Denn es gehet dem Menschen wie dem Vieh
For it happens to Man as to the beast
Vier ernste Gesänge Four Serious Songs
Luther - Ecc III
For it happens to Man as to the beast,
as that dies, so Man dies also,
they have the same breath.
Man has nothing more than the beast has,
for everything is vanity.
Everything moves to one end;
everything is made of dust
and will become dust again.
Who knows whether Man's spirit will go upward
or that the spirit of the beast
will move down below the earth?
And so I saw that there was nothing better
than for Man to be happy in his work;
for who would take him to the point
where he sees what will happen after him?
Ich wandte mich und sahe an alle
I turned and looked at all
Vier ernste Gesänge Four Serious Songs
Luther - Ecc IV
I turned and looked at all
who suffer injustice under the sun.
And look, there were the tears
of those who suffer injustice and had no comforter.
And those who were doing them injustice
were too powerful for them to have a comforter.
So, I praised the dead who had already died
more than the living who still had life.
And he who has not yet been born is better than
both, he does not become aware of the evil
that happens under the sun.
O Tod, wie bitter bist du
O death, how bitter you are
Vier ernste Gesänge Four Serious Songs
Luther - Ecc XLI
O death, how bitter you are
when a man thinks of you,
one who has good days and enough,
who lives without cares
who is doing well in all things
and who can eat well -
O death, how bitter you are.
O death how good you feel to one that is needy,
who is weak and old
and who is full of care
and has nothing better to hope for
or to expect.
O death, how good you feel.
Wenn ich mit Menschen-
Even if I spoke with the tongues of men
Vier ernste Gesänge Four Serious Songs
Luther - I CrnthXIII
Even if I spoke with the tongues of men
and of angels and had no love,
so I would be as sounding brass
or a ringing bell.
And if I could prophesy
and knew all the secrets
and had all knowledge
and had all faith
so that I could move mountains,
but had no love,
I would be nothing.
And if I gave all my goods
to the poor
and let my body be burned,
but had no love,
it would do me no good.
For we now see through a mirror
words that are not clear,
but then we shall be face to face.
Now I know in fragments,
but then I will know in the same way
as I shall be known.
But now are left Faith, Hope and Love,
these three:
but Love is the greatest of them
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