Ecclesiastes 8

1 Who is as the wise? and who knoweth the explanation of things? A man's wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face is changed.

Who [is] as the wise? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? The wisdom of man causes his face to shine, and the hardness of his face is changed.

2 I [say], Keep the king's commandment, and [that] on account of the oath of God.

I [counsel]: keep the command of a king, even for the sake of an oath [to] God.

3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight; persist not in an evil thing: for he doeth whatever pleaseth him,

Do not be troubled at his presence, you may go, do not stand in an evil thing, for all that he pleases he does.

4 because the word of a king is power; and who may say unto him, What doest thou?

Where the word of a king [is] power [is], and who says to him, “What do you do?”

5 Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing; and a wise man's heart knoweth time and manner.

Whoever is keeping a command knows no evil thing, and time and judgment the heart of the wise knows.

6 For to every purpose there is time and manner. For the misery of man is great upon him;

For to every delight there is a time and a judgment, for the misfortune of man is great on him.

7 for he knoweth not that which shall be; for who can tell him how it shall be?

For he does not know that which will be, for when it will be who declares to him?

8 There is no man who hath control over the spirit to retain the spirit; and no one hath control over the day of death; and there is no discharge in that war, neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.

There is no man ruling over the spirit to restrain the spirit, and there is no authority over the day of death, and there is no discharge in battle, and wickedness does not deliver its possessors.

9 All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time when man ruleth man to his hurt.

All this I have seen so as to give my heart to every work that has been done under the sun; a time that man has ruled over man to his own evil.

10 And I have also seen the wicked buried and going away; and such as had acted rightly went from [the] holy place, and were forgotten in the city. This also is vanity.

And so I have seen the wicked buried, and they went in, even from the Holy Place they go, and they are forgotten in the city whether they had so done. This [is] also vanity.

11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to do evil.

Because sentence has not been done [on] an evil work speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of man is full within them to do evil.

12 Though a sinner do evil a hundred times, and prolong his [days], yet I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, because they fear before him;

Though a sinner is doing evil one hundred [times], and prolonging [himself] for it, surely also I know that there is good to those fearing God, who fear before Him.

13 but it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong [his] days as a shadow, because he feareth not before God.

And good is not to the wicked, and he does not prolong days as a shadow, because he is not fearing before God.

14 There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there are righteous [men] unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; and there are wicked [men] to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.

There is a vanity that has been done on the earth, that there are righteous ones to whom it is coming according to the work of the wicked, and there are wicked ones to whom it is coming according to the work of the righteous. I have said that this [is] also vanity.

15 And I commended mirth, because there is nothing better for man under the sun than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry; for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God hath given him under the sun.

And I have praised mirth because there is no good to man under the sun except to eat and to drink, and to rejoice, and it remains with him of his labor the days of his life that God has given to him under the sun.

16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes),

When I gave my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that has been done on the earth (for there is also a spectator in whose eyes sleep is not by day and by night),

17 then I saw that all [is] the work of God, [and] that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however man may labour to seek [it] out, yet doth he not find [it]; and even, if a wise [man] think to know [it], he shall not be able to find [it] out.

then I considered all the work of God, that man is not able to find out the work that has been done under the sun, because though man labor to seek, yet he does not find; and even though the wise man speak of knowing he is not able to find.