אִית בִּשָׁתָא דַּחֲזֵית בְּעָלְמָא הָדֵין תְּחוֹת שִׁמְשָׁא וְרַבְּתָא הִיא עַל בְּנֵי אֱנָשָׁא: There is an evil which I saw in this world under the sun, and it is great upon the children of man.
גְּבַר דִי הַב לֵיהּ יְיָ בְּמַזָּלֵיהּ עוֹתַר וְנִכְסִין וְלֵיתוֹהִי מַחְסַר לְנַפְשֵׁיהּ מִכָּל דִי יִתְרְעֵי וְלָא אַשְׁלְטֵיהּ יְיָ עַל עוּתְרֵיהּ לְמִטְעַם מִנֵּיהּ אֱלָהֵין יְמוּת בְּלָא וְלַד וְלָא חָס עַל קְרִיבֵיהּ לְאַחְסָנוּתֵיהּ לֵיהּ אֲרוּם אִנְתְּתֵיהּ תְּהֵא מִתְנַסְבָּא לִגְבַר חִילוֹנָאֵי וְיַחְסְנִינֵּיהּ וְיֵכְלִינֵּיהּ כָּל דֵּין גְּרַמוּ לֵיהּ חוֹבוֹהִי דְּלָא עֲבַד מִנֵּיהּ מִדָּעַם טָב וְאִתְהֲפֵיךְ עָתְרֵיהּ לְמֶהֱוֵי לֵיהּ לַהֲבָלוּ וּלְמַרְעָא בִישָׁא: A man to whom God gave in his providence riches, honour, and wealth, and his soul lacks nothing of all which he desires, and the Lord has not given him power, on account of his sins, to enjoy it; but he dies without issue, and his kinsman would not take possession of his inheritance, wherefore his wife will be married to a stranger, and he will take away the inheritance and consume it; all this his sins have brought upon him, because he did therewith no good whatever, and his riches turned out to be to him vanity and a sore evil.
אִין יוֹלִיד גְּבַר מְאָה בְּנִין וּשְׁנִין סַגִּיאִין יֵיחֵי וּבְשָׁלְטָנוּתָא וְרַבָּנוּתָא הוּא דִי יהוֹן יוֹמֵי שְׁנוֹהִי וְנַפְשֵׁיהּ לָא שָׂבְעַת מִן טַבְתָא דַּהֲוָת לֵיהּ עַל דִי רְחִים עַל עָתְרֵיהּ וְלָא קְנָא מִנֵּיהּ שְׁמָא טָבָא אַף בֵּית קְבוּרְתָא לָא הֲוָת מְזַמְּנָא לֵיהּ אֲמָרִית אֲנָא בְּמֵימְרִי דְּטָב מִנֵּיהּ שְׁלִילָא דְּלָא חֲזָא עַלְמָא הָדֵין: If a man should beget a hundred children, and live many years, and be in power and dominion all the days of his life, and his soul has not enjoyed the good which he has, because he loved his riches, and has not acquired therewith a good name, nor even prepared himself a grave, I say by the divine word, better than he an untimely birth, which has not seen this world.
אֲרוּם בַּהֲבָלוּתָא אֲתָא בְּעַלְמָא הָדֵין וּבַחֲשׁוֹכָא יְזִיל לְעַלְמָא הַהוּא וּבַחֲשׁוֹכָא שְׁמֵיהּ מִתְחֲפֵי מִן בִּגְלַל דְּלֵית לֵיהּ זְכוּתָא וְשׁוּם טָב לָא קְנָא לְמֶהֱוֵי מִדְּכָּר: For in vanity he came into this world, and departs in darkness into that world; and in darkness is his name covered, because he has no merit, and has not acquired a good name worthy of remembrance.
וְאַף נְהוֹר אוֹרָיְתָא לָא חֲמָא וְלָא יָדַע בֵּין טָב לְבִישׁ לְמִבְחַן בֵּין עָלְמָא הָדֵין לְעָלְמָא דְּאָתֵי: And even the light of the sun he saw not, and did not know good from evil, to discern between this world and the world to come.
וְאִלּוּלֵי הֲווֹ יוֹמֵי חַיּוֹהִי דְּגַבְרָא תְּרֵין אַלְפִין שְׁנִין וּבְאוֹרָיְתָא לָא עָסִיק וְדִינָא וִצִדְקְתָא לָא עֲבַד בִּשְׁבוּעַת מֵימְרָא דַּיָי דִּבְיוֹם מוֹתֵיהּ נָחֲתָא נַפְשָׁא לְגֵיהִנָּם לַאֲתַר חַד דְּכָל חַיָיבָא אָזְלִין תַּמָּן: And if the days of the life of this man were two thousand years, and he had not studied the Law, and had not done judgment and justice by the oath of the word of the Lord, in the day of his death his soul will go to Gehenna, to the same place whither all sinners go.
