Ecclesiastes 9:4–11

⁷For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.

⁸Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground;

⁹Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant.

¹⁰But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?

¹¹As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up:

¹²So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.

¹⁸For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.

²⁶And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

²⁷Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:

²⁸For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

²⁹Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

²¹This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.

²²¶ It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

⁸For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?

¹⁴They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.

¹¹There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.

⁵For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?

¹⁰Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.

¹¹Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?

¹²Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

²⁷And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

²¹His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them.

¹⁵Let them be before the Lord continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁶For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.

¹⁰And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity.

¹⁶Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.

⁸The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.

⁹As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to the grave shall come up no more.

¹⁰He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him any more.

²¶ It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart.

²³For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.

³Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.

⁴His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.

¹²For who knoweth what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?

¹⁷There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at rest.

¹⁸There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.

²⁰Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.

¹⁸¶ Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.

¹⁹And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

²⁰Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the labour which I took under the sun.

²¹For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.

²²For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun?

²³For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity.

⁸Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

²⁸The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.

¹²I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life.

¹³And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.

⁷And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee.

¹⁹¶ A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.

¹⁵Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing 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 giveth him under the sun.

²⁴¶ There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.

²⁵For who can eat, or who else can hasten hereunto, more than I?

²⁶For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.

¹⁰Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

¹¹So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.

¹²And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.

¹SO they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God.

²And when David had made an end of offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord.

³And he dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to every one a loaf of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine.

¹⁸¶ Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.

¹⁴And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.

¹⁵Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto the Lord thy God in the place which the Lord shall choose: because the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, therefore thou shalt surely rejoice.

²¹And they sacrificed sacrifices unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings unto the Lord, on the morrow after that day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand rams, and a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel:

²²And did eat and drink before the Lord on that day with great gladness. And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and anointed him unto the Lord to be the chief governor, and Zadok to be priest.

²³Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.

⁶⁶On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.

³⁵But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.

¹²And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you.

⁴And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

⁵But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

⁸And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words.

⁹¶ Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

¹⁰And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

¹¹And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

¹⁹Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.

⁵⁰Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way.

⁴¹But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.

²⁹And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

²³And the whole assembly took counsel to keep other seven days: and they kept other seven days with gladness.

²⁴For Hezekiah king of Judah did give to the congregation a thousand bullocks and seven thousand sheep; and the princes gave to the congregation a thousand bullocks and ten thousand sheep: and a great number of priests sanctified themselves.

²⁵And all the congregation of Judah, with the priests and the Levites, and all the congregation that came out of Israel, and the strangers that came out of the land of Israel, and that dwelt in Judah, rejoiced.

²⁶So there was great joy in Jerusalem: for since the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there was not the like in Jerusalem.

²⁷¶ Then the priests the Levites arose and blessed the people: and their voice was heard, and their prayer came up to his holy dwelling place, even unto heaven.

¹⁴And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

⁴Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

⁵He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

⁸And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

¹³And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

¹⁴And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

¹⁵Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.

⁹After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

²⁴¶ And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king, and had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came again in peace.

³I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.

¹⁵¶ And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.

⁵Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

³Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.

²And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on now mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead:

⁶That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.

¹⁷But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;

⁴⁶My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.

¹⁸Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

¹⁹Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.

¹⁰And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.

¹²For who knoweth what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?

¹⁵And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

¹³And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.

²⁴¶ There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.

²²Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?

¹⁸¶ Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.

¹⁵All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness.

²²Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord.

¹⁴House and riches are the inheritance of fathers: and a prudent wife is from the Lord.

⁴Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.

⁵Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.

²³And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

¹⁶Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

¹¹Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

⁵For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?

⁶In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

²⁰¶ And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God.

²¹And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.

²⁴Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.

⁴I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

¹³And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

³³But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

⁵For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.

⁶Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.

¹⁸For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.

¹⁹The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth.

²⁶I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:

¹⁰But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

¹⁵My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers thereof.

¹⁶I will go in the strength of the Lord God: I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only.

¹⁷O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works.

¹⁸Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come.

¹⁰Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.

¹¹Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?

¹²Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

³⁴Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

²⁵And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.

