Ecclesiastes 3
1 For, every thing, there is a season, —and a time for every pursuit, under the heavens: —
Alle thingis han tyme, and alle thingis vndur sunne passen bi her spaces.
2 A time to be born, and a time to die, —A time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted;
Tyme of birthe, and time of diyng; tyme to plaunte, and tyme to drawe vp that that is plauntid.
3 A time to kill, and a time to heal, —A time to break down, and a time to build up;
Tyme to sle, and tyme to make hool; tyme to distrie, and tyme to bilde.
4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh, —A time to wail, and a time to dance for joy;
Tyme to wepe, and tyme to leiye; tyme to biweile, and tyme to daunse.
5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to heap up stones, —A time to embrace, and a time to be far from loving embrace;
Tyme to scatere stoonys, and tyme to gadere togidere; tyme to colle, and tyme to be fer fro collyngis.
6 A time to seek, and a time to give up as lost, —A time to keep, and a time to cast away;
Tyme to wynne, and tyme to leese; tyme to kepe, and tyme to caste awei.
7 A time to rend, and a time to sew, —A time to be silent, and a time to speak;
Tyme to kitte, and tyme to sewe togidere; tyme to be stille, and tyme to speke.
8 A time to love and a time to hate, —A time of war, and a time of peace.
Tyme of loue, and tyme of hatrede; tyme of batel, and tyme of pees.
9 What profit hath he that worketh, in that wherein, himself, hath toiled?
What hath a man more of his trauel?
10 I looked at the employment which God hath given to the sons of men, to work therein:
I siy the turment, which God yaf to the sones of men, that thei be occupied therynne.
11 Everything, hath he made beautiful in its own time, —also, intelligence, hath he put in their heart, without which men could not find out the work which God hath wrought, from the beginning even unto the end.
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 know that there is no blessedness in them, —save to be glad, and to do well with one’s life.
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 Though indeed, that any man should eat and drink, and see blessedness, in all his toil, it is, the gift of God.
For whi ech man that etith and drinkith, and seeth good of his trauel; this is the yifte of God.
14 I know, that, whatsoever God doeth, the same, shall be age-abiding, unto it, there is nothing to add, and, from it, there is nothing to take away, —and, God, hath done it, that men should stand in awe 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 That which was, already, had been, and, that which shall be, already, shall have been, —but, God, seeketh that which hath been chased away.
That thing that is maad, dwellith perfitli; tho thingis that schulen come, weren bifore; and God restorith that, that is goon.
16 Then, again, I saw under the sun, the place of justice, that there was lawlessness, and, the place of righteousness, that there was lawlessness.
I siy vndur sunne vnfeithfulnesse in the place of doom; and wickidnesse in the place of riytfulnesse.
17 Said, I, in my heart, Both the righteous and the lawless, will God judge, —for [there will be] a time for every pursuit, and concerning every work—there.
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 Said, I, in my heart, as concerning the sons of men, That God was minded to prove them, —and that they might see, that they were beasts, of themselves.
I seide in myn herte of the sones of men, that God schulde preue hem, and schewe that thei ben lijk vnresonable beestis.
19 For, as regardeth the destiny of the sons of men and the destiny of beasts, one fate, have they, as dieth the one, so, dieth the other, and, one spirit, have they all, —and, the pre-eminence of man over beast, is nothing, for, all, were vanity:
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 unto one place, —all, came from the dust, and all, return to the dust.
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 knoweth the spirit of the sons of men, whether it, ascendeth, above, —or the spirit of the beast, whether it, descendeth, below, 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 was nothing better than that a man should be glad in his works, for, that, is his portion, —for who can bring him in, to look upon that which shall be 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?
