which I have seen to be good and proper is for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy good in all his labor, in which he labors under the sun, all the days of his life which God has given him; for this is his portion.
18Pa ako je čovjeku Bog dao bogatstvo i imanje da ih uživa i bude zadovoljan svojim djelom - i to je dar od Boga.
19Every man also to whom God has given riches and wealth, and has given him power to eat of it, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labor—this is the gift of God.
19Jer tada barem ne misli mnogo na dane svog života, kad mu Bog daje da mu se srce veseli.
20For he shall not often reflect on the days of his life; because God occupies him with the joy of his heart.