From Ecclesiastes to epiphany

Herewith an interesting progression, from Ecclesiastes 9:11 to Thomas Merton, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander (1966):

1. Ecclesiastes 9:11 (Revised Standard Version) —

Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all.

2. Thomas Merton, Epiphany at Fourth and Walnut (as excerpted on The Cardinal Lawyer and Danzig U.S.A.) —

Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed.