生活中有很多巧合。有些是顯而易見因而眾人都認可的巧合；而有些巧合則是需要特殊的體會才看得出來的巧合，因而不同的人基於不同的體會可能會對其巧合性有不同的判斷。本文將要講述的事屬於後一種情況。因此，不同的讀者對於本文所說的內容是否為巧合會有不同的判斷。

兩天前我在博客貼出了“美的科學基礎和科學的美學悖論”一文，在該文的最後我說了這樣一段話：

“本文的所有討論僅涉及到今天的建立在物質概念上的自然科學與美學的一些內在的邏輯及其矛盾之處，並未涉及到柏拉圖及各宗教所相信的超自然的美的議題。所以，文中關於科學的美學悖論的討論似乎是在幫助以人的思維（而不是物質）為中心的存在主義哲學找到一個美學依據:)。。。

當然，之所以會這樣是因為在整個討論過程中並未涉及超自然的存在。而作為一個基督徒我本人相信超自然的美才是所有的美的真正基礎，或者說我們所生活於其中的包括人在內的世界美只是超自然的美的某種反映而已，這將是另一篇文章討論的議題。。。。。。”

昨天我去教會，牧師講道所選的聖經章節是《傳道書》第二章9-26節。讀了這段聖經後一方面覺得是對我自己前一段時間讀聖經時所帶有的一些疑問的釋疑（這是另話），另一方面又隱約感到是對我在前面提到的“美的科學基礎和科學的美學悖論”一文的最後那段話的回應。

如牧師所說，這段經文對於基督徒來說都有可能會感到困惑，但是因為我隱約地感到這段經文多少是對我的那篇“美的科學基礎和科學的美學悖論”的屬世的特色的一個平衡，所以我現在就把該段經文列在下面，每個人對此可以有自己的解讀。。。。。。

《傳道書》2：9-26[1]：

9     這樣，我就日見昌盛，勝過以前在耶路撒冷的眾人。我的智慧仍然存留。

10   凡我眼所求的，我沒有留下不給他的。我心所樂的，我沒有禁止不享受的。因我的心為我一切所勞碌的快樂。這就是我從勞碌中所得的分。

11   後來我察看我手所經營的一切事，和我勞碌所成的功。誰知都是虛空，都是捕風，在日光之下毫無益處。

12   我轉念觀看智慧，狂妄，和愚昧。在王以後而來的人，還能作什麼呢？也不過行早先所行的就是了。

13   我便看出智慧勝過愚昧，如同光明勝過黑暗。

14   智慧人的眼目光明，（光明原文作在他頭上）愚昧人在黑暗裡行。我卻看明有一件事，這兩等人都必遇見。

15   我就心裡說，愚昧人所遇見的，我也必遇見。我為何更有智慧呢？我心裡說，這也是虛空。

16   智慧人，和愚昧人一樣，永遠無人記念。因為日後都被忘記。可嘆智慧人死亡，與愚昧人無異。

17   我所以恨惡生命，因為在日光之下所行的事我都以為煩惱。都是虛空，都是捕風。

18   我恨惡一切的勞碌，就是我在日光之下的勞碌。因為我得來的必留給我以後的人。

19   那人是智慧，是愚昧，誰能知道。他竟要管理我勞碌所得的，就是我在日光之下用智慧所得的。這也是虛空。

20   故此，我轉想我在日光之下所勞碌的一切工作，心便絕望。

21   因為有人用智慧知識靈巧所勞碌得來的，卻要留給未曾勞碌的人為分。這也是虛空，也是大患。

22   人在日光之下勞碌累心，在他一切的勞碌上得着什麼呢？

23   因為他日日憂慮，他的勞苦成為愁煩。連夜間心也不安。這也是虛空。

24   人莫強如吃喝，且在勞碌中享福。我看這也是出於神的手。

25   論到吃用，享福，誰能勝過我呢？

26   神喜悅誰，就給誰智慧，知識，和喜樂。惟有罪人，神使他勞苦，叫他將所收聚的，所堆積的，歸給神所喜悅的人。這也是虛空，也是捕風。

Ecclesiastes 2:9-26[2]:

⁹ I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me.

   ¹⁰ I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
   I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my labor,
   and this was the reward for all my toil.
¹¹ Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
   and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
   nothing was gained under the sun.

    ¹² Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom,
   and also madness and folly.
What more can the king’s successor do
   than what has already been done?
¹³ I saw that wisdom is better than folly,
   just as light is better than darkness.
¹⁴ The wise have eyes in their heads,
   while the fool walks in the darkness;
but I came to realize
   that the same fate overtakes them both.

   ¹⁵ Then I said to myself,

   “The fate of the fool will overtake me also.
   What then do I gain by being wise?”
I said to myself,
   “This too is meaningless.”
¹⁶ For the wise, like the fool, will not be long remembered;
   the days have already come when both have been forgotten.
Like the fool, the wise too must die!

    ¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. ¹⁸ I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. ²⁰ So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. ²¹ For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. ²² What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? ²³ All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.

   ²⁴ A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, ²⁵ for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? ²⁶ To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.