Ecclesiastes 11:3-10
New American Standard Bible
3 If the clouds are full, they pour out rain on the earth; and whether a tree falls toward the south or toward the north, wherever the tree falls, there it [a]lies. 4 One who watches the wind will not sow and one who looks at the clouds will not harvest. 5 Just as you do not (A)know the path of the [b]wind, and (B)how bones are formed in the womb of the [c]pregnant woman, so you do not (C)know the activity of God who makes everything.
6 Sow your seed (D)in the morning and do not [d]be idle in the evening, for you do not know whether [e]one or the other will succeed, or whether both of them alike will be good.
7 The light is pleasant, and it is good for the eyes to (E)see the sun. 8 Indeed, if a person lives many years, let him (F)rejoice in them all; but let him remember the (G)days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything that is to come will be futility.
9 Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the [f]impulses of your heart and the [g](H)desires of your eyes. Yet know that (I)God will bring you to judgment for all these things. 10 So remove [h]sorrow from your heart and keep [i](J)pain away from your body, because childhood and the prime of life are [j]fleeting.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Ecclesiastes 11:3 Lit is
- Ecclesiastes 11:5 Or with many mss spirit into the bones in the womb
- Ecclesiastes 11:5 Lit full
- Ecclesiastes 11:6 Lit let down your hand
- Ecclesiastes 11:6 Lit this or that
- Ecclesiastes 11:9 Lit ways
- Ecclesiastes 11:9 Lit sights
- Ecclesiastes 11:10 Or anger
- Ecclesiastes 11:10 Lit evil
- Ecclesiastes 11:10 Lit futility
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