Ecclesiastes 8

Obeying the King

1Who is like a wise man?

And who knows the interpretation of a matter?

A person’s wisdom makes his face shine, # Ex 34:29–30

and the harshness of his face is softened.

2Obey the king’s command because of your oath to God. # 1Ki 2:43 3Do not be hasty to leave his presence. # Ecc 10:4 Do not take a stand in an unpleasant matter, for he does whatever pleases him. 4For the word of the king is powerful, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?” # Job 9:12; Da 4:35

5The one who keeps the king’s command will know no evil thing,

and a wise heart will know the proper time and just way.

6For every matter there is a proper time and just way, # Ecc 3:1, 17

though a person’s distress weighs heavily on him.

7For he does not know what is to be,

for who can declare to him what is to come? # Ecc 6:12; 9:12

8No person has power over the wind to restrain it,

or power over the day of death. # Job 14:5

No one is discharged from war,

nor will wickedness release those who practice.

9All this I observed while applying my heart to all that is done under the sun, when man rules over others to their hurt. # Ecc 5:8

God’s Retribution Is Enigmatic

10Then I saw the wicked approaching. They would enter and leave the holy temple, and they were praised # 8:10 Hb forgotten. in the city where they did works. This also is vanity.

11Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of people is fully set to do evil. 12Though one who sins may do evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, # Ps 37:11, 18–19 because they stand in reverence before Him. 13But it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow, # Job 14:2; Ecc 6:12 because he does not stand in reverence before God.

14There is another vanity that takes place on earth: there are righteous people who are treated according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people who are treated according to the deeds of the righteous. # Ecc 7:15; Mal 3:15 I observed that this also is vanity. 15So I commend enjoyment, because there is nothing better for people under the sun than to eat and drink and enjoy life, for enjoyment will go with a person in his toil all the days of his life that God has given him under the sun. # Ecc 2:24; 3:12–13

16When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to observe the business that is done on earth, # Ps 127:2 while day and night there is no sleep for one’s eyes, # Ecc 1:13 17then I observed all the work of God, that one cannot understand what is happening under the sun. Though a person may toil in seeking, he will not understand it. Even if a wise man claims to know, he is not able to understand it. # Ps 73:16; Ecc 3:11

Currently Selected:

Ecclesiastes 8: MEV

Highlight

Copy

Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in

The Holy Bible, Modern English Version

Learn More About Modern English Version

Ecclesiastes 8

1Only the wise know what things really mean. Wisdom makes them smile and makes their frowns disappear.

Obey the King

2Do what the king says,#8.2 Some ancient translations Do what the king says; Hebrew unclear. and don't make any rash promises to God. 3The king can do anything he likes, so depart from his presence; don't stay in such a dangerous place. 4The king acts with authority, and no one can challenge what he does. 5As long as you obey his commands, you are safe, and a wise person knows how and when to do it. 6There is a right time and a right way to do everything, but we know so little! 7None of us knows what is going to happen, and there is no one to tell us. 8No one can keep from dying or put off the day of death. That is a battle we cannot escape; we cannot cheat our way out.

The Wicked and the Righteous

9I saw all this when I thought about the things that are done in this world, a world where some people have power and others have to suffer under them. 10Yes, I have seen the wicked buried and in their graves, but on the way back from the cemetery people praise them in the very city where they did their evil. It is useless.#8.10 Verse 10 in Hebrew is unclear.

11Why do people commit crimes so readily? Because crime is not punished quickly enough. 12A sinner may commit a hundred crimes and still live. Oh yes, I know what they say: “If you obey God, everything will be all right, 13but it will not go well for the wicked. Their life is like a shadow and they will die young, because they do not obey God.” 14But this is nonsense. Look at what happens in the world: sometimes the righteous get the punishment of the wicked, and the wicked get the reward of the righteous. I say it is useless.

15So I am convinced that we should enjoy ourselves, because the only pleasure we have in this life is eating and drinking and enjoying ourselves. We can at least do this as we labour during the life that God has given us in this world.

16Whenever I tried to become wise and learn what goes on in the world, I realized that you could stay awake night and day 17and never be able to understand what God is doing. However hard you try, you will never find out. The wise may claim to know, but they don't.

Currently Selected:

Highlight

Copy

Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in

Learn More About Good News Bible (British) with DC section 2017