Ecclesiastes 11:5
New International Version
As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

New Living Translation
Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.

English Standard Version
As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

Berean Standard Bible
As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

King James Bible
As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.

New King James Version
As you do not know what is the way of the wind, Or how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child, So you do not know the works of God who makes everything.

New American Standard Bible
Just as you do not know the path of the wind, and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes everything.

NASB 1995
Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.

NASB 1977
Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.

Legacy Standard Bible
Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God who works all things.

Amplified Bible
Just as you do not know the way and path of the wind or how the bones are formed in the womb of a pregnant woman, even so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.

Christian Standard Bible
Just as you don’t know the path of the wind, or how bones develop in the womb of a pregnant woman, so also you don’t know the work of God who makes everything.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Just as you don’t know the path of the wind, or how bones develop in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you don’t know the work of God who makes everything.

American Standard Version
As thou knowest not what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child; even so thou knowest not the work of God who doeth all.

Contemporary English Version
No one can explain how a baby breathes before it is born. So how can anyone explain what God does? After all, God created everything.

English Revised Version
As thou knowest not what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child; even so thou knowest not the work of God who doeth all.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Just as you don't know how the breath of life enters the limbs of a child within its mother's womb, you also don't understand how God, who made everything, works.

Good News Translation
God made everything, and you can no more understand what he does than you understand how new life begins in the womb of a pregnant woman.

International Standard Version
Just as you do not understand the way of the spirit in the womb of a pregnant mother, so also you do not know what God is doing in everything he makes.

Majority Standard Bible
As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

NET Bible
Just as you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones form in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

New Heart English Bible
As you do not know what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child; even so you do not know the work of God who does all.

Webster's Bible Translation
As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor the structure of the parts of conception in her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.

World English Bible
As you don’t know what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child; even so you don’t know the work of God who does all.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
As you do not know what [is] the way of the spirit, "" How—bones in the womb of the full one, "" So you do not know the work of God who makes the whole.

Young's Literal Translation
As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, How -- bones in the womb of the full one, So thou knowest not the work of God who maketh the whole.

Smith's Literal Translation
As thou wilt not know what the way of the spirit, as the bones in the womb of her being filled, so thou shalt not know the work of God who will make all.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones are joined together in the womb of her that is with child: so thou knowest not the works of God, who is the maker of all.

Catholic Public Domain Version
In the same manner that you do not know the way of the spirit, nor the way that bones are joined together in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the works of God, who is the Maker of all.

New American Bible
Just as you do not know how the life breath enters the human frame in the mother’s womb, So you do not know the work of God, who is working in everything.

New Revised Standard Version
Just as you do not know how the breath comes to the bones in the mother’s womb, so you do not know the work of God, who makes everything.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
As you do not know the path of the wind, and the manner of a woman who is with child; even so you do not know the works of the LORD who makes all.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because you do not know the way of the wind, for as the way of her who is pregnant of conception, so you will not know the works of LORD JEHOVAH, all that he made
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
As thou knowest not what is the way of the wind, Nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child; Even so thou knowest not the work of God Who doeth all things.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Among whom none knows what is the way of the wind: as the bones are hid in the womb of a pregnant woman, so thou shalt not know the works of God, even all things whatsoever he shall do.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Cast Your Bread upon the Waters
4He who watches the wind will fail to sow, and he who observes the clouds will fail to reap. 5As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. 6Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.…

Cross References
Psalm 139:13-16
For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. / I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. / My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. ...

Job 38:36-38
Who has put wisdom in the heart or given understanding to the mind? / Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Or who can tilt the water jars of the heavens / when the dust hardens into a mass and the clods of earth stick together?

John 3:8
The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

Isaiah 55:8-9
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. / “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.

Romans 11:33-34
O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways! / “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?”

Job 37:5
God thunders wondrously with His voice; He does great things we cannot comprehend.

Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. / Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

Psalm 104:24-30
How many are Your works, O LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures. / Here is the sea, vast and wide, teeming with creatures beyond number, living things both great and small. / There the ships pass, and Leviathan, which You formed to frolic there. ...

