Ecclesiastes 3:20

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

הַכֹּ֥ל הוֹלֵ֖ךְ אֶל־מָק֣וֹם אֶחָ֑ד הַכֹּל֙ הָיָ֣ה מִן־הֶֽעָפָ֔ר וְהַכֹּ֖ל שָׁ֥ב אֶל־הֶעָפָֽר׃

Transliteration

The-kōl hôlēḵ to-māqôm ʾeḥāḏ, the-kōl hāyâ from-the-ʿāp̄ār wə-the-kōl šāḇ to-the-ʿāp̄ār

Grammar Details

*ha-kōl*: definite article + noun, masculine singular - the all/everything
*hôlēḵ*: verb, qal active participle, masculine singular - going
*ʾel*: preposition - to/toward
*māqôm*: noun, masculine singular - place
*ʾeḥāḏ*: adjective, masculine singular - one
*hāyâ*: verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular - it was
*min*: preposition - from
*he-ʿāp̄ār*: definite article + noun, masculine singular - the dust
*wə*: conjunction - and
*šāḇ*: verb, qal active participle, masculine singular - returning

Word Meanings

*hôlēḵ*: going/walking/proceeding
*māqôm*: place/location/site
*ʾeḥāḏ*: one/single/same
*hāyâ*: was/became/came from
*ʿāp̄ār*: dust/soil/earth/ashes
*šāḇ*: returning/turning back/reverting

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Gen 3:19 : 19 in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Job 34:15 : 15 All flesh shall perish together, And man shall turn again unto dust.
Ps 104:29 : 29 Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; Thou takest away their breath, they die, And return to their dust.
Eccl 6:6 : 6 yea, though he live a thousand years twice told, and yet enjoy no good, do not all go to one place?
Eccl 9:10 : 10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do [it] with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest.
Eccl 12:7 : 7 and the dust returneth to the earth as it was, and the spirit returneth unto God who gave it.
Job 7:9 : 9 As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away, So he that goeth down to Sheol shall come up no more.
Job 10:9-9 : 9 Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast fashioned me as clay; And wilt thou bring me into dust again? 10 Hast thou not poured me out as milk, And curdled me like cheese?
Job 17:13 : 13 If I look for Sheol as my house; If I have spread my couch in the darkness;
Job 30:24 : 24 Howbeit doth not one stretch out the hand in his fall? Or in his calamity therefore cry for help?
Gen 25:8 : 8 And Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full [of years], and was gathered to his people.
Gen 25:17 : 17 And these are the years of the life of Ishmael, a hundred and thirty and seven years: and he gave up the ghost and died, and was gathered unto his people.
Num 27:13 : 13 And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered;
Dan 12:2 : 2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
Eccl 3:21 : 21 Who knoweth the spirit of man, whether it goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast, whether it goeth downward to the earth?
Ps 49:14 : 14 They are appointed as a flock for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd; And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; And their beauty shall be for Sheol to consume, That there be no habitation for it.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

Eccl 3:18-19
2 verses
87%
18I said in my heart, [It is] because 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.
Job 34:15
85%
15All flesh shall perish together, And man shall turn again unto dust.
Eccl 12:7-8
2 verses
83%
7and the dust returneth to the earth as it was, and the spirit returneth unto God who gave it.
8Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; all is vanity.
Eccl 3:21-22
2 verses
82%
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?
Eccl 9:2-3
2 verses
77%
2All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth and to him that sacrificeth not; as is the good, so is the sinner; [and] he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.
3This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea also, the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that [they go] to the dead.
Ps 146:4
76%
4His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; In that very day his thoughts perish.
Eccl 1:2-5
4 verses
75%
2Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
3What profit hath man of all his labor wherein he laboreth under the sun?
4One generation goeth, and another generation cometh; but the earth abideth for ever.
5The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to its place where it ariseth.
Job 21:26
75%
26They lie down alike in the dust, And the worm covereth them.
Job 14:10
75%
10But man dieth, and is laid low: Yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?
Eccl 5:15-16
2 verses
75%
15As he came forth from his mother's womb, naked shall he go again as he came, and shall take nothing for his labor, which he may carry away in his hand.
16And this also is a grievous evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go: and what profit hath he that he laboreth for the wind?
Gen 3:19
74%
19in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Eccl 6:6-7
2 verses
74%
6yea, though he live a thousand years twice told, and yet enjoy no good, do not all go to one place?
7All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
Eccl 4:16
74%
16There was no end of all the people, even of all them over whom he was: yet they that come after shall not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Ps 104:29
74%
29Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; Thou takest away their breath, they die, And return to their dust.
Eccl 6:11-12
2 verses
74%
11Seeing there are many things that increase vanity, what is man the better?
12For who knoweth what is good for man in [his] 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?
Ps 103:15-16
2 verses
73%
15As for man, his days are as grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.
16For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; And the place thereof shall know it no more.
1 Pet 1:24
73%
24For, All flesh is as grass, And all the glory thereof as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower falleth:
Eccl 3:1-2
2 verses
73%
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;
Ps 144:4
73%
4Man is like to vanity: His days are as a shadow that passeth away.
Ps 90:3
73%
3Thou turnest man to destruction, And sayest, Return, ye children of men.
Eccl 1:14
73%
14I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Eccl 8:10
72%
10So I saw the wicked buried, and they came [to the grave]; and they that had done right went away from the holy place, and were forgotten in the city: this also is vanity.
Eccl 2:16-17
2 verses
72%
16For of the wise man, even as of the fool, there is no remembrance for ever; seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. And how doth the wise man die even as the fool!
17So I hated life, because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Eccl 2:19-20
2 verses
72%
19And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have rule over all my labor wherein I have labored, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.
20Therefore I turned about to cause my heart to despair concerning all the labor wherein I had labored under the sun.
Eccl 2:11
72%
11Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.
Job 7:9
72%
9As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away, So he that goeth down to Sheol shall come up no more.
Eccl 11:8
71%
8Yea, if a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
Eccl 7:2
71%
2It 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.
Eccl 3:15
71%
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.
Eccl 1:9
71%
9That which hath been is that which shall be; and that which hath been done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
Ps 49:12
71%
12But man [being] in honor abideth not: He is like the beasts that perish.
Eccl 9:5
71%
5For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Eccl 9:10
71%
10Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do [it] with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest.
Job 14:2
71%
2He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.
Eccl 2:23
71%
23For all his days are [but] sorrows, and his travail is grief; yea, even in the night his heart taketh no rest. This also is vanity.
Eccl 4:7
71%
7Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun.