Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

1For everything there is an appointed time, and an appropriate time for every activity on earth:

2A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what was planted;

3A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

4A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

5A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

6A time to search, and a time to give something up as lost; a time to keep, and a time to throw away;

7A time to rip, and a time to sew; a time to keep silent, and a time to speak.

8A time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.

9What benefit can a worker gain from his toil?

10I have observed the burden that God has given to people to keep them occupied.

11God has made everything fit beautifully in its appropriate time, but he has also placed ignorance in the human heart so that people cannot discover what God has ordained, from the beginning to the end of their lives.