¹⁰Someone who loves silver will not have enough silver,
and someone who loves ‘plenty of things’ (will not have enough) income.
This too is mere breath.

¹¹With the increase of their goods,
those who consume them increase,
so what’s the profit to their owners
except their eyes seeing them?

¹²The sleep of someone who works is sweet
whether they eat little or much,
but the richness of the wealthy person
doesn’t leave them to sleep.

Keep us, O Lord, while we tarry on this earth,
in a serious seeking after thee,
and in an affectionate walking with thee,
every day of our lives;
that when thou comest,
we may be found not hiding our talent,
nor yet asleep with our lamp unfurnished,
but waiting and longing for our Lord,
our glorious King, for ever and ever.

Richard Baxter (1615-1691)

⁸If you see
oppression of someone who is poor
and the robbery of justice and fairness in the province,
do not be surprised at the matter,
because one who is lofty protects (another) lofty one,
and there are ones who are lofty over them.
⁹The value for the land for all of them is this:
a king for the field that’s worked.

Lord God,
you feed us with the living bread from heaven;
you renew our faith,
increase our hope,
and strengthen our love.

Teach us to hunger
for Christ who is the true and living bread,
and to live by every word
that comes from your mouth,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

When you make a vow to God,
do not delay to discharge it
For there is no pleasure in fools (for God) –
discharge your vow!

It is better for you not to vow
than vow and not discharge (the debt).

Do not allow your mouth to lead your flesh to sin
Do not say before the Messenger that it was a mistake
Why make God angry at your voice
and destroy the work of your hands?

So with many dreams and ‘breaths’ (come?)
many words

So fear God.

Eternal Light, shine into our hearts;
Eternal Goodness, deliver us from evil;
Eternal Power, be our support;
Eternal Wisdom, scatter the darkness of our ignorance:
That we may seek your face
with all our heart and mind and soul and strength. Amen.

Alcuin

Watch your feet as you go to the house of God.
To draw near to listen
rather than giving a sacrifice like fools,
because there’s no knowing that they are doing something bad.
²Don’t be hasty with your mouth;
and your heart should not be quick to let out a word before God,
because God is in the heavens and you are on the earth.
Therefore your words should be few.
³Because a dream comes with an abundance of busyness,
so the voice of a fool (comes) with an abundance of words.

Be thou a bright flame before me,
Be thou a guiding star above me
Be thou a smooth path below me
Be thou a kindly shepherd behind me
Today – tonight -forever
Amen.

St Columba

¹³Better a boy poor and wise
than a king old and foolish
who doesn’t know how to heed a warning any more,
¹⁴because from the prison house
he left to become king,
even when he was born destitute in his kingdom.

¹⁵I saw all the living
who walk about under the sun
with the boy,
-the second one,
who ‘replaces’ him (the King?).

¹⁶There was no end to all the people,
all those before them
also those after
– they will not rejoice in him.

Because this also is mere breath,
and a chasing of wind.

O Love, O God who created me, in your love recreate me.
O Love, who redeemed me,
fill up in me whatever part of your love
has fallen into neglect within me.
O Love, O God, who first loved me,
grant that with my whole heart,
and with my whole soul,
and with my whole strength,
I may love you.

Gertrude the Great

⁷I turned and I looked at a mere breath
under the sun.
⁸There is one person, and there is no second person,
they have neither son or brother.
And there’s no end to all their work
nor is their eye satisfied by wealth.

‘And for whom am I worker
and depriving my soul of goodness?’
This too is mere breath, a bad business.

⁹Two are better than one,
because they have a better reward for their work.

¹⁰Because if one falls,
they can lift up their companion;
but alas for the one who falls and there is no other to lift them up.
¹¹Also, if two people lie down, they are warm,
but for one – how can they be warm?
¹²And if someone overpowers one
the two can stand up in front of them.

And a triple cord doesn’t break quickly.

Teach us, good Lord,
to serve thee as thou deservest;
to give and not to count the cost;
to fight and not to heed the wounds;
to toil and not to seek for rest;
to labour and not to ask for any reward,
save that of knowing that we do thy will,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

St Ignatius

⁴I saw all toil and all skill in work
-it’s the jealousy of a person towards his neighbour.
This too is mere breath,
a chasing after wind.

⁵The fool folds his hands,
and (so) eats his own flesh.

⁶Better a palm-full of calm
than two hand-fulls of labour,
and a chasing of wind.

Grant, Lord,
that we may hold to you without parting,
worship you without wearying,
serve you without failing;
faithfully seek you,
happily find you,
and forever possess you,
the only God,blessed now and for ever.
Amen

St Anselm

4 And I turned and saw all the deeds of oppression
that are done under the sun.
Look, the tears of the oppressed,
and there is no comforter for them;
yes, (in) the hand of their oppressors is the power,
and there is no comforter for them.
²I myself congratulated the dead people,
who had already died,
more than the living people, who were still alive.
³Better than both of them
is the one who hasn’t yet come into being,
who hasn’t seen the evil activity that occurs under the sun.

Eternal God and Fatther,
you create us by your power,
and redeem us by your love,
guide and strengthen us by your Spirit,
that we may give ourselves in love and service
to one another and to you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

¹⁶Further, I saw under the sun:
the place for judgement, there – wickedness.
the place for righteousness, there – wickedness

¹⁷I said in my heart,
‘the righteous person and the wicked person
God will judge.
Because there is a season
for every matter
and for every labour there.

¹⁸I said in my heart,
with regard to matters of humans,
God will make it clear and show them
that they are like animals.

¹⁹Because the fate of humans
and the fate of animals
is a single fate.
As the death of this one
so the death of this one
One ‘breath’ for all.
The advantage of humanity over animals
– there is none, because each is mere breath.
²⁰And all go to one place.
All are from dust
and all go back to dust.

²¹Who knows if the spirit of humans goes upward
and the spirit of animals goes down beneath the earth?

²²So I saw that there is nothing better than that a person enjoy their labours, because this is their share,
because who can give them discernment to see what will happen after them?

O Lord, in whom is our hope,
remove far from us, we pray thee,
empty hopes and presumptuous confidence.
Make our hearts so right with thy most holy and loving heart,
that hoping in thee we may do good;
until that day when faith and hope
shall be abolished by sight and possession,
and love shall be all in all.

Christina Rossetti (1830-94)

¹⁴I knew that everything that God does, it will be forever.
To it there is nothing to add,
and from it, there’s nothing to take away.

God has acted so they live in awe before him.

¹⁵What has happened, already is,
and that which is to happen, has already happened.
And God seeks out what has been driven away

Keep us, O Lord, while we tarry on this earth,
in a serious seeking after thee,
and in an affectionate walking with thee,
every day of our lives;
that when thou comest,
we may be found not hiding our talent,
nor yet asleep with our lamp unfurnished,
but waiting and longing for our Lord,
our glorious King, for ever and ever.

Richard Baxter (1615-1691)