| Holman Christian Standard Bible | NET Bible |
| 1There is an occasion for everything, and a time for every activity under heaven: | 1For everything there is an appointed time, and an appropriate time for every activity on earth: |
| 2a time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot; | 2A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what was planted; |
| 3a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build; | 3A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; |
| 4a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; | 4A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. |
| 5a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing; | 5A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; |
| 6a time to search and a time to count as lost; a time to keep and a time to throw away; | 6A time to search, and a time to give something up as lost; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; |
| 7a time to tear and a time to sew; a time to be silent and a time to speak; | 7A time to rip, and a time to sew; a time to keep silent, and a time to speak. |
| 8a time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace. | 8A time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace. |
| 9What does the worker gain from his struggles? | 9What benefit can a worker gain from his toil? |
| 10I have seen the task that God has given people to keep them occupied. | 10I have observed the burden that God has given to people to keep them occupied. |
| 11He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts, but man cannot discover the work God has done from beginning to end. | 11God has made everything fit beautifully in its appropriate time, but he has also placed ignorance in the human heart so that people cannot discover what God has ordained, from the beginning to the end of their lives. |
| 12I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and enjoy the good life. | 12I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live, |
| 13It is also the gift of God whenever anyone eats, drinks, and enjoys all his efforts. | 13and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God. |
| 14I know that all God does will last forever; there is no adding to it or taking from it. God works so that people will be in awe of Him. | 14I also know that whatever God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken away from it. God has made it this way, so that men will fear him. |
| 15Whatever is, has already been, and whatever will be, already is. God repeats what has passed. | 15Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been; for God will seek to do again what has occurred in the past. |
| 16I also observed under the sun: there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness. | 16I saw something else on earth: In the place of justice, there was wickedness, and in the place of fairness, there was wickedness. |
| 17I said to myself, "God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every work." | 17I thought to myself, "God will judge both the righteous and the wicked; for there is an appropriate time for every activity, and there is a time of judgment for every deed. |
| 18I said to myself, "This happens concerning people, so that God may test them and they may see for themselves that they are like animals." | 18I also thought to myself, "It is for the sake of people, so God can clearly show them that they are like animals. |
| 19For the fate of people and the fate of animals is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; they all have the same breath. People have no advantage over animals since everything is futile. | 19For the fate of humans and the fate of animals are the same: As one dies, so dies the other; both have the same breath. There is no advantage for humans over animals, for both are fleeting. |
| 20All are going to the same place; all come from dust, and all return to dust. | 20Both go to the same place, both come from the dust, and to dust both return. |
| 21Who knows if the spirit of people rises upward and the spirit of animals goes downward to the earth? | 21Who really knows if the human spirit ascends upward, and the animal's spirit descends into the earth? |
| 22I have seen that there is nothing better than for a person to enjoy his activities because that is his reward. For who can enable him to see what will happen after he dies? | 22So I perceived there is nothing better than for people to enjoy their work, because that is their reward; for who can show them what the future holds? |
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