Total futility Qohelet a la Dr Suess

There is really a lovely lilt to the declamations of Qohelet - Dr. Seuss wins. How will I continue without splitting my sides. Tov tov tov - and where are those olives!

Listen

הֲבֵל הֲבָלִים  אָמַר קֹהֶלֶת הֲבֵל הֲבָלִים הַכֹּל הָבֶל

havel havlim amar qohelet havel havlim hacol havel

An utter futility, touts Qohelet, an utter futility, total futility.

Get the words into your ears. There is more!  The dour phrase tachat hashemash - under the sun
should always be read as a somewhat menacing refrain (and there are other short final phrases like it in chapters 1 to 4).

מַה יִּתְרוֹן לָאָדָם בְּכָל עֲמָלוֹ שֶׁיַּעֲמֹל תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶש

ma yitron la'adam       becol amlo sh`yamol tachat hashemash

What is left to an earthling in all its toil that it toils under the sun?

I tell you - it just keeps on going in this fashion. Totally strange mixture of prose and poetry sections and there seems no doubt that it is sometimes tongue in cheek. It takes very little effort to take my chapters 1 and 2 as posted and let them be doggerel-led.

And here's a snippet from chapter 3
and one from 4 to follow
and I'm sure you will with me agree
that It's not too hard to swallow

הַכֹּל הוֹלֵך אֶל מָקוֹם אֶחָד  הַכֹּל הָיָה מִן הֶעָפָר וְהַכֹּל שָׁב אֶל הֶעָפָר	hacol holek `el maqom echad hacol hayah min heaphar vhacol shav `el heaphar	They all come to one place they all are from the dust and they all turn to the dust
מִי יוֹדֵע רוּחַ בְּנֵי הָאָדָם הָעֹלָה הִיא לְמָעְלָה וְרוּח הַבְּהֵמָה הַיֹּרֶדֶת הִיא לְמַטָּה לָאָרֶץ	mi yodah ruah beni ha'adam ha`olah hie lema'elah veruah habehemah horedet hi lematah la'aretz	who knows if the sprite of the earthling child rises herself to the height and the sprite of the beast descends herself down to depths of the earth?

And now I cheat for tis not chapter 4
in the English bibles around
but the verse is from the beginning of five
as if we were too quick there-bound

שְׁמֹר רַגְלְךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר תֵּלֵךְ אֶל בֵּית הָאֱלֹהִים וְקָרוֹב לִשְׁמֹעַ מִתֵּת הַכְּסִילִים זָבַח   כִּי אֵינָם יוֹדְעִים לַעֲשׂוֹת רָע

shmor ragleka ca'asher telek 'el beyit ha'elohim veqarov lishmoa mitet hacsilim zavach ki ainam yod`im leasot ra`

keep your footing when you go into the house of God         and more ready to hear than to give in the foolish offering for they haven't a clue that what they do is evil