{Or, Send forth}Cast thy bread {Hebrew: upon the face of the waters}upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days.
{Or, Divide a portion into seven, yea, even into eight}Give a portion to seven, yea, even unto eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth.
If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; and if a tree fall {Or, in}toward the south, or {Or, in}toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there shall it be.
He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
As thou knowest not what is the way of the {Or, spirit}wind, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child; even so thou knowest not the work of God who doeth all.
In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.
{Or, For}Yea, if a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; {Or, and remember}but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth, and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thy heart, and in the sight of thine eyes; but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.
Therefore remove {Or, vexation Or, provocation}sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh; for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.
Querverweise zu Prediger 11,5 Pred 11,5
{Or, The Spirit breatheth}The wind bloweth where it will, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
I will give thanks unto thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:Wonderful are thy works;And that my soul knoweth right well.
That which {Or, hath been}is, is far off and exceeding deep; who can find it out?
My frame was not hidden from thee,When I was made in secret,And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
then I beheld all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however much a man labor to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea moreover, though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.
Who doeth great things and unsearchable,Marvellous things without number:
{Or, The shades Hebrew: The Rephaim.}They that are deceased trembleBeneath the waters and the inhabitants thereof.
Sheol is naked before {Hebrew: him.}God,And {Or, Destruction}Abaddon hath no covering.
He stretcheth out the north over empty space,And hangeth the earth {Or, over}upon nothing.
He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds;And the cloud is not rent under them.
He incloseth the face of his throne,And spreadeth his cloud upon it.
He hath described a boundary upon the face of the waters,Unto the confines of light and darkness.
The pillars of heaven trembleAnd are astonished at his rebuke.
He {Or, stilleth}stirreth up the sea with his power,And by his understanding he smiteth through Rahab.
By his Spirit the heavens are {Hebrew: beauty.}garnished;His hand hath pierced the {Or, fleeing Or, gliding }swift serpent.
Lo, these are but the outskirts of his ways:And {Or, how little a portion}how small a whisper {Or, is heard}do we hear of him!But the thunder of his {Or, mighty deeds}power who can understand?
Remember that thou magnify his work,Whereof men have sung.
All men have looked thereon;Man beholdeth it afar off.
Behold, God is great, and we know him not;The number of his years is unsearchable.
For he draweth up the drops of water,Which distil in rain {Hebrew: belonging to.}from {Or, the vapor thereof}his vapor,
Which the skies pour downAnd drop upon man abundantly.
Yea, can any understand the spreadings of the clouds,The thunderings of his pavilion?
Behold, he spreadeth his light {Or, thereon}around him;And he {Or, covereth it with the depths of the sea}covereth the bottom of the sea.
For by these he judgeth the peoples;He giveth food in abundance.
He covereth his hands with the {Hebrew: light.}lightning,And giveth it a charge {Or, against the assailant}that it strike the mark.
The noise thereof telleth concerning {Or, it}him,The cattle also concerning {Or, him}the storm that cometh up.
Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out:He is excellent in power;And {Or, to justice…he doeth no violence}in justice and plenteous righteousness he will not afflict.
Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?Declare, {Hebrew: if thou knowest understanding.}if thou hast understanding.
Who determined the measures thereof, {Or, seeing}if thou knowest?Or who stretched the line upon it?
Whereupon were the {Hebrew: sockets.}foundations thereof {Hebrew: made to sink.}fastened?Or who laid the corner-stone thereof,
When the morning stars sang together,And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Or who shut up the sea with doors,When it brake forth, {Or, and issued}as if it had issued out of the womb;
When I made clouds the garment thereof,And thick darkness a swaddling-band for it,
And {Hebrew: brake.}marked out for it my bound,And set bars and doors,
And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further;And here shall thy proud waves be stayed?
Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days began,And caused the dayspring to know its place;
That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,And the wicked be shaken out of it?
It is changed as clay under the seal;And all things stand forth {Or, as in a garment}as a garment:
And from the wicked their light is withholden,And the high arm is broken.
Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea?Or hast thou walked in the {Or, search}recesses of the deep?
Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee?Or hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?
Hast thou comprehended the earth in its breadth?Declare, if thou knowest it all.
Where is the way to the dwelling of light?And as for darkness, where is the place thereof,
That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof,And that thou shouldest discern the paths to the house thereof?
Doubtless, thou knowest, for thou wast then born,And the number of thy days is great!
Hast thou entered the treasuries of the snow,Or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail,
Which I have reserved against the time of trouble,Against the day of battle and war?
{Or, Which is the way to the place where the light is &c.}By what way is the light parted,Or the east wind scattered upon the earth?
Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood,Or the way for the lightning of the thunder;
To cause it to rain on a land where no man is;On the wilderness, wherein there is no man;
To satisfy the waste and desolate ground,And to cause the {Or, greensward}tender grass to spring forth?
Hath the rain a father?Or who hath begotten the drops of dew?
Out of whose womb came the ice?And the hoary frost of heaven, who hath {Or, given it birth}gendered it?
The waters {Or, are congealed like stone}hide themselves and become like stone,And the face of the deep {Hebrew: cohereth.}is frozen.
Canst thou bind the {Or, chain Or, sweet influences}cluster of the Pleiades,Or loose the bands of Orion?
Canst thou lead forth {Or, the signs of the Zodiac}the Mazzaroth in their season?Or canst thou guide the Bear with her {Hebrew: sons.}train?
Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens?Canst thou establish the dominion thereof in the earth?
Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds,That abundance of waters may cover thee?
Canst thou send forth lightnings, that they may go,And say unto thee, Here we are?
Who hath put wisdom in the {Or, dark clouds}inward parts?Or who hath given understanding to the {Or, meteor}mind?
Who can number the clouds by wisdom?Or who can {Hebrew: cause to lie down.}pour out the bottles of heaven,
When the dust runneth into a mass,And the clods cleave fast together?
Canst thou hunt the prey for the lioness,Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
When they couch in their dens,And abide in the covert to lie in wait?
Who provideth for the raven his prey,When his young ones cry unto God, And wander for lack of food?
Knowest thou the time when the wild goats of the rock bring forth?Or canst thou mark when the hinds do calve?
Canst thou number the months that they fulfil?Or knowest thou the time when they bring forth?
They bow themselves, they bring forth their young,They cast out their pains.
Their young ones become strong, they grow up in the open field;They go forth, and {Or, return not unto them}return not again.
Who hath sent out the wild ass free?Or who hath loosed the bonds of the swift ass,
Whose home I have made the wilderness,And the salt land his dwelling-place?
He scorneth the tumult of the city,Neither heareth he the shoutings of the {Or, taskmaster}driver.
The range of the mountains is his pasture,And he searcheth after every green thing.
Will the wild-ox be content to serve thee?Or will he abide by thy crib?
Canst thou bind the wild-ox with his band in the furrow?Or will he harrow the valleys after thee?
Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?Or wilt thou leave to him thy labor?
Wilt thou confide in him, that he will bring home thy seed,And gather the grain of thy threshing-floor?
The wings of the ostrich wave proudly;But are they the pinions and plumage of {Or, a stork}love?
For she leaveth her eggs on the earth,And warmeth them in the dust,
And forgetteth that the foot may crush them,Or that the wild beast may trample them.
She {Or, is hardened against}dealeth hardly with her young ones, as if they were not hers:Though her labor be in vain, she is without fear;
Because God hath {Hebrew: made her to forget wisdom.}deprived her of wisdom,Neither hath he imparted to her understanding.
What time she {Or, rouseth herself up to flight}lifteth up herself on high,She scorneth the horse and his rider.
Hast thou given the horse his might?Hast thou clothed his neck with the {Hebrew: shaking.}quivering mane?
Hast thou made him to leap as a locust?The glory of his snorting is terrible.
{Hebrew: They paw.}He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength:He goeth out to meet {Or, the weapons}the armed men.
He mocketh at fear, and is not dismayed;Neither turneth he back from the sword.
The quiver rattleth {Or, upon}against him,The flashing spear and the javelin.
He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage;Neither {Or, standeth he still at &c.}believeth he that it is the voice of the trumpet.
As oft as the trumpet soundeth he saith, Aha!And he smelleth the battle afar off,The thunder of the captains, and the shouting.
Is it by thy wisdom that the hawk soareth,And stretcheth her wings toward the south?
Is it at thy command that the eagle mounteth up,And maketh her nest on high?
On the cliff she dwelleth, and maketh her home,Upon the point of the cliff, and the stronghold.
From thence she spieth out the prey;Her eyes behold it afar off.
Her young ones also suck up blood:And where the slain are, there is she.
Many, O Jehovah my God, are the wonderful works which thou hast done,And thy thoughts which are to us-ward; {Or, There is none to be compared unto thee}They cannot be set in order unto thee;If I would declare and speak of them,They are more than can be numbered.
How great are thy works, O Jehovah!Thy thoughts are very deep.
O Jehovah, how manifold are thy works!In wisdom hast thou made them all:The earth is full of thy {Or, creatures}riches.
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard? {Or, Jehovah is an everylasting God, the Creator…he fainteth not &c.}The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding.
O the depth {Or, of the riches and the wisdom & c.}of the riches {Or, both of wisdom & c.}both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!