Ecclesiastes 8
Christian Standard Bible
Wisdom, Authorities, and Inequities
8 Who is like the wise person, and who knows the interpretation of a matter? A person’s wisdom brightens his face, and the sternness of his face is changed.(A)
2 Keep[a] the king’s command because of your oath made before God.(B) 3 Do not be in a hurry; leave his presence,(C) and don’t persist in a bad cause, since he will do whatever he wants. 4 For the king’s word is authoritative, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?” (D) 5 The one who keeps a command will not experience anything harmful,(E) and a wise heart knows the right time and procedure. 6 For every activity there is a right time and procedure,(F) even though a person’s troubles are heavy on him. 7 Yet no one knows what will happen(G) because who can tell him what will happen? 8 No one has authority over the wind[b] to restrain it,(H) and there is no authority over the day of death;(I) no one is discharged during battle, and wickedness will not allow those who practice it to escape. 9 All this I have seen, applying my mind to all the work that is done under the sun, at a time when one person has authority over another to his harm.
10 In such circumstances, I saw the wicked buried. They came and went from the holy place,(J) and they were praised[c] in the city where they did those things. This too is futile. 11 Because the sentence against an evil act is not carried out quickly,(K) the heart of people is filled with the desire to commit evil. 12 Although a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life,(L) I also know that it will go well with God-fearing people,(M) for they are reverent before him. 13 However, it will not go well with the wicked,(N) and they will not lengthen their days like a shadow,(O) for they are not reverent before God.
14 There is a futility that is done on the earth: there are righteous people who get what the actions of the wicked deserve,(P) and there are wicked people who get what the actions of the righteous deserve.(Q) I say that this too is futile. 15 So I commended enjoyment because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat, drink, and enjoy himself,(R) for this will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.
16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom(S) and to observe the activity that is done on the earth (even though one’s eyes do not close in sleep day or night), 17 I observed all the work of God and concluded that a person is unable to discover the work that is done under the sun. Even though a person labors hard to explore it, he cannot find it;(T) even if a wise person claims to know it, he is unable to discover it.
Ecclesiastes 8
International Standard Version
The Wise Use of Power
8 Who is really wise?
Who knows how to interpret this saying:
“A person’s wisdom improves his appearance,
softening a harsh countenance.”
The Wisdom of Pleasing Leaders
2 I advise[a] doing what the king says, especially regarding an oath to God. 3 Don’t be in a hurry to leave him, and don’t persist in evil, for he does whatever he pleases. 4 Since a king’s command is powerful, who is able to challenge him, asking, “What are you doing?”
5 Whoever obeys his commands will not experience harm, and the wise in heart will discern both the appropriate time and response.[b] 6 Indeed, there is an appropriate time and a response[c] for every circumstance, since human misery weighs heavily upon him. 7 For he has absolutely no knowledge what will happen, since who can declare to him when it will come about? 8 Just as no human being has control over the wind[d] to restrain it, so also no human being has control over the day of his death. Just as no one is discharged during war, so wickedness will not release those who practice[e] it.
9 I observed all this, and carefully considered everything that is undertaken on earth, especially the time when someone dominates another to his detriment. 10 So I watched the wicked being entombed. They used to come in and out of the Holy Place,[f] but now they are forgotten in the city, where they used to work. This, too, is pointless.
The Wisdom of Fearing God
11 Whenever a sentence for a crime is not carried out swiftly, the human mind[g] becomes determined to commit evil. 12 Even though a sinner does what is wrong a hundred times and still survives, nevertheless I also know that things will go well for those who fear God, who fear in his presence. 13 But things will not go well for the wicked person: he will not lengthen his life[h] like a shadow, since he has no fear before God.
Fruitless Righteousness, Fruitful Evil
14 Here is a pointless thing that happens on earth: A righteous man receives what happens to the wicked, and a wicked man receives what happens to the righteous. I concluded that this, too, is pointless. 15 So then I recommended enjoyment of life, because it is better on earth for a man to eat, drink, and be happy, since this will stay with him throughout his struggle all the days of his life, which God grants him on earth.
16 When I dedicated myself to experience wisdom and to observe what is undertaken on earth—even going without sleep day and night— 17 I saw all of it as the activity of God. Frankly, a human being cannot understand what happens on earth, because however hard a man works to discover it, he will not find out. Despite what he thinks he knows, he will not be able to figure it out.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 8:2 The Heb. lacks advise
- Ecclesiastes 8:5 Lit. judgment
- Ecclesiastes 8:6 Lit. judgment
- Ecclesiastes 8:8 Or spirit
- Ecclesiastes 8:8 Or serve
- Ecclesiastes 8:10 I.e. the Temple
- Ecclesiastes 8:11 Lit. the heart of the sons of men within them
- Ecclesiastes 8:13 Lit. days
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