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Ecclesiastes 3
English Standard Version
Ecclesiastes 3
English Standard Version
A Time for Everything
3 For everything there is a season, and (A)a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to (B)die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck 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 (C)weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to (D)dance;
5 a time to (E)cast away stones, and a time to (F)gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to (G)refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to (H)lose;
a time to keep, and a time to (I)cast away;
7 a time to (J)tear, and a time to sew;
a time to (K)keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to (L)hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
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?
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 3:15 Hebrew what has been pursued
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath” (see note on 1:2)
Ecclesiastes 3
New American Standard Bible
Ecclesiastes 3
New American Standard Bible
A Time for Everything
3 There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a (A)time for every 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 give up as lost;
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 benefit is there for the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the (J)task which God has given the sons of mankind with which to [a]occupy themselves.
God Set Eternity in the Heart of Mankind
11 He has (K)made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, without the possibility that mankind (L)will find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.
12 I know that there is (M)nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one’s lifetime; 13 moreover, that every person who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—this is the (N)gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it. And God has so worked, that people will [b](O)fear Him. 15 (P)That which is, is what has already been, and that which will be has already been; and God [c]seeks what has passed by.
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 [d]to myself, “(R)God will judge the righteous and the wicked,” for a (S)time for every matter and for every deed [e]is there. 18 I said [f]to myself regarding the sons of mankind, “God is testing them in order for them to see that they are as (T)animals, they to themselves.” 19 (U)For the fate of the sons of mankind and the fate of animals [g]is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath, and there is no advantage for mankind over animals, for all is futility. 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)spirit of the sons of mankind ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward to the earth? 22 I have seen that (X)nothing is better than when a person is happy in his activities, for that is his [h]lot. For who will bring him to see (Y)what will occur after him?
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 3:10 Or trouble
- Ecclesiastes 3:14 Or be in awe before Him
- Ecclesiastes 3:15 Or finds
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 Lit in my heart
- Ecclesiastes 3:17 I.e., exists with God
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Lit in my heart
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Lit and they have one fate
- Ecclesiastes 3:22 Or reward
Ecclesiastes 3
New International Version
Ecclesiastes 3
New International Version
A Time for Everything
3 There is a time(A) for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,(B)
3 a time to kill(C) and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent(D) 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 do workers gain from their toil?(E) 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.(F) 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time.(G) He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet[a] no one can fathom(H) what God has done from beginning to end.(I) 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink,(J) and find satisfaction(K) in all their toil—this is the gift of God.(L) 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.(M)
15 Whatever is has already been,(N)
and what will be has been before;(O)
and God will call the past to account.[b]
16 And I saw something else under the sun:
In the place of judgment—wickedness was there,
in the place of justice—wickedness was there.
17 I said to myself,
“God will bring into judgment(P)
both the righteous and the wicked,
for there will be a time for every activity,
a time to judge every deed.”(Q)
18 I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals.(R) 19 Surely the fate of human beings(S) is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath[c]; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. 20 All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return.(T) 21 Who knows if the human spirit rises upward(U) and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”
22 So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work,(V) because that is their lot.(W) For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 Or also placed ignorance in the human heart, so that
- Ecclesiastes 3:15 Or God calls back the past
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Or spirit
Ecclesiastes 3
New Century Version
Ecclesiastes 3
New Century Version
There Is a Time for Everything
3 There is a time for everything,
and everything on earth has its special season.
2 There is a time to be born
and a time to die.
There is a time to plant
and a time to pull up plants.
3 There is a time to kill
and a time to heal.
There is a time to destroy
and a time to build.
4 There is a time to cry
and a time to laugh.
There is a time to be sad
and a time to dance.
5 There is a time to throw away stones
and a time to gather them.
There is a time to hug
and a time not to hug.
6 There is a time to look for something
and a time to stop looking for it.
There is a time to keep things
and a time to throw things away.
7 There is a time to tear apart
and a time to sew together.
There is a time to be silent
and a time to speak.
8 There is a time to love
and a time to hate.
There is a time for war
and a time for peace.
God Controls His World
9 Do people really gain anything from their work? 10 I saw the hard work God has given people to do. 11 God has given them a desire to know the future. He does everything just right and on time, but people can never completely understand what he is doing. 12 So I realize that the best thing for them is to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live. 13 God wants all people to eat and drink and be happy in their work, which are gifts from God. 14 I know that everything God does will continue forever. People cannot add anything to what God has done, and they cannot take anything away from it. God does it this way to make people respect him.
15 What happens now has happened in the past,
and what will happen in the future has happened before.
God makes the same things happen again and again.
Unfairness on Earth
16 I also saw this here on earth:
Where there should have been justice, there was evil;
where there should have been right, there was wrong.
17 I said to myself,
God has planned a time for every thing and every action,
so he will judge both good people and bad.
18 I decided that God leaves it the way it is to test people and to show them they are just like animals. 19 The same thing happens to animals and to people; they both have the same breath, so they both die. People are no better off than the animals, because everything is useless. 20 Both end up the same way; both came from dust and both will go back to dust. 21 Who can be sure that the human spirit goes up to God and that the spirit of an animal goes down into the ground? 22 So I saw that the best thing people can do is to enjoy their work, because that is all they have. No one can help another person see what will happen in the future.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New Century Version (NCV) 
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.