Darby Bible
Ecclesiastes 3:17
17I said in my heart, 1God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
Ecclesiastes 3:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
- New International Version (NIV)I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work.
- New King James Version (NKJV)I said in my heart, “God shall judge the righteous and the wicked, For there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.”
Context of Ecclesiastes 3:17
15That which is was long ago, and that which is to be hath already been; and God bringeth back again that which is past. 16And moreover I saw under the sun, that in the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there. I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work. 18I said in my heart, It is thus with the children of men, that God may prove them, and that they should see that they themselves are but beasts. 19For what befalleth the children of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other, and they have all one breath; and man hath no pre-eminence above the beast: for all is vanity.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 3Ecclesiastes 3:17 word by word
אָמַ֤רְתִּֽי אֲנִי֙ בְּלִבִּ֔י אֶת־הַצַּדִּיק֙ וְאֶת־הָ֣רָשָׁ֔ע יִשְׁפֹּ֖ט הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים כִּי־עֵ֣ת לְכָל־חֵ֔פֶץ וְעַ֥ל כָּל־הַֽמַּעֲשֶׂ֖ה שָֽׁם׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 3:17
- Ecclesiastes 1:16I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I have become great and have acquired wisdom more than all they that have been before me over Jerusalem; and my heart hath seen much of wisdom and knowledge.
- Ecclesiastes 2:1I said in my heart, Come now, I will try thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure. But behold, this also is vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 12:14For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.
- Genesis 18:25Far be it from thee to do so, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that the righteous should be as the wicked — far be it from thee! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?
- Psalms 98:9Before Jehovah, for he cometh to judge the earth: he will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
- Matthew 16:27For the Son of man is about to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to each according to his doings.
- Matthew 25:31But when the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit down upon his throne of glory,
- John 5:22for neither does the Father judge any one, but has given all judgment to the Son;
- Acts 17:31because he has set a day in which he is going to judge the habitable earth in righteousness by [the] man whom he has appointed, giving the proof [of it] to all [in] having raised him from among [the] dead.
- Romans 2:5but, according to thy hardness and impenitent heart, treasurest up to thyself wrath, in [the] day of wrath and revelation of [the] righteous judgment of God,
- 1 Corinthians 4:5So that do not judge anything before [the] time, until the Lord shall come, who shall also both bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and shall make manifest the counsels of hearts; and then shall each have [his] praise from God.
- 2 Corinthians 5:10For we must all be manifested before the judgment-seat of the Christ, that each may receive the things [done] in the body, according to those he has done, whether [it be] good or evil.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:6if at least [it is a] righteous thing with God to render tribulation to those that trouble you,
- Revelation 20:11And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled, and place was not found for them.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heavens:
- Jeremiah 29:10For thus saith Jehovah: When seventy years shall be accomplished for Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in bringing you back to this place.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 3:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17For there is a time there for every purpose - Man has his time here below, and God shall have his time above. At his throne the judged shall be rejudged, and iniquity for ever close her mouth.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16-22Verses 16-22 That great anomaly in the moral government of this world, the seemingly unequal distribution of rewards and punishments, will be rectified by God, who has future times and events under His control Ecclesiastes 3:16-17. As for people, they are placed by God, who is their teacher, in a humble condition, even on a level with inferior animals, by death, that great instance of their subjection to vanity Ecclesiastes 3:18-19, which reduces to its…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-22Verses 16-22 Without the fear of the Lord, man is but vanity; set that aside, and judges will not use their power well. And there is another Judge that stands before the door. With God there is a time for the redressing of grievances, though as yet we see it not. Solomon seems to express his wish that men might perceive, that by choosing this world as their portion, they brought themselves to a level with the beasts, without being free, as they are, from…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17God will judge: Human injustices (Ecclesiastes 3:16) are temporary and God will correct them. The narrator repeats this to conclude the book (Ecclesiastes 12:14).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. Solution of it. There is a coming judgment in which God will vindicate His righteous ways. The sinner's "time" of his unrighteous "work" is short. God also has His "time" and "work" of judgment; and, meanwhile, is overruling, for good at last, what seems now dark. Man cannot now "find out" the plan of God's ways (Ec 3:11; Psa 97:2). If judgment instantly followed every sin, there would be no scope for free will, faith, and perseverance of saints in…Read the comment
Topics related to Ecclesiastes 3:17
In the dictionaries
Notes
- 1. Ecclesiastes 3:17 3.17 Elohim ↩
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
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