3:12 I have concluded that there is nothing better for people
than to be happy and to enjoy
themselves as long as they live,
6:8 So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool?
And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?
7:23 I have examined all this by wisdom;
I said, “I am determined to comprehend this” – but it was beyond my grasp.
8:9 While applying my mind to everything that happens in this world, I have seen all this:
Sometimes one person dominates other people to their harm.
9:5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything;
they have no further reward – and even the memory of them disappears.
9:6 What they loved, as well as what they hated and envied, perished long ago,
and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth.
9:15 However, a poor but wise man lived in the city,
and he could have delivered the city by his wisdom,
but no one listened to that poor man.
12:13 Having heard everything, I have reached this conclusion:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
because this is the whole duty of man.