King James Version › Ecclesiastes › 8

Ecclesiastes

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1 Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the in­ter­pre­ta­tion of a thing? a man's wis­dom maketh his face to shine, and the bold­ness of his face shall be changed. 2 I ­coun­sel thee to keep the king's com­mand­ment, and that in re­gard of the oath of God. 3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth what­so­ev­er pleaseth him. 4 Where the word of a king is, there is pow­er: and who may say unto him, What doest thou? 5 Whoso keep­eth the com­mand­ment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man's heart dis­cer­neth both time and judg­ment. 6 Be­cause to ev­ery pur­pose there is time and judg­ment, there­fore the mis­ery of man is great upon him. 7 For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be? 8 There is no man that hath pow­er over the spir­it to re­tain the spir­it; nei­ther hath he pow­er in the day of death: and there is no dis­charge in that war; nei­ther shall wicked­ness de­liv­er those that are giv­en to it. 9 All this have I seen, and ap­plied my heart unto ev­ery work that is done un­der the sun: there is a time where­in one man ruleth over an­oth­er to his own hurt. 10 And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were for­got­ten in the city where they had so done: this is also van­i­ty. 11 Be­cause sen­tence against an evil work is not ex­e­cut­ed speed­i­ly, there­fore the heart of the sons of men is ful­ly set in them to do evil. 12 Though a sin­ner do evil an hun­dred times, and his days be pro­longed, yet sure­ly I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear be­fore him: 13 But it shall not be well with the wicked, nei­ther shall he pro­long his days, which are as a shad­ow; be­cause he feareth not be­fore God. 14 There is a van­i­ty which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it hap­peneth ac­cord­ing to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it hap­peneth ac­cord­ing to the work of the righ­teous: I said that this also is van­i­ty. 15 Then I com­mend­ed mirth, be­cause a man hath no bet­ter thing un­der the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be mer­ry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him un­der the sun. 16 When I ap­plied mine heart to know wis­dom, and to see the busi­ness that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that nei­ther day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) 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.