1 T o everything -- a season, and a time to every delight under the heavens:

There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven—

2 A time to bring forth, And a time to die. A time to plant, And a time to eradicate the planted.

A time to give birth and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.

3 A time to slay, And a time to heal, A time to break down, And a time to build up.

A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up.

4 A time to weep, And a time to laugh. A time to mourn, And a time to skip.

A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance.

5 A time to cast away stones, And a time to heap up stones. A time to embrace, And a time to be far from embracing.

A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.

6 A time to seek, And a time to destroy. A time to keep, And a time to cast away.

A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away.

7 A time to rend, And a time to sew. A time to be silent, And a time to speak.

A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to be silent and a time to speak.

8 A time to love, And a time to hate. A time of war, And a time of peace.

A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace.

9 W hat advantage hath the doer in that which he is labouring at?

What profit is there to the worker from that in which he toils?

10 I have seen the travail that God hath given to the sons of man to be humbled by it.

I have seen the task which God has given the sons of men with which to occupy themselves. God Set Eternity in the Heart of Man

11 T he whole He hath made beautiful in its season; also, that knowledge He hath put in their heart without which man findeth not out the work that God hath done from the beginning even unto the end.

He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

12 I have known that there is no good for them except to rejoice and to do good during their life,

I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one’s lifetime;

13 y ea, even every man who eateth and hath drunk and seen good by all his labour, it a gift of God.

moreover, that every man who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—it is the gift of God.

14 I have known that all that God doth is to the age, to it nothing is to be added, and from it nothing is to be withdrawn; and God hath wrought that they do fear before Him.

I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should fear Him.

15 W hat is that which hath been? already it is, and that which to be hath already been, and God requireth that which is pursued.

That which is has been already and that which will be has already been, for God seeks what has passed by.

16 A nd again, I have seen under the sun the place of judgment -- there the wicked; and the place of righteousness -- there the wicked.

Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.

17 I said in my heart, `The righteous and the wicked doth God judge, for a time to every matter and for every work there.'

I said to myself, “ God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man,” for a time for every matter and for every deed is there.

18 I said in my heart concerning the matter of the sons of man that God might cleanse them, so as to see that they themselves beasts.

I said to myself concerning the sons of men, “God has surely tested them in order for them to see that they are but beasts.”

19 F or an event the sons of man, and an event the beasts, even one event to them; as the death of this, so the death of that; and one spirit to all, and the advantage of man above the beast is nothing, for the whole vanity.

For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same. As one dies so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity.

20 T he whole are going unto one place, the whole have been from the dust, and the whole are turning back unto the dust.

All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all return to the dust.

21 W ho knoweth the spirit of the sons of man that is going up on high, and the spirit of the beast that is going down below to the earth?

Who knows that the breath of man ascends upward and the breath of the beast descends downward to the earth?

22 A nd I have seen that there is nothing better than that man rejoice in his works, for it his portion; for who doth bring him in to look on that which is after him?

I have seen that nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him?