{"meta":{"source":"Prime Bible","sourceUrl":"https://primebible.com","license":"Public domain (translation text); see citation policy at /citation-policy","organization":"501(c)(3) nonprofit — EIN 41-2531951","canonicalUrl":"https://primebible.com/wbt/ecclesiastes/3","llmTxt":"https://primebible.com/llms.txt","generatedAt":"2026-05-29T22:11:26.995Z"},"reference":{"translation":"WBT","book":"Ecclesiastes","bookSlug":"ecclesiastes","chapter":3,"testament":"OLD"},"navigation":{"previousChapter":2,"nextChapter":4,"totalChapters":12,"totalVerses":22},"verses":[{"verseNumber":1,"text":"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:"},{"verseNumber":2,"text":"A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;"},{"verseNumber":3,"text":"A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;"},{"verseNumber":4,"text":"A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;"},{"verseNumber":5,"text":"A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;"},{"verseNumber":6,"text":"A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;"},{"verseNumber":7,"text":"A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;"},{"verseNumber":8,"text":"A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."},{"verseNumber":9,"text":"What profit hath he that worketh in that in which he laboreth?"},{"verseNumber":10,"text":"I have seen the labor, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it."},{"verseNumber":11,"text":"He hath made every thing beautiful in its time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end."},{"verseNumber":12,"text":"I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life."},{"verseNumber":13,"text":"And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labor, it is the gift of God."},{"verseNumber":14,"text":"I know that, whatever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be added to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him."},{"verseNumber":15,"text":"That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past."},{"verseNumber":16,"text":"And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there."},{"verseNumber":17,"text":"I 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."},{"verseNumber":18,"text":"I said in my heart concerning the state of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts."},{"verseNumber":19,"text":"For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yes, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no pre-eminence above a beast: for all is vanity."},{"verseNumber":20,"text":"All go to one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again."},{"verseNumber":21,"text":"Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?"},{"verseNumber":22,"text":"Wherefore 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?"}],"citation":{"inline":"Ecclesiastes 3 (WBT)","markdown":"[Ecclesiastes 3](https://primebible.com/wbt/ecclesiastes/3)","sbl":"Prime Bible. *The Bible.* WBT. https://primebible.com/wbt/ecclesiastes/3 (accessed 2026-05-29)."}}