Ecclesiastes 9:10

Ecclesiastes 9:10 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
• New International Version (NIV)Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

Context of Ecclesiastes 9:10

8Always dress yourself well in good clothes. Use as much sweet oil as you need on your head. 9Love your wife and enjoy your life together with her. God has given you your life. It is a short life and it is difficult to understand everything that happens. God wants you to enjoy these things as you do hard work during your life on the earth. Use all your strength to do the work that you are doing. One day you will die and you will go into your grave. Then you will not have any work, or ideas, or knowledge or wisdom. So do your work well while you are alive. 11I have seen another thing that happens here on the earth. The runner who runs fastest does not always win the race. The strongest soldiers do not always win the battle. Very wise people do not always have food to eat. Very clever people do not always become rich. People who have learned many things are not always successful. Yes, anything may happen to anyone at any time. 12Nobody knows the time when trouble may come to them. A fish does not know when somebody will catch it in a net. A bird does not know when somebody will catch it in a trap. In the same way, terrible trouble suddenly happens to people when they do not expect it.

Ecclesiastes 9:10 word by word

כֹּ֠ל אֲשֶׁ֨ר תִּמְצָ֧א יָֽדְךָ֛ לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת בְּכֹחֲךָ֖ עֲשֵׂ֑ה כִּי֩ אֵ֨ין מַעֲשֶׂ֤ה וְחֶשְׁבּוֹן֙ וְדַ֣עַת וְחָכְמָ֔ה בִּשְׁא֕וֹל אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתָּ֖ה הֹלֵ֥ךְ שָֽׁמָּה׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Whatsoever thy handיָדyâd · handH3027
• findethמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• to doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• with thy mightכֹּחַkôach kôach · strengthH3581
• no workמַעֲשֶׂהma‛ăώeh · deed: workH4639
• nor deviceחֶשְׁבּוֹןcheshbôn · explanationH2808
• nor knowledgeדַּ֫עַתda‛ath · knowledgeH1847
• nor wisdomחׇכְמָהchokmâh · wisdomH2451
• in the graveשְׁאוֹלshe'ôl she'ôl · hell: SheolH7585
• whither thou goestהָלַךְhâlak · to go: wentH1980

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 9:10

• Numbers 13:30Then Caleb stood in front of Moses and he told the Israelites to be quiet. He said, ‘We should go into the land and get power over it. We will certainly be able to do it!’
• 1 Chronicles 22:19So you must serve the Lord your God with all that you are. Start the work! Begin to build the Lord God's holy place. Then you can put the Lord's Covenant Box there, as well as the other holy things. You will put them in the temple that you have built to give honour to the Lord's name.’
• 1 Chronicles 28:20David said to his son Solomon, ‘Be strong and brave to do this work. The Lord God, my God, is with you to help you. He will not leave you alone. So do not be afraid. He will stay with you until you have finished all the work to build his temple.
• 1 Chronicles 29:2I have tried to provide the things that he will need to build the temple for my God. They include gold, silver, bronze, iron and wood to make things. I have also given many valuable stones, including onyx, antimony and other jewels, as well as a lot of marble.
• 2 Chronicles 31:20Those are the things that King Hezekiah did everywhere in Judah. He did what was good and right to please the Lord his God.
• Ezra 6:14So the leaders of the Jews continued to build the temple. The work went very well. They listened to the messages from God that the prophet Haggai and Iddo's grandson, Zechariah, were teaching them. They finished building the temple. Israel's God had commanded them to do that. Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, the kings of Persia, had also commanded them to do it.
• Nehemiah 2:12I went out at night. I took a few of my friends with me. I was riding on a donkey. That was the only animal that we took with us. I did not tell anyone the idea that God had put in my mind about Jerusalem.
• Nehemiah 3:1The leader of the priests, Eliashib, and the other priests built the Sheep Gate. They fixed the doors in it again. They built the wall as far as the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel. They dedicated it all to God.
• Nehemiah 4:2His officers and Samaria's army were with him. He said to them, ‘Those Jews have great ideas, but they are weak. How will they ever repair the wall? Will they give sacrifices to their God? Will that help them to repair the wall in one day? They will never build anything from this heap of stones that fire has destroyed!’
• Nehemiah 13:8I was very angry, so I threw all Tobiah's things out of the room.
• Psalms 71:15I will tell people that you always do what is right. I will always speak about your power to save people. But you have done more than I will ever know about!
• Jeremiah 29:13You will want to find me, and I will be ready to meet with you. If you really want to find me,
• Matthew 6:33Instead, always think about the things that are important in the kingdom of heaven. Always do what God shows you is right. Then he will also give you the things that you need each day.
• John 4:34Jesus said to them, ‘My Father has sent me. I must do the things he wants me to do. I must finish the work that he has given to me to do. That is my food.
• Romans 12:11Do not be lazy, but always work hard. Serve the Lord well because you enjoy it.
• Romans 15:18But I will only speak about the work that Christ has made me able to do. I have lived among the Gentiles and I have spoken God's message to them. They have obeyed God as a result of Christ's work through me.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 9:10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do - Examine here the What the How, and the Why. I. What is necessary to be done in this life, in reference to another? Turn from sin. Repent. Frequent the ordinances of God, and associate with the upright. Read the Scriptures. Pray for pardon. Believe on the Lord Jesus, that thou mayest obtain it. Look for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Bring forth in their seasons the fruits of it - (1) Repentance, (2) Faith; and (3) The…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7-12Verses 7-12 Read these six verses connectedly, in order to arrive at the meaning of the writer; and compare Ecclesiastes 2:1-12. After the description Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 of the portionless condition of the dead, the next thought which occurs is that the man who is prosperous and active should simply enjoy his portion all through this life Ecclesiastes 9:7-10; and then Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 follows the correcting thought (see Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 note)…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-10Verses 4-10 The most despicable living man's state, is preferable to that of the most noble who have died impenitent. Solomon exhorts the wise and pious to cheerful confidence in God, whatever their condition in life. The meanest morsel, coming from their Father's love, in answer to prayer, will have a peculiar relish. Not that we may set our hearts upon the delights of sense, but what God has given us we may use with wisdom. The joy here described, is…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10in Sheol: In the Old Testament, Sheol is where the dead reside. It is not always linked to punishment.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. Whatsoever--namely, in the service of God. This and last verse plainly are the language of Solomon, not of a skeptic, as Holden would explain it. hand, &c.--(Le 12:8, Margin; 1Sa 10:7, Margin). thy might--diligence (De 6:5; Jr 48:10, Margin). no work ... in the grave--(Joh 9:4; Re 14:13). "The soul's play-day is Satan's work-day; the idler the man the busier the tempter" [South].Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 9:10

• Death
• Diligence
• Hell
• Industry
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• Event
• Evil
• Remember
• Reward
• Death
• Decease, in the Old Testament and Apocyphra
• Device
• Eschatology of the Old Testament
• Psalms, Book of
• Synagogue, the Great

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 9

• 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