A Song of Ascents; of Solomon.
Except Jehovah build the house,
They labor in vain that build it:
Except Jehovah keep the city,
The watchman waketh but in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up early,
To take rest late,
To eat the bread of toil;
For so he giveth unto his beloved {Or, in sleep}sleep.
Lo, children are a heritage of Jehovah;
And the fruit of the womb is his reward.
As arrows in the hand of a mighty man,
So are the children of youth.
Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them:
They shall not be put to shame,
When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
Querverweise zu Psalm 127,2 Ps 127,2
Behold, thou hast made my days as handbreadths;And my life-time is as nothing before thee:Surely every man {Hebrew: standing firm.}at his best estate is altogether {Hebrew: a breath.}vanity. [Selah
She riseth also while it is yet night,And giveth food to her household,And their {Or, portion}task to her maidens.
She considereth a field, and buyeth it;With the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
She girdeth her loins with strength,And maketh strong her arms.
She perceiveth that her merchandise is profitable;Her lamp goeth not out by night.
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in {Or, sorrow}toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
I laid me down and slept;I awaked; for Jehovah sustaineth me.
Surely every man walketh {Or, as a shadow}in a vain show;Surely they are disquieted {Or, for vanity}in vain:He heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.
All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
In peace will I both lay me down and sleep;For thou, Jehovah, {Or, in solitude}alone makest me dwell in safety.
I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and {Or, a feeding on wind (see Hosea 12:1) Or, vexation of spirit (and so elsewhere)}a striving after wind.
The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much; but the fulness of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.
I said in my heart, Come now, I will prove thee with mirth; {Or, and thou shall enjoy}therefore enjoy {Or, good}pleasure: and, behold, this also was vanity.
I said of laughter, It is mad; and of mirth, What doeth it?
I searched in my heart how to cheer my flesh with wine, my heart yet {Or, holding its course}guiding me with wisdom, and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what it was good for the sons of men that they should do under heaven {Hebrew: the number of days of their life.}all the days of their life.
I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards;
I made me gardens and parks, and I planted trees in them of all kinds of fruit;
I made me pools of water, to water therefrom the forest where trees were reared;
I bought men-servants and maid-servants, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of herds and flocks, above all that were before me in Jerusalem;
I gathered me also silver and gold, and the treasure of kings and of the provinces; I gat me men-singers and women-singers, and the delights of the sons of men, {Or, concubines very many The meaning of the Hebrew is very uncertain.}musical instruments, and that of all sorts.
So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom {Or, stood by me}remained with me.
And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them; I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced because of all my labor; and this was my portion from all my labor.
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.
Upon this I awaked, and beheld; and my sleep was sweet unto me.
Therefore I turned about to cause my heart to despair concerning all the labor wherein I had labored under the sun.
For there is a man whose labor is with wisdom, and with knowledge, and with {Or, success}skilfulness; yet to a man that hath not labored therein shall he {Hebrew: give.}leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.
For what hath a man of all his labor, and of the {Or, vexation}striving of his heart, wherein he laboreth under the sun?
For all his days are but sorrows, and his travail is grief; yea, even in the night his heart taketh no rest. This also is vanity.
And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.
There is one that is alone, and he hath not a second; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end of all his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches. For whom then, saith he, do I labor, and deprive my soul of good? This also is vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.
Peter therefore was kept in the prison: but prayer was made earnestly of the church unto God for him.
And when Herod was about to bring him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and guards before the door kept the prison.