Ecclesiastes 3
Legacy Standard Bible
A Time for Everything
3 There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a (A)time for every [a]matter under heaven—
2 A time to give birth and a (B)time to die;
A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.
3 A (C)time to kill and a time to heal;
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
4 A time to (D)weep and a time to (E)laugh;
A time to mourn and a time to (F)dance.
5 A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.
6 A time to search and a time to lose;
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
7 A time to tear apart and a time to sew together;
A time to (G)be silent and a time to speak.
8 A time to love and a time to (H)hate;
A time for war and a time for peace.
9 (I)What advantage is there to the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the (J)endeavor which God has given the sons of men with which to occupy themselves.
God Set Eternity in the Heart of Man
11 He has (K)made everything [b]beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, [c]yet so that man (L)will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.
12 I know that [d]there is (M)nothing better for them than to be glad and to do good in one’s lifetime; 13 moreover, that every man who eats and drinks and sees good in all his labor—it is the (N)gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will be forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it—God has so worked that men should [e](O)fear Him. 15 That (P)which is has been already and that which will be has already been, yet God seeks what is pursued.
16 Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is (Q)wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness. 17 I said in my heart, “(R)God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man,” for a (S)time for every [f]matter and for every work is there. 18 I said in my heart concerning the sons of men, “God is testing them in order for them to see that they are but (T)beasts.” 19 (U)For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same fate for each of them. As one dies so dies the other, and they all have the same breath. So there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is [g]vanity. 20 All go to the same place. All came from the (V)dust, and all return to the dust. 21 Who knows that the (W)breath of man ascends upward and the breath of the beast descends downward to the earth? 22 I have seen that (X)nothing is better than that man should be glad in his works, for that is his portion. For who will bring him to see (Y)what will occur after him?
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 3:1 Lit delight
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 Or appropriate
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 Or without which man
- Ecclesiastes 3:12 Lit there is nothing good in man except to be glad
- Ecclesiastes 3:14 Or be in awe before Him
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 Or delight
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Or futility
Ecclesiastes 3
Lexham English Bible
God Has Ordained the Ebb and Flow of Human Activities
3 For everything there is an appointed time, a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to bear[a] and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to root up what is planted;
3 a time to kill and a time to heal;
a time to break down and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance;
5 a time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones;
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek and a time to lose;
a time to keep and a time to throw away;
7 a time to tear and a time to sew;
a time to be silent and a time to speak;
8 a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What does the worker gain in his toil?
No One Understands God’s Mysterious Plan
10 I have seen the busyness God gives to humans[b] to preoccupy[c] them. 11 He has made everything suitable in its time. He also has put the past[d] in their hearts, yet no one can grasp what God does from the beginning to the end. 12 So I realized that there is nothing better[e] for them than to rejoice and enjoy themselves[f] during their lives. 13 And for anyone to eat and drink, that is, to enjoy the fruit of all his toil,[g] this also is a gift of God.
14 I know everything God does endures forever;
nothing can be added to it, and nothing can be taken from it,
for God so acts that humans[h] might stand in awe before him.
15 What is—it already was,
and what will be—it already is,
for God will do what he has done.[i]
God’s Mysterious Plan Allows Injustice to Exist in the World
16 I saw something else under the sun: instead of justice there was evil; instead of righteousness there was wickedness. 17 So I said to myself,[j] “God will surely judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed[k] a time of judgment for every deed and every work.”
18 I said to myself concerning humans,[l] “God sifts[m] them in order to show[n] them that they are like beasts.” 19 For the fate of humans[o] and the fate of the beast is the same.[p] The death of the one is like the death of the other, for both are mortal.[q] Man has no advantage over the beast, for both are fleeting. 20 Both go to one place—both came from dust and both return to dust. 21 For no one knows whether the spirit of a human ascends to heaven and whether the spirit of the beast descends to the ground!
22 So I concluded that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy the fruit of his labor, for this is his lot in life. For no one knows what will happen in the future.[r]
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 3:2 Or “a time to be born”; MT reads the active form “to bear children”
- Ecclesiastes 3:10 Literally “the sons of the man”
- Ecclesiastes 3:10 Or “to be busy”
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 Literally “eternity”
- Ecclesiastes 3:12 Literally “no good”
- Ecclesiastes 3:12 Literally “to rejoice and to do good”
- Ecclesiastes 3:13 Literally “to see good in all his toil”
- Ecclesiastes 3:14 Or “they”
- Ecclesiastes 3:15 Literally “God seeks what is pursued”
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 Literally “in my heart”
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 The MT reads שָׁם “there,” but repointing to שָׂם, “he has appointed,” makes better sense
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Literally “the sons of the man”
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Or “tests”
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 The MT reads active “to see,” but causative “to show” is reflected by LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Latin Vulgate
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “the sons of the man”
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “is one”
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “and one breath is for all”
- Ecclesiastes 3:22 Literally “For who can bring him to see in what will be after him?”
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