Ecclesiastes 3 — A Time for Every Purpose
A time to be born and a time to die — the Preacher's poem on the seasons of human life under heaven.
1For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:
2a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
3a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
9What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboreth?
10I have seen the travail which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised therewith.
11He hath made everything beautiful in its time: also he hath set eternity in their heart, yet so that man cannot find out the work that God hath done from the beginning even to the end.
12I know that there is nothing better for them, than to rejoice, and to do good so long as they live.
13And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy good in all his labor, is the gift of God.
14I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it; and God hath done it, that men should fear before him.
15That which is hath been long ago; and that which is to be hath long ago been: and God seeketh again that which is passed away.
16And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
17I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
18I said in my heart, It isbecause of the sons of men, that God may prove them, and that they may see that they themselves are but as beasts.
19For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; and man hath no preeminence above the beasts: for all is vanity.
20All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.
21Who knoweth the spirit of man, whether it goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast, whether it goeth downward to the earth?
22Wherefore I saw that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him back to see what shall be after him?
Historical context
Ecclesiastes is the reflection of Qoheleth, 'the Preacher' or 'the Convener,' traditionally identified with Solomon late in life. The book wrestles with life 'under the sun' — life as observed without revelation's full light. Chapter 3 opens with one of the most famous poems in the Bible (vv.1-8) and then asks what such a world means for those who must live in it.
Commentary
Verses 1-8 form fourteen pairs of opposites — birth and death, planting and uprooting, weeping and laughing — each introduced by 'a time to.' The cumulative effect is honesty: human life contains all of these, and wisdom is not pretending otherwise. The Hebrew 'time' here (et) is appointed, given. We do not choose every season; we receive it.
Verse 11 is the chapter's hinge: 'He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can't find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end.' Two truths held together — eternity in the heart, mystery before the eye.
Verses 12-15 draw the practical conclusion: enjoy what God gives, eat, drink, find satisfaction in your labor. This is not hedonism but receiving daily life as gift.
Verses 16-22 confront injustice. Even where wickedness sits in the seat of judgment, 'God will judge the righteous and the wicked.' The Preacher's hope is not utopian; it is the conviction that the seasons end at God's bar.