Ecclesiastes 8:7

Ecclesiastes 8:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be?
• New International Version (NIV)Since no one knows the future, who can tell someone else what is to come?
• English Standard Version (ESV)For he does not know what is to be, for who can tell him how it will be?
• New King James Version (NKJV)For he does not know what will happen; So who can tell him when it will occur?

Context of Ecclesiastes 8:7

5Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right, 6for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble. Indeed, how can people avoid what they don’t know is going to happen? 8None of us can hold back our spirit from departing. None of us has the power to prevent the day of our death. There is no escaping that obligation, that dark battle. And in the face of death, wickedness will certainly not rescue the wicked. 9I have thought deeply about all that goes on here under the sun, where people have the power to hurt each other.

Ecclesiastes 8:7 word by word

כִּֽי־אֵינֶ֥נּוּ יֹדֵ֖עַ מַה־שֶּׁיִּֽהְיֶ֑ה כִּ֚י כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר יִֽהְיֶ֔ה מִ֖י יַגִּ֥יד לֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For he knowethיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• not that which shall be: for who can tellנָגַדnâgad · to tellH5046

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 8:7

• Ecclesiastes 6:12In the few days of our meaningless lives, who knows how our days can best be spent? Our lives are like a shadow. Who can tell what will happen on this earth after we are gone?
• Ecclesiastes 9:12People can never predict when hard times might come. Like fish in a net or birds in a trap, people are caught by sudden tragedy.
• Ecclesiastes 10:14they chatter on and on. No one really knows what is going to happen; no one can predict the future.
• Proverbs 24:22for disaster will hit them suddenly. Who knows what punishment will come from the Lord and the king?
• Proverbs 29:1Whoever stubbornly refuses to accept criticism will suddenly be destroyed beyond recovery.
• Matthew 24:44You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
• Matthew 25:6“At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’
• 1 Thessalonians 5:1Now concerning how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 8:7

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7When - Or, as in the margin. For the meaning of this verse, compare marginal references.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-8Verses 6-8 God has, in wisdom, kept away from us the knowledge of future events, that we may be always ready for changes. We must all die, no flight or hiding-place can save us, nor are there any weapons of effectual resistance. Ninety thousand die every day, upwards of sixty every minute, and one every moment. How solemn the thought! Oh that men were wise, that they understood these things, that they would consider their latter end! The believer alone is…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8Our strength, goodness, and wisdom cannot prevent disasters, so choosing wickedness would be pointless.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. he--the sinner, by neglecting times (for example, "the accepted time, and the day of salvation, 2Co 6:2), is taken by surprise by the judgment (Ec 3:22; 6:12; 9:12). The godly wise observe the due times of things (Ec 3:1), and so, looking for the judgment, are not taken by surprise, though not knowing the precise "when" (1Th 5:2-4); they "know the time" to all saving purposes (Ro 13:11).Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 8:7

• Ignorance

In the dictionaries

• Discern
• Discharge
• Feel
• Hasty
• Heart
• Set
• Synagogue, the Great

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 8

• 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