18 I said in my heart, “Concerning the condition of the sons of men, God tests them, that they may see that they themselves are like animals.” 19 (A)For what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity. 20 All go to one place: (B)all are from the dust, and all return to dust. 21 (C)Who[a] knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, which goes down to the earth? 22 (D)So I perceived that nothing is better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for (E)that is his [b]heritage. (F)For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 3:21 LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg. Who knows whether the spirit . . . goes upward, and whether . . . goes downward to the earth?
  2. Ecclesiastes 3:22 portion or lot

18 I said to myself concerning humans,[a] “God sifts[b] them in order to show[c] them that they are like beasts.” 19 For the fate of humans[d] and the fate of the beast is the same.[e] The death of the one is like the death of the other, for both are mortal.[f] 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.[g]

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 3:18 Literally “the sons of the man”
  2. Ecclesiastes 3:18 Or “tests”
  3. Ecclesiastes 3:18 The MT reads active “to see,” but causative “to show” is reflected by LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Latin Vulgate
  4. Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “the sons of the man”
  5. Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “is one”
  6. Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “and one breath is for all”
  7. Ecclesiastes 3:22 Literally “For who can bring him to see in what will be after him?”