1 Corinthians 2:11
For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Job 26:14
Indeed, these are but the fringes of His ways; how faint is the whisper we hear of Him! Who then can understand the thunder of His power?”

Isaiah 40:28
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching out.

Acts 17:25-28
Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. / From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands. / God intended that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ...

Jeremiah 1:5
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Hebrews 11:3
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

Proverbs 30:4
Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!


Treasury of Scripture

As you know not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so you know not the works of God who makes all.

thou knowest not what

John 3:8
The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

nor

Psalm 139:14,15
I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well…

even

Ecclesiastes 7:24
That which is far off, and exceeding deep, who can find it out?

Ecclesiastes 8:17
Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.

Job 5:9
Which doeth great things and unsearchable; marvellous things without number:

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Ecclesiastes 11
1. directions for charity
7. death in life and the day of judgment
9. in the days of youth














As you do not know
This phrase highlights human limitations in understanding. The Hebrew root for "know" is "yada," which implies an intimate, experiential knowledge. The verse begins by acknowledging that there are mysteries beyond human comprehension, setting the stage for a discussion on divine sovereignty and the limits of human wisdom.

the path of the wind
The Hebrew word for "wind" is "ruach," which can also mean "spirit" or "breath." This dual meaning suggests a deeper spiritual truth: just as the physical wind's path is unpredictable, so is the movement of the Spirit. Historically, wind has been a symbol of God's unseen and uncontrollable power, as seen in the creation narrative and the account of Elijah.

or how the bones are formed in a mother's womb
This phrase speaks to the miracle of life and the intricate process of human development. The Hebrew word for "bones" is "etsem," which signifies strength and structure. The formation of bones in the womb is a divine mystery, reflecting God's creative power. In ancient times, the womb was seen as a sacred place where God's handiwork was evident, emphasizing the sanctity of life.

so you cannot understand
The inability to understand is a recurring theme in Ecclesiastes, pointing to the finite nature of human wisdom. The Hebrew root "bin" for "understand" suggests discernment and insight. This phrase serves as a humbling reminder that human intellect has its limits, especially when it comes to comprehending divine actions.

the work of God
This phrase refers to God's sovereign and creative acts. The Hebrew word "ma'aseh" for "work" encompasses deeds, labor, and craftsmanship. It underscores the idea that God's work is purposeful and beyond human scrutiny. Throughout Scripture, God's work is depicted as both majestic and mysterious, inviting believers to trust in His divine plan.

the Maker of all things
This title for God emphasizes His role as the Creator. The Hebrew word "asah" for "Maker" conveys the act of fashioning or forming. It affirms God's ultimate authority and power over creation. Historically, this understanding of God as the Creator has been foundational to the Judeo-Christian worldview, reinforcing the belief in a purposeful and ordered universe.

(5) The wording of this passage leaves it ambiguous whether we have here two illustrations of man's ignorance, or only one; whether we are to understand the verse as declaring that we know neither the way of the wind nor the growth of the embryo, or whether, retaining the translation "spirit," we take the whole verse as relating to the latter subject. (Comp. John 3:6.) The word for "her that is with child" occurs in that sense here only in the Old Testament, and in later Hebrew.

