Ecclesiastes 3

1 For everything there is a fixed time, and a time for every business under the sun.

Alle thingis han tyme, and alle thingis vndur sunne passen bi her spaces.

2 A time for birth and a time for death; a time for planting and a time for uprooting;

Tyme of birthe, and time of diyng; tyme to plaunte, and tyme to drawe vp that that is plauntid.

3 A time to put to death and a time to make well; a time for pulling down and a time for building up;

Tyme to sle, and tyme to make hool; tyme to distrie, and tyme to bilde.

4 A time for weeping and a time for laughing; a time for sorrow and a time for dancing;

Tyme to wepe, and tyme to leiye; tyme to biweile, and tyme to daunse.

5 A time to take stones away and a time to get stones together; a time for kissing and a time to keep from kissing;

Tyme to scatere stoonys, and tyme to gadere togidere; tyme to colle, and tyme to be fer fro collyngis.

6 A time for search and a time for loss; a time to keep and a time to give away;

Tyme to wynne, and tyme to leese; tyme to kepe, and tyme to caste awei.

7 A time for undoing and a time for stitching; a time for keeping quiet and a time for talk;

Tyme to kitte, and tyme to sewe togidere; tyme to be stille, and tyme to speke.

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

Tyme of loue, and tyme of hatrede; tyme of batel, and tyme of pees.

9 What profit has the worker in the work which he does?

What hath a man more of his trauel?

10 I saw the work which God has put on the sons of man.

I siy the turment, which God yaf to the sones of men, that thei be occupied therynne.

11 He has made everything right in its time; but he has made their hearts without knowledge, so that man is unable to see the works of God, from the first to the last.

God made alle thingis good in her tyme, and yaf the world to disputyng of hem, that a man fynde not the werk which God hath wrouyt fro the bigynnyng `til in to the ende.

12 I am certain that there is nothing better for a man than to be glad, and to do good while life is in him.

And Y knew that no thing was betere `to a man, `no but to be glad, and to do good werkis in his lijf.

13 And for every man to take food and drink, and have joy in all his work, is a reward from God.

For whi ech man that etith and drinkith, and seeth good of his trauel; this is the yifte of God.

14 I am certain that whatever God does will be for ever. No addition may be made to it, nothing may be taken from it; and God has done it so that man may be in fear before him.

I haue lerned that alle werkis, whiche God made, lasten stidfastli `til in to with outen ende; we moun not adde ony thing to tho, nether take awei fro tho thingis, whiche God made, that he be dred.

15 Whatever is has been before, and what is to be is now; because God makes search for the things which are past.

That thing that is maad, dwellith perfitli; tho thingis that schulen come, weren bifore; and God restorith that, that is goon.

16 And again, I saw under the sun, in the place of the judges, that evil was there; and in the place of righteousness, that evil was there.

I siy vndur sunne vnfeithfulnesse in the place of doom; and wickidnesse in the place of riytfulnesse.

17 I said in my heart, God will be judge of the good and of the bad; because a time for every purpose and for every work has been fixed by him.

And Y seide in myn herte, The Lord schal deme a iust man, and an vnfeithful man; and the tyme of ech thing schal be thanne.

18 I said in my heart, It is because of the sons of men, so that God may put them to the test and that they may see themselves as beasts.

I seide in myn herte of the sones of men, that God schulde preue hem, and schewe that thei ben lijk vnresonable beestis.

19 Because the fate of the sons of men and the fate of the beasts is the same. As is the death of one so is the death of the other, and all have one spirit. Man is not higher than the beasts; because all is to no purpose.

Therfor oon is the perisching of man and of beestis, and euene condicioun is of euer eithir; as a man dieth, `so and tho beestis dien; alle beestis brethen in lijk maner, and a man hath no thing more than a beeste.

20 All go to one place, all are of the dust, and all will be turned to dust again.

Alle thingis ben suget to vanyte, and alle thingis goen to o place; tho ben maad of erthe, and tho turnen ayen togidere in to erthe.

21 Who is certain that the spirit of the sons of men goes up to heaven, or that the spirit of the beasts goes down to the earth?

Who knowith, if the spirit of the sones of Adam stieth vpward, and if the spirit of beestis goith dounward?

22 So I saw that there is nothing better than for a man to have joy in his work — because that is his reward. Who will make him see what will come after him?

And Y perseyuede that no thing is betere, than that a man be glad in his werk, and that this be his part; for who schal brynge hym, that he knowe thingis that schulen come after hym?