2 Chronicles 8:6

²⁶Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen. He kept them in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem.

²For he built the House of the Forest of Lebanon. Its length was one hundred cubits,^[+] its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, on four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on the pillars.

¹⁸Baalath, Tamar in the wilderness, ¹⁹all the storage cities that Solomon had, the cities for his chariots, the cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build for his pleasure in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.

⁸Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, with me from Lebanon. Look from the top of Amana, from the top of Senir and Hermon, from the lions’ dens, from the mountains of the leopards.

⁴He built Tadmor in the wilderness, and all the storage cities, which he built in Hamath.

⁴⁴Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath,

⁴I made myself great works. I built myself houses. I planted myself vineyards.

¹²Jehoshaphat grew great exceedingly; and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah.

¹⁴Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen. He had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen that he placed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.

¹⁰Whatever my eyes desired, I didn’t keep from them. I didn’t withhold my heart from any joy, for my heart rejoiced because of all my labor, and this was my portion from all my labor. ¹¹Then I looked at all the works that my hands had worked, and at the labor that I had labored to do; and behold, all was vanity and a chasing after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.

¹²I turned myself to consider wisdom, madness, and folly; for what can the king’s successor do? Just that which has been done long ago. ¹³Then I saw that wisdom excels folly, as far as light excels darkness. ¹⁴The wise man’s eyes are in his head, and the fool walks in darkness—and yet I perceived that one event happens to them all. ¹⁵Then I said in my heart, “As it happens to the fool, so will it happen even to me; and why was I then more wise?” Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity. ¹⁶For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no memory forever, since in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. Indeed, the wise man must die just like the fool!

¹⁷So I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind. ¹⁸I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me. ¹⁹Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

²⁰Therefore I began to cause my heart to despair concerning all the labor in which I had labored under the sun. ²¹For there is a man whose labor is with wisdom, with knowledge, and with skillfulness; yet he shall leave it for his portion to a man who has not labored for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. ²²For what does a man have of all his labor and of the striving of his heart, in which he labors under the sun? ²³For all his days are sorrows, and his travail is grief; yes, even in the night his heart takes no rest. This also is vanity. ²⁴There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and make his soul enjoy good in his labor. This also I saw, that it is from the hand of God. ²⁵For who can eat, or who can have enjoyment, more than I? ²⁶For to the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind.