1Throw your bread out on the waters, for you will find it again after many days.
2Give a portion to seven, and also to eight, for you do not know what trouble will come on the earth.
3If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth. And if a tree falls toward the south, or toward the north, it stays in the place where it falls.
4Whoever watches the wind will not sow, and whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.
5You do not know the way of the spirit, or how the bones grow in the womb of a woman who is with child. In the same way you do not know the works of God, who makes everything.
6In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not hold back your hand. For you do not know which will do well, this or that, or whether both will be equally good.
7Truly the light is sweet, and it is a pleasant thing for the eyes to see the sun.
8But if someone lives many years, and is glad in them all, let him still remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. All that comes is empty.
9Be glad, young man, while you are young. Let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes. But know this: for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
10So remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your body, for childhood and youth are empty.