Ecclesiastes 8 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Obey Authorities for God’s Sake

8 Who is like a wise man?
And who knows the interpretation of a thing?
(A)A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,
And (B)the [a]sternness of his face is changed.

Obey Authorities for God’s Sake

2 I say, “Keep the king’s commandment (C)for the sake of your oath to God. 3 (D)Do not be hasty to go from his presence. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.”

4 Where the word of a king is, there is power;
And (E)who may say to him, “What are you doing?”
5 He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful;
And a wise man’s heart [b]discerns both time and judgment,
6 Because (F)for every matter there is a time and judgment,
Though the misery of man [c]increases greatly.
7 (G)For he does not know what will happen;
So who can tell him when it will occur?
8 (H)No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit,
And no one has power in the day of death.
There is (I)no release from that war,
And wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it.

9 All this I have seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun: There is a time in which one man rules over another to his own hurt.

Death Comes to All

10 Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were (J)forgotten[d] in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity. 11 (K)Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12 (L)Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that (M)it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him. 13 But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God.

14 There is a vanity which occurs on earth, that there are just men to whom it (N)happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the (O)righteous. I said that this also is vanity.

15 (P)So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.

16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that is done on earth, even though one sees no sleep day or night, 17 then I saw all the work of God, that (Q)a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. For though a man labors to discover it, yet he will not find it; moreover, though a wise man attempts to know it, he will not be able to find it.

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 8:1 Lit. strength
  2. Ecclesiastes 8:5 Lit. knows
  3. Ecclesiastes 8:6 is great upon him
  4. Ecclesiastes 8:10 Some Heb. mss., LXX, Vg. praised

Cross references

  1. Ecclesiastes 8:1 : Prov. 4:8, 9; Acts 6:15
  2. Ecclesiastes 8:1 : Deut. 28:50
  3. Ecclesiastes 8:2 : Ex. 22:11; 2 Sam. 21:7; 1 Chr. 29:24; Ezek. 17:18; [Rom. 13:5]
  4. Ecclesiastes 8:3 : Eccl. 10:4
  5. Ecclesiastes 8:4 : 1 Sam. 13:11, 13; Job 34:18
  6. Ecclesiastes 8:6 : Eccl. 3:1, 17
  7. Ecclesiastes 8:7 : Prov. 24:22; Eccl. 6:12
  8. Ecclesiastes 8:8 : Ps. 49:6, 7; Job 14:5
  9. Ecclesiastes 8:8 : Deut. 20:5–8
  10. Ecclesiastes 8:10 : Eccl. 2:16; 9:5
  11. Ecclesiastes 8:11 : Ps. 10:6; 50:21; Is. 26:10
  12. Ecclesiastes 8:12 : Is. 65:20; [Rom. 2:5–7]
  13. Ecclesiastes 8:12 : [Deut. 4:40; Ps. 37:11, 18, 19; Prov. 1:32, 33; Is. 3:10; Matt. 25:34, 41]
  14. Ecclesiastes 8:14 : Ps. 73:14
  15. Ecclesiastes 8:14 : Eccl. 2:14; 7:15; 9:1–3
  16. Ecclesiastes 8:15 : Eccl. 2:24
  17. Ecclesiastes 8:17 : Job 5:9; Ps. 73:16; Eccl. 3:11; Rom. 11:33

You Might Also Like:

Ecclesiastes 8 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

8 Who [is] as the wise? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? The wisdom of man causeth his face to shine, and the hardness of his face is changed. 2 I pray thee, the commandment of a king keep, even for the sake of the oath of God. 3 Be not troubled at his presence, thou mayest go, stand n...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

8 Who is such as a wise man? and who knoweth the solving, either expounding, of a word? The wisdom of a man shineth in his cheer; and the mightiest shall change his face (The wisdom of a person shineth in their face; and maketh even the mightiest to change his expression, or his countenance). 2 I ke...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - World English Bible (WEB)

