Ecclesiastes 11
Expanded Bible
Boldly Face the Future
11 ·Invest what you have [L Send/Cast/Throw your bread upon the waters],
because after ·a while you will get a return [L many days you may find it].
2 ·Invest what you have in several different businesses [L Give a portion to seven, even eight],
because you don’t know what ·disasters [evil] might ·happen [L occur in the land].
3 If clouds are full of rain,
they will shower on the earth.
A tree can fall to the north or south,
but it will stay where it falls.
4 Those who ·wait for perfect weather [L watch the wind]
will never ·plant seeds [sow];
those who look at every cloud
will never harvest crops.
5 You don’t know ·where the wind will blow [L the way of the wind],
and you don’t know how ·a baby grows inside its mother [L the bones/or body are/is formed in its mother’s womb].
In the same way, you don’t know ·what God is doing [the work of God],
or ·how he created everything [or who does everything].
6 Plant early in the morning,
and ·work until [L do not let your hand rest at] evening,
because you don’t know if this or that will succeed.
They might both do well.
Serve God While You Are Young
7 ·Sunshine [L Light] is sweet;
it is good ·to see the light of day [L for the eyes to see the sun].
8 People ought to enjoy every day of their lives,
·no matter how long they live [L if they live many years].
But they should also remember this:
·You will be dead a long time [L There will be many dark days].
Everything that happens then is useless [1:2].
9 Young people, enjoy yourselves while you are young;
·be happy [L let your heart be merry] while you are young.
·Do whatever your heart desires [L Follow the ways of your heart],
·whatever you want to do [L follow the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes].
But ·remember [L know] that God will ·judge you
for everything you do.
10 ·Don’t worry [L Put away anger from your heart],
and ·forget the troubles of [L turn away evil from] your body,
because youth and ·childhood [vitality] are useless [1:2].
Ecclesiastes 11
Tree of Life Version
Wisdom of the Long View
11 Cast your bread upon the waters,
for after many days you will find it.
2 Give portions to seven, or even to eight,
for you do not know what disaster may happen upon the earth.
3 If the clouds are full,
they empty out rain upon the earth.
Whether a tree falls to south or north,
the tree lies wherever it falls.
4 Whoever keeps watching the wind will not sow
and whoever gazes at the clouds will not reap.
5 Just as you do not know how the spirit passes into the bones in the womb of a pregnant woman,
so you do not know the work of God who makes all things.
6 In the morning sow your seed,
and in the evening do not let your hand be idle,
for you do not know if this or that will succeed,
or if both will prosper together.
7 Light is sweet,
and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.
8 For if a man lives many years,
let him rejoice in them all.
But let him remember the days of darkness—
for there will be many.
Everything to come is obscure.
9 Rejoice, young man, in your childhood,
and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth.
Walk in the ways of your heart
and in the sight of your eyes,
but know that for all these things
God will bring you to judgment.
10 So banish anxiety from your heart
and cast off distress from your body,
for youth and prime of life are fleeting.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.