Ecclesiastes 3:18-22
Lexham English Bible
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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- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Literally “the sons of the man”
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Or “tests”
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 The MT reads active “to see,” but causative “to show” is reflected by LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Latin Vulgate
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “the sons of the man”
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “is one”
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Literally “and one breath is for all”
- Ecclesiastes 3:22 Literally “For who can bring him to see in what will be after him?”
Ecclesiastes 3:18-22
New American Standard Bible
18 I said [a]to myself regarding the sons of mankind, “God is testing them in order for them to see that they are as (A)animals, they to themselves.” 19 (B)For the fate of the sons of mankind and the fate of animals [b]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 (C)dust and all return to the dust. 21 Who knows that the (D)spirit of the sons of mankind ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward to the earth? 22 I have seen that (E)nothing is better than when a person is happy in his activities, for that is his [c]lot. For who will bring him to see (F)what will occur after him?
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- Ecclesiastes 3:18 Lit in my heart
- Ecclesiastes 3:19 Lit and they have one fate
- Ecclesiastes 3:22 Or reward
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