Ecclesiastes 9:11-12
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
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 skillful, but time and chance happen to them all.(A) 12 For no one can anticipate one’s time. Like fish taken in a cruel net or like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them.(B)
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Ecclesiastes 9:11-12
Lexham English Bible
The Injustice of Time and Chance
11 I looked again and saw under the sun that the race does not belong to the swift, the battle does not belong to the mighty, food does not belong to the wise, wealth does not belong to the intelligent, and success[a] does not belong to the skillful, for time and chance befalls all of them. 12 For man does not know his time. Just as fish are caught in a cruel net and like birds who are seized in a snare, so also humans[b] are ensnared at a cruel time when it falls suddenly upon them.
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- Ecclesiastes 9:11 Or “favor”
- Ecclesiastes 9:12 Literally “the sons of the man”
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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