Take Life as It Comes

9 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 one does not know. Everything that confronts them ² is vanity,^[a] since the same fate comes to all, to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil,^[b] to the clean and the unclean, to those who sacrifice and those who do not sacrifice. As are the good, so are the sinners; those who swear are like those who shun an oath.^{(A) 3} This is an evil in all that happens under the sun, that the same fate comes to everyone. Moreover, the hearts of humans are full of evil; madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.^(B)

² He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?^{(A) 3} No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. ⁴ Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem?^(B)

³ and say to the land of Israel: Thus says the Lord: I am coming against you and will draw my sword out of its sheath and will cut off from you both righteous and wicked.^{(A) 4} Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall go out of its sheath against all flesh from south to north,