Verse 5. - As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit. In this verse are presented one or two examples of man's ignorance of natural facts and processes as analogous to the mysteries of God's moral government. The word translated "spirit" (ruach) may mean also "wind," and is so taken here by many commentators (see Ecclesiastes 1:6; Ecclesiastes 8:8; and comp. John 3:8). In this view there would be two instances given, viz. the wind and the embryo. Certainly, the mention of the wind seems to come naturally after what has preceded; and man's ignorance of its way, and powerlessness to control it, are emblematic of his attitude towards Divine providence. The versions, however, seem to support the rendering of the Authorized Version. Thus the Septuagint (which connects the clause with ver. 4), ἐν οῖς ("among whom," i.e. those who watch the weather), "There is none that knoweth what is the way of the spirit (τοῦ πνεύματος);" Vulgate. Quomodo ignoras quae sit via spiritus. If we take this view, we have only one idea in the verse, and that is the infusion of the breath of life in the embryo, and its growth in its mother's womb. Nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child. Our version, by its insertions, has made two facts out of the statement in the Hebrew, which is literally, holy the bones (are) in the womb of a pregnant woman. Septuagint, "As (ὡς) bones are in the womb," etc.; Vulgate, Et qua ratione compingantur ossa in ventre praegnantis, " And in what way the bones are framed in the womb of the pregnant." The formation and quickening of the foetus were always regarded as mysterious and inscrutable (comp. Job 10:8, 9; Psalm 139:15; Wisd. 7:1, etc.). Wright compares M. Aurelius, 10:26, "The first principles of life are extremely slender and mysterious; and yet nature works them up into a strange increase of bulk, diversity, and proportion." Controversies concerning the origin of the soul have been rife from early times, some holding what is called Traducianism, i.e. that soul and body are both derived by propagation from earthly parents; others supporting Creationism, i.e. that the soul, created specially by God, is infused into the child before birth. St. Augustine confesses ('Op. Imperf.,' 4:104) that he is unable to determine the truth of either opinion. And, indeed, this is one of those secret things which Holy Scripture has not decided for us, and about which no authoritative sentence has been given. The term "bones" is used for the whole conformation of the body (comp. Proverbs 15:30; Proverbs 16:24); meleah, "pregnant," means literally, "full," and is used like the Latin plena can here and nowhere else in the Old Testament, though common in later Hebrew. Thus Ovid, 'Metam.,' 10:469 -

"Plena patris thalamis excedit, et impia dire
Semina fert utero."
And 'Fast.,' 4:633 -

"Nunc gravidum pecus est; gravidae sunt semine terrae
Telluri plenae victima plena datur."
Even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. Equally mysterious in its general scope and in its details is the working of God's providence. And as everything lies in God's hands, it must needs be secret and beyond human ken. This is why to "the works of God" (Ecclesiastes 7:13) is added, "who maketh all." The God of nature is Lord of the future (comp. Amos 3:6; Ecclus. 18:6); man must not disquiet himself about this.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
As
כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר (ka·’ă·šer)
Preposition-k | Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

you do not
אֵֽינְךָ֤ (’ê·nə·ḵā)
Adverb | second person masculine singular
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

know
יוֹדֵ֙עַ֙ (yō·w·ḏê·a‘)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 3045: To know

the path
דֶּ֣רֶךְ (de·reḵ)
Noun - common singular construct
Strong's 1870: A road, a course of life, mode of action

of the wind,
הָר֔וּחַ (hā·rū·aḥ)
Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 7307: Wind, breath, exhalation, life, anger, unsubstantiality, a region of the sky, spirit

or how the bones [are formed]
כַּעֲצָמִ֖ים (ka·‘ă·ṣā·mîm)
Preposition-k | Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 6106: A bone, the body, the substance, selfsame

in a mother’s
הַמְּלֵאָ֑ה (ham·mə·lê·’āh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 4392: Full, filling, fulness, fully

womb,
בְּבֶ֣טֶן (bə·ḇe·ṭen)
Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 990: The belly, the womb, the bosom, body of anything

so
כָּ֗כָה (kā·ḵāh)
Adverb
Strong's 3602: Just so

you cannot
לֹ֤א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

understand
תֵדַע֙ (ṯê·ḏa‘)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 3045: To know

the work
מַעֲשֵׂ֣ה (ma·‘ă·śêh)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

of God,
הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

the Maker
יַעֲשֶׂ֖ה (ya·‘ă·śeh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

of all things.
הַכֹּֽל׃ (hak·kōl)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every


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OT Poetry: Ecclesiastes 11:5 As you don't know what (Ecclesiast. Ec Ecc Eccles.)
Ecclesiastes 11:4
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