Ecclesiastes 3:1–13

There Is a Time for Everything

3There is a time for everything.

There’s a time for everything that is done on earth.

²There is a time to be born.

And there’s a time to die.

There is a time to plant.

And there’s a time to pull up what is planted.

³There is a time to kill.

And there’s a time to heal.

There is a time to tear down.

And there’s a time to build up.

⁴There is a time to cry.

And there’s a time to laugh.

There is a time to be sad.

And there’s a time to dance.

⁵There is a time to scatter stones.

And there’s a time to gather them.

There is a time to hug.

And there’s a time not to hug.

⁶There is a time to search.

And there’s a time to stop searching.

There is a time to keep.

And there’s a time to throw away.

⁷There is a time to tear.

And there’s a time to mend.

There is a time to be silent.

And there’s a time to speak.

⁸There is a time to love.

And there’s a time to hate.

There is a time for war.

And there’s a time for peace.

⁹What does the worker get for his hard work? ¹⁰I’ve seen the heavy load God has put on men. ¹¹He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also given men a sense of what he’s been doing down through the ages. But they can’t completely figure out what he’s done from the beginning to the end.

¹²They should be happy and do good while they live. I know there’s nothing better for them to do than that. ¹³Everyone should eat and drink. People should be satisfied with all of their hard work. That is God’s gift to them.