Ecclesiastes 3:8

Ecclesiastes 3:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
• New International Version (NIV)a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
• English Standard Version (ESV)a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
• New King James Version (NKJV)A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace.

Context of Ecclesiastes 3:8

6a time to search and a time to count 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; a 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? 10I have seen the task that God has given the children of Adam to keep them occupied.

Ecclesiastes 3:8 word by word

עֵ֤ת לֶֽאֱהֹב֙ וְעֵ֣ת לִשְׂנֹ֔א עֵ֥ת מִלְחָמָ֖ה וְעֵ֥ת שָׁלֽוֹם׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• A timeעֵת‛êth · timeH6256
• to loveאָהֵב'âhab 'âhêb · to love: loverH157
• to hateשָׂנֵאώânê' · to hateH8130
• of warמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
• of peaceשָׁלוֹםshâlôm shâlôm · peaceH7965

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 3:8

• Ezekiel 16:8“‘Then I passed by you and saw you, and you were indeed at the age for love. So I spread the edge of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged myself to you, entered into a covenant with you — this is the declaration of the Lord God — and you became mine.
• Psalms 139:21Lord, don’t I hate those who hate you, and detest those who rebel against you?
• Ephesians 3:19and to know Christ’s love that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
• Ephesians 5:25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her
• 2 Chronicles 19:2Then Jehu son of the seer Hanani went out to confront him and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Do you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, the Lord’s wrath is on you.
• Luke 14:26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters — yes, and even his own life — he cannot be my disciple.
• Revelation 2:2I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil people. You have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars.
• Genesis 14:14When Abram heard that his relative had been taken prisoner, he assembled his 318 trained men, born in his household, and they went in pursuit as far as Dan.
• Joshua 8:1The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Take all the troops with you and go attack Ai. Look, I have handed over to you the king of Ai, his people, city, and land.
• Joshua 11:23So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the Lord had told Moses. Joshua then gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. After this, the land had rest from war.
• 2 Samuel 10:6When the Ammonites realized they had become repulsive to David, they hired twenty thousand foot soldiers from the Arameans of Beth-rehob and Zobah, one thousand men from the king of Maacah, and twelve thousand men from Tob.
• 1 Kings 5:4The Lord my God has now given me rest on every side; there is no enemy or misfortune.
• 2 Chronicles 20:1After this, the Moabites and Ammonites, together with some of the Meunites, came to fight against Jehoshaphat.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 3:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8A time to love, - hate, - of war, - of peace - "Love turns to hatred; interest or caprice Dissolves the firmest knot by friendship tied. O'er rival nations, with revenge inflamed, Or lust of power, fell Discord shakes awhile Her baleful torch: now smiling Peace returns." The above paraphrase on the verses cited contains a general view of the principal occurrences of time, in reference to the human being, from his cradle to his grave, through all the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-8We cannot control when we are born or when we die (Ecclesiastes 8:8), but we must live wisely between those events. plant and...uproot: Make wise agricultural decisions during the natural seasons. In ancient Israel, times to kill included capital punishment and war. During mourning, people in the Near East often tore their clothes. There is a time to hate, even for God (Psalms 5:5; 11:5).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. hate--for example, sin, lusts (Lu 14:26); that is, to love God so much more as to seem in comparison to hate "father or mother," when coming between us and God. a time of war ... peace--(Lu 14:31).Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 3:8

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Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings