Ecclesiastes 3:12-22 ▼

12 So I perceaued that in those thinges there is nothyng better for a man then to be mery, and to do well as long as he lyueth.

13 For all that a man eateth & drynketh, yea whatsoeuer a man enioyeth of all his labour: that same is a gyft of God.

14 I considered also that whatsoeuer God doth, it continueth for euer: And that nothyng can be put vnto it, nor taken from it, & that God doth it to the intent that men shoulde feare hym.

15 The thyng that hath ben, is nowe: and the thyng that is for to come, hath ben afore time: for God restoreth againe the thyng that was past.

16 Moreouer, I sawe vnder the sunne vngodlynes in the steade of iudgement, & iniquitie in steade of righteousnesse.

17 Then thought I in my mynde, God shall separate the ryghteous from the vngodly: and then shalbe the tyme and iudgement of all counsayles & workes.

18 I communed with myne owne heart also concernyng the children of men, howe God hath chosen them, and yet letteth them appeare as though they were beastes.

19 For it happeneth vnto men as it doth vnto beastes, euen one condition vnto them both: as the one dyeth so dyeth the other, yea they haue both one maner of breath: so that in this a man hath no preeminence aboue a beast, but are all subdued vnto vanitie.

20 They go all vnto one place: for as they be all of dust, so shall they all turne vnto dust agayne.

21 Who knoweth the spirite of man that goeth vpwarde, & the breath of the beast that goeth downe to the earth?

22 Wherfore I perceaue that there is nothyng better for a man then to be ioyfull in his labour, for that is his portion: But who wyll bryng hym to see the thyng that shall come after hym?