Ecclesiastes 9
Legacy Standard Bible
Mankind Is in the Hand of God
9 For I have given all this to my heart and explain [a]it that righteous men, wise men, and their service are (A)in the hand of God. (B)Man does not know whether it will be (C)love or hatred; anything may be before him.
2 (D)It is the same for all. There is (E)one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who [b]is afraid to swear. 3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is (F)one fate for all. Furthermore, (G)the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil, and (H)madness is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead. 4 For whoever is joined with all the living, there is confidence; surely a live dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know they will die; but the dead (I)do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for the (J)memory of them is forgotten. 6 Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished, and they will never again have a (K)portion in all that is done under the sun.
7 Go then, (L)eat your bread in gladness and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works. 8 Let your (M)clothes be white all the time, and let not (N)oil be lacking on your head. 9 See life with the woman whom you love all the days of your (O)vain life, which He has given to you under the sun—all the days of your (P)vanity; for this is your (Q)portion in life and in your labor in which you have labored under the sun.
Whatever Your Hand Finds to Do
10 Whatever your hand finds to do, (R)do it with all your might; for there is no (S)working or explaining or knowledge or wisdom in (T)Sheol where you are going.
11 I again saw under the sun that the (U)race is not to the swift and the (V)battle is not to the mighty, and neither is bread to the wise nor (W)riches to the discerning nor favor to men who know; for time and (X)misfortune overtake them all. 12 Moreover, man does not (Y)know his time: like fish seized in an evil net and (Z)birds seized in a trap, so the sons of men are (AA)ensnared at an evil time when it (AB)suddenly falls on them.
13 Also this I came to see as wisdom under the sun, and [c]it was great to me. 14 There (AC)was a small city with few men in it, and a great king came to it, surrounded it, and built large siegeworks against it. 15 But there was found in it a (AD)poor wise man, and he provided a way of escape for the city (AE)by his wisdom. Yet (AF)no one remembered that poor man. 16 So I said, “(AG)Wisdom is better than strength.” But the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heard. 17 The (AH)words of the wise heard in restfulness are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18 (AI)Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but (AJ)one sinner destroys much good.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 9:1 Lit all this
- Ecclesiastes 9:2 Lit fears an oath
- Ecclesiastes 9:13 Lit great it was to me
Ecclesiastes 9
Revised Standard Version
Take Life as It Comes
9 But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hate man does not know. Everything before them is vanity,[a] 2 since one fate comes to all, to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil,[b] to the clean and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As is the good man, so is the sinner; and he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. 3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that one fate comes to all; also the hearts of men are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 4 But he who is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward; but the memory of them is lost. 6 Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and they have no more for ever any share in all that is done under the sun.
7 Go, eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already approved what you do.
8 Let your garments be always white; let not oil be lacking on your head.
9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life which he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.
11 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. 12 For man does not know his time. Like fish which are taken in an evil net, and like birds which are caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.
Wisdom Superior to Folly
13 I have also seen this example of wisdom under the sun, and it seemed great to me. 14 There was a little city with few men in it; and a great king came against it and besieged it, building great siegeworks against it. 15 But there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16 But I say that wisdom is better than might, though the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heeded.
17 The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 9:1 Syr Compare Gk: Heb Everything before them is everything
- Ecclesiastes 9:2 Gk Syr Vg: Heb lacks and the evil
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