9. See life with the wife whom you love all the days of your futile life which He has given you under the sun, all your days of futility. For that is your share in life, and in your toil which you have laboured under the sun.
10. All that your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.
11. I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the mighty, nor even bread to the wise, nor even riches to men of understanding, nor even favour to men of knowledge – for time and chance meets with them all.
12. For even man does not know his time. Like fish taken in an evil net, and like birds caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared in an evil time, when it come down on them suddenly.
13. Also this I saw as wisdom under the sun, and it is great to me:
14. A little city, and few men in it, and a great sovereign came against it, and besieged it, and built huge siege-works against it.
15. And there was found in it a poor wise man, and by his wisdom he delivered the city, yet no one remembered that poor man.
16. And I said, “Wisdom is better than might. But the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heard.”
17. The words of the wise, spoken calmly, should be heard rather than the shout of a ruler of fools.
18. Wisdom is better than weapons of conflict, but one sinner destroys much good.