8 Who is like the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his face is changed. 2 I say, “Keep the king’s command!” because of the oath to God. 3 Don’t be hasty to go out of his presence. Don’t persist in an evil thing, for he ...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - The Voice (VOICE)

8 Teacher: How rare to find one who is truly wise, one who knows how to interpret this or solve that! Wisdom brightens the countenance of the face, and softens hard lines etched in the face. 2 Here’s my advice: keep what comes from the king’s mouth; after all, this matter is really an oath from God....
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Wisdom’s Light and Limits8 Who is like the wise person? Who knows the meaning of a matter?A person’s wisdom makes his face shine, transforming the harshness of his face. 2 I say: “Obey the king’s command, and especially in regard to the oath of God. 3 Do not be hasty to rush out of his presence. Do...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

Obey the King and Enjoy Yourself8 Who is like the wise man?And who knows the interpretation of a thing?A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his countenance is changed. 2 Keep[a] the king’s command, and because of your sacred oath be not dismayed; 3 go from his presence, do not d...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Obey the King and Enjoy Yourself8 Who is like the wise man?And who knows the interpretation of a thing?A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his countenance is changed. 2 Keep[a] the king’s command, and because of your sacred oath be not dismayed; 3 go from his presence, do not d...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

Obey the King and Enjoy Yourself8 Who is like the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing?Wisdom makes one’s face shine, and the hardness of one’s countenance is changed. 2 Keep[a] the king’s command because of your sacred oath. 3 Do not be terrified; go from his presence, do not dela...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Obey the King and Enjoy Yourself8 Who is like the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing?Being wise makes one’s face shine, but arrogance changes one’s face.(A)2 Keep[a] the king’s command, and because of your sacred oath(B)3 do not be terrified; go from his presence; do not delay whe...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New Living Translation (NLT)

8 How wonderful to be wise, to analyze and interpret things.Wisdom lights up a person’s face, softening its harshness. Obedience to the King2 Obey the king since you vowed to God that you would. 3 Don’t try to avoid doing your duty, and don’t stand with those who plot evil, for the king can do whate...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New Life Version (NLV)

8 Who is like the wise man? And who understands the meaning of anything? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine. The hard look on his face is changed. Obey the King2 I say, “Obey the words of the king because of the promise you made to God. 3 Do not be in a hurry to leave him. Do not join in wrong-doi...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Obey Authorities for God’s Sake8 Who is like a wise man?And who knows the interpretation of a thing?(A)A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,And (B)the [a]sternness of his face is changed. Obey Authorities for God’s Sake2 I say, “Keep the king’s commandment (C)for the sake of your oath to God. 3 (D)D...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

8 Who is like the wise? Who knows the explanation of things?A person’s wisdom brightens their face and changes its hard appearance. Obey the king2 Obey the king’s command, I say, because you took an oath before God. 3 Do not be in a hurry to leave the king’s presence. Do not stand up for a bad caus...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New International Version (NIV)

8 Who is like the wise? Who knows the explanation of things?A person’s wisdom brightens their face and changes its hard appearance. Obey the King2 Obey the king’s command, I say, because you took an oath before God. 3 Do not be in a hurry to leave the king’s presence.(A) Do not stand up for a bad ca...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

8 Who is like a wise person? Who knows how to explain things?A person’s wisdom makes their face bright. It softens the look on their face. Obey the King2 I’m telling you to obey the king’s command. You promised to serve him. You made a promise to God. 3 Don’t be in a hurry to quit your job in the p...
Read More

Ecclesiastes 8 - New English Translation (NET)

Human Government Demonstrates Limitations of Wisdom8 Who is[a] a[b] wise person? Who knows the solution[c] to a problem?[d]A person’s wisdom brightens his appearance,[e] and softens[f] his harsh countenance.[g]2 Obey the king’s command,[h]because you took[i] an oath before God[j] to be loyal to him....
Read More