Ecclesiastes 8:2-14

English Standard Version

² I say:^[a] Keep the king's command, because of ^(A)God's oath to him.^{[b] 3} Be not hasty to ^(B)go from his presence. Do not take your stand in an evil cause, for he does whatever he pleases. ⁴ For the word of the king is supreme, and ^(C)who may say to him, “What are you doing?” ⁵ Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way.^{[c] 6} For there is a time and a way ^(D)for everything, although man's trouble^[d] lies heavy on him. ⁷ For he ^(E)does not know what is to be, for ^(F)who can tell him how it will be? ⁸ No man has power to ^(G)retain the spirit, ^(H)or power over the day of death. There is no ^(I)discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it. ^9 (J)All this I observed while applying my heart to all that is done under the sun, when man had power over man to his hurt.

Those Who Fear God Will Do Well

¹⁰ Then I saw the wicked buried. They used to go in and out of ^(K)the holy place and were ^(L)praised^[e] in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity.^{[f] 11} Because ^(M)the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, ^(N)the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil. ¹² Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and ^(O)prolongs his life, yet I know that ^(P)it will be well with ^(Q)those who fear God, because they fear before him. ¹³ But it will ^(R)not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like ^(S)a shadow, because he does not fear before God.

Man Cannot Know God's Ways

¹⁴ There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people ^(T)to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people ^(U)to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.