⁷ There also you and your households shall eat before the Lord your God, and ^(A)rejoice in all ^[a]your undertakings in which the Lord your God has blessed you.

¹² I know that there is ^(A)nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one’s lifetime; ¹³ moreover, that every man who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—it is the ^(B)gift of God. ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should ^[a](C)fear Him. ¹⁵ That ^(D)which is has been already and that which will be has already been, for God seeks what has passed by.

¹⁶ Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is ^(E)wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness. ¹⁷ I said ^[b]to myself, “^(F)God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man,” for a ^(G)time for every ^[c]matter and for every deed is there. ¹⁸ I said ^[d]to myself concerning the sons of men, “God has surely tested them in order for them to see that they are but ^(H)beasts.” ^19 (I)For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts ^[e]is the same. As one dies so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is ^[f]vanity. ²⁰ All go to the same place. All came from the ^(J)dust and all return to the dust. ²¹ Who knows that the ^(K)breath of man ascends upward and the breath of the beast descends downward to the earth? ²² I have seen that ^(L)nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see ^(M)what will occur after him?

¹⁸ Here is what I have seen to be ^(A)good and ^[a]fitting: to eat, to drink and ^[b]enjoy oneself in all one’s labor in which he toils under the sun during the few ^[c]years of his life which God has given him; for this is his ^[d](B)reward. ¹⁹ Furthermore, as for every man to whom ^(C)God has given riches and wealth, He has also ^(D)empowered him to eat from them and to receive his ^[e]reward and rejoice in his labor; this is the ^(E)gift of God. ²⁰ For he will not often ^[f]consider the ^[g]years of his life, because ^(F)God keeps ^[h]him occupied with the gladness of his heart.