כָּל טוֹרַח דְגַבְרָא בְּדִיל מְזוֹן פּוּמֵּיהּ הוּא טָרַח וְעַל מֵימַר פּוּמָּא דַּיָי מִתְּזָן וְאַף נַפְשָׁא דֶּאֱנָשׁ לָא תִשְׂבַּע מֵיכְלָא וּמִשְׁתְּיָא: As for all the labours of man, he labours for the food of his mouth; and by the word of the mouth of the Lord he is sustained, and even the soul of man is not satisfied with eating and drinking.
אֲרוּם מַה מוֹתָרָא אִית לְחַכִּימָא בְּעַלְמָא הָדֵין יַתִּיר מִן שָׁטְיָא בְּגִין דָּרָא בִּישָׁא דְּלָא מִתְקַבַּל עֲלַוֵיהוֹן וּמַה אִית לְהַהוּא גַבְרָא עַנְיָא לְמֶעֱבַד אֱלָהֵין לְמֶעְסַק בְּאוֹרָיְתָא דַּיָי בְּגִין דִי יִנְדַּע הֵיכְדֵין עָתִיד לִמְהָךְ לְכָל קֳבֵיל צַדִּיקַיָּא בְּגִנְּתָא דְּעֵדֶן: For what advantage has the wise man in this world over the fool, because of the wicked generation by which he is not accepted; and what is this poor man to do but to study the law of the Lord, that he may know how he will have to walk in the presence of the righteous in paradise.
טָב לְגַבְרָא לְמֶחֱדֵי עַל מַה דְּאִית לֵיהּ וּלְמֶעֱבַד צִדְקָתָא וּלְמֶחֱמֵי אֲגַר טָב עַל עוֹבָדוֹי לְיוֹם דִּינָא רַבָּא מִן דִי יֵזֵיל לְעַלְמָא הַהוּא בְּסִגּוּף נְפַשׁ בְּרַם דֵּין לְגַבְרָא חַיָּבָא הַבְלוּ וּתְבִירוּת רוּחָא: It is better for a man to rejoice about the world to come, and to do righteousness, and to see a good reward for his labours in the day of the great judgment than to go into that world with an afflicted soul; for this is vanity, and a breaking of spirit to a guilty man.
מַה דַּהֲוָה בְּעַלְמָא הָא כְּבָר אִתְקְרִי שְׁמֵיהּ וְאִשְׁתְּמוֹדַע לִבְנֵי אֱנָשָׁא מִן יוֹמָא דַּהֲוָה אָדָם קַדְמָאָה וְכוֹלָא גְּזֵירַת מֵימְרָא דַּיָי הִיא וְלֵית רְשׁוּ לְגַבְרָא לְמֵיקָם בְּדִינָא עִם מָרֵי עָלְמָא דְּתַקִּיף מִנֵּיהּ: That which has been in the world, behold! its name has long been called, and has been made known to the children of men from the day that the first Adam existed, and all is the decree of the Lord; and men cannot stand in judgment with the Lord of the world, who is stronger than he.
אֲרוּם אִית פִּתְגָמִין סַגִּיאִין דְמַסְגִן הֲבָלוּ בְּעַלְמָא מַה מוֹתַר אִית לִגְבַר דְּמִתְעַסֵק בְּהוֹן: For there are many things which multiply vanity in the world, what advantage has the man who is occupied with them?
אֲרוּם מַן הוּא דִי יִנְדַע מַה יוֹטִיב לֶאֱנָשָׁא בְּעַלְמָא הָדֵין אֱלָהֵין לְמִעְסַק בְּאוֹרָיְתָא דִי אִנּוּן חַיֵי עַלְמָא וְכָל מִנְיַן יוֹמֵי חַיֵּי הֶבְלוֹ דִי יְחֵי בְּעִדָּן מוֹתֵיהּ אִנּוּן חֲשִׁיבִין בְּעֵינוֹי כִּטְלַלָא דְּמַן הוּא דִי יְחַוִי לֶאֱנָשָׁא מַה דְעָתִיד לְמֶהֱוֵי בְּאַפּוֹהִי [בָּתְרוֹהִי] בְּעַלְמָא הָדֵין תְּחוֹת שִׁמְשָׁא: For who is he that knows what will do men good in this world, but to study the Law, which is the life of the world; and all the number of the days of his vain life which he lives, are in the time of his death considered like a shadow; for who is he that can tell man what there is before him in this world under the sun?