²⁶Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men.

²⁷For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

²⁸¶ Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

²⁹For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

³⁰Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

³¹Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

³If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be.

²And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?

¹⁹Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the Lord.

⁷For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.

⁸Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground;

⁹Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant.

¹⁰But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?

¹¹As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up:

¹²So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.

¹⁷They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.

¹⁸For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me.

¹⁹¶ And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.

²⁰In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us.

²¹So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared.

²²Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labour on the day.

²³So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes, saving that every one put them off for washing.

⁹Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

¹⁰And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.

¹¹And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.

¹²And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be upon you.

¹³¶ Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.

³⁰And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

²⁰And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the Lord God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord.

¹⁴And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

¹⁵And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.

⁸And it grieved me sore: therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber.

⁹Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers: and thither brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the meat offering and the frankincense.

¹⁰¶ And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field.

¹¹Then contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place.

¹²Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries.

¹³And I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah: for they were counted faithful, and their office was to distribute unto their brethren.

¹⁴Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for the offices thereof.

¹⁵¶ In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals.

¹⁶There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

¹⁷Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day?

¹⁸Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.

¹⁹And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.

²⁰So the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice.

²¹Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath.

²²And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy.

²³¶ In those days also saw I Jews that had married wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab:

²⁴And their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews’ language, but according to the language of each people.

²⁵And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves.

²⁶Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin.

²⁷Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying strange wives?

²⁸And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son in law to Sanballat the Horonite: therefore I chased him from me.

²⁹Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood, and the covenant of the priesthood, and of the Levites.

³⁰Thus cleansed I them from all strangers, and appointed the wards of the priests and the Levites, every one in his business;

³¹And for the wood offering, at times appointed, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.

⁶So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work.

²Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance.

³Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house,

¹⁰Now if Timotheus come, see that he may be with you without fear: for he worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do.

¹²Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

¹³Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;

¹⁴Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.

¹⁵Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.

¹²¶ And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon.

¹³And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.

¹⁴Then I went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king’s pool: but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass.

¹⁵Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and entered by the gate of the valley, and so returned.

¹⁶And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work.

¹⁸For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed,

¹⁹Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.

²⁰Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man’s foundation:

²³¶ Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:

³⁰There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the Lord.

³¹The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the Lord.

³⁷¶ Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?

³⁸Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good?

¹¹To set up on high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exalted to safety.

¹²He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise.

¹³He taketh the wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong.

¹⁴They meet with darkness in the daytime, and grope in the noonday as in the night.

¹⁷I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.

¹⁴Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:

¹⁵Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself.

¹⁶And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the Lord.

¹⁴I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him.

¹⁰He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man.

¹¹The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.

¹¹In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

¹⁵And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

¹⁴The wise man’s eyes are in his head; but the fool walketh in darkness: and I myself perceived also that one event happeneth to them all.

¹⁵Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity.

¹⁸But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

⁴¶ Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

⁶Let not the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; they shall stumble, and fall toward the north by the river Euphrates.

³Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

⁴The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength.

⁵They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble.

⁶The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.

⁷The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.

⁸He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and he hath set the world upon them.

⁹He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail.

¹⁰The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

¹³Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?

⁶Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.

⁷Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.

¹⁴And Absalom and all the men of Israel said, The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. For the Lord had appointed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring evil upon Absalom.

¹²¶ And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done.

¹SO I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter.

²⁹When he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when he hideth his face, who then can behold him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only:

¹⁶There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.

¹⁷An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.

⁵⁰So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

¹⁸Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

²³¶ And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.

³⁵And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

¹⁸¶ And there were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab, and Abishai, and Asahel: and Asahel was as light of foot as a wild roe.

¹⁹And Asahel pursued after Abner; and in going he turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner.

²⁰Then Abner looked behind him, and said, Art thou Asahel? And he answered, I am.

²¹And Abner said to him, Turn thee aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one of the young men, and take thee his armour. But Asahel would not turn aside from following of him.

²²And Abner said again to Asahel, Turn thee aside from following me: wherefore should I smite thee to the ground? how then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother?

²³Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still.