A Time for Everything

3 For everything there is a season, and ^(A)a time for every matter under heaven:

The God-Given Task

⁹ What ^(M)gain has the worker from his toil? ¹⁰ I have seen ^(N)the business that ^(O)God has given to the children of man to be busy with. ¹¹ He has ^(P)made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot ^(Q)find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. ¹² I perceived that there is ^(R)nothing better for them than to be joyful and to ^(S)do good as long as they live; ¹³ also ^(T)that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is ^(U)God's gift to man.

¹⁴ I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; ^(V)nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him. ¹⁵ That which is, ^(W)already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God ^(X)seeks what has been driven away.^[a]

From Dust to Dust

¹⁶ Moreover, ^(Y)I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even ^(Z)there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness. ¹⁷ I said in my heart, ^(AA)God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is ^(AB)a time for every matter and for every work. ¹⁸ I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but ^(AC)beasts. ^19 (AD)For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity.^{[b] 20} All go to one place. All are from ^(AE)the dust, and to dust all return. ²¹ Who knows whether ^(AF)the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth? ²² So I saw that there is ^(AG)nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for ^(AH)that is his lot. Who can bring him to see ^(AI)what will be after him?

⁴ Or do you presume on ^(A)the riches of his kindness and ^(B)forbearance and ^(C)patience, ^(D)not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

⁸ Bear fruit ^(A)in keeping with repentance.

A Living Sacrifice

12 ^(A)I appeal to you therefore, brothers,^[a] by the mercies of God, ^(B)to present your bodies ^(C)as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.^{[b] 2 (D)}Do not be conformed to this world,^[c] but be transformed by ^(E)the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may ^(F)discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.^[d]

²¹ For to me ^(A)to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

⁸ Indeed, I count everything as loss because of ^(A)the surpassing worth of ^(B)knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I ^(C)have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

The Faithful Have Vanished

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.^[a] A Psalm of David.

⁷ But ^(A)whatever gain I had, ^(B)I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸ Indeed, I count everything as loss because of ^(C)the surpassing worth of ^(D)knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I ^(E)have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having ^(F)a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but ^(G)that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— ^10 (H)that I may know him and ^(I)the power of his resurrection, and ^(J)may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹ that by any means possible I may ^(K)attain the resurrection from the dead.

Straining Toward the Goal

¹² Not that I have already ^(L)obtained this or ^(M)am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³ Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: ^(N)forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal for ^(O)the prize of the upward ^(P)call of God in Christ Jesus.

²⁶ For to the one who pleases him ^(A)God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given ^(B)the business of gathering and collecting, ^(C)only to give to one who pleases God. ^(D)This also is vanity and a striving after wind.