Ecclesiastes 2:16

Bible in Basic English (1941)

Of the wise man, as of the foolish man, there is no memory for ever, seeing that those who now are will have gone from memory in the days to come. See how death comes to the wise as to the foolish!

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Referenced Verses

  • Eccl 1:11 : 11 There is no memory of those who have gone before, and of those who come after there will be no memory for those who are still to come after them.
  • Eccl 9:5 : 5 The living are conscious that death will come to them, but the dead are not conscious of anything, and they no longer have a reward, because there is no memory of them.
  • Ps 88:12 : 12 May there be knowledge of your wonders in the dark? or of your righteousness where memory is dead?
  • Ps 103:16 : 16 The wind goes over it and it is gone; and its place sees it no longer.
  • Eccl 2:14 : 14 The wise man's eyes are in his head, but the foolish man goes walking in the dark; but still I saw that the same event comes to them all.
  • Eccl 6:8 : 8 What have the wise more than the foolish? and what has the poor man by walking wisely before the living?
  • Exod 1:6 : 6 Then Joseph came to his end, and all his brothers, and all that generation.
  • Exod 1:8 : 8 Now a new king came to power in Egypt, who had no knowledge of Joseph.
  • 2 Sam 3:33 : 33 And the king made a song of grief for Abner and said, Was the death of Abner to be like the death of a foolish man?
  • Ps 49:10 : 10 For he sees that wise men come to their end, and foolish persons of low behaviour come to destruction together, letting their wealth go to others.
  • Mal 3:16 : 16 Then those in whom was the fear of the Lord had talk together: and the Lord gave ear, and it was recorded in a book to be kept in mind before him, for those who had the fear of the Lord and gave thought to his name.
  • Heb 9:27 : 27 And because by God's law death comes to men once, and after that they are judged;

Similar Verses (AI)

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

  • Eccl 2:11-15
    5 verses
    84%

    11 Then I saw all the works which my hands had made, and everything I had been working to do; and I saw that all was to no purpose and desire for wind, and there was no profit under the sun.

    12 And I went again in search of wisdom and of foolish ways. What may the man do who comes after the king? The thing which he has done before.

    13 Then I saw that wisdom is better than foolish ways--as the light is better than the dark.

    14 The wise man's eyes are in his head, but the foolish man goes walking in the dark; but still I saw that the same event comes to them all.

    15 Then said I in my heart: As it comes to the foolish man, so will it come to me; so why have I been wise overmuch? Then I said in my heart: This again is to no purpose.

  • Eccl 2:17-22
    6 verses
    81%

    17 So I was hating life, because everything under the sun was evil to me: all is to no purpose and desire for wind.

    18 Hate had I for all my work which I had done, because the man who comes after me will have its fruits.

    19 And who is to say if that man will be wise or foolish? But he will have power over all my work which I have done and in which I have been wise under the sun. This again is to no purpose.

    20 So my mind was turned to grief for all the trouble I had taken and all my wisdom under the sun.

    21 Because there is a man whose work has been done with wisdom, with knowledge, and with an expert hand; but one who has done nothing for it will have it for his heritage. This again is to no purpose and a great evil.

    22 What does a man get for all his work, and for the weight of care with which he has done his work under the sun?

  • 8 What have the wise more than the foolish? and what has the poor man by walking wisely before the living?

  • 10 For he sees that wise men come to their end, and foolish persons of low behaviour come to destruction together, letting their wealth go to others.

  • 11 There is no memory of those who have gone before, and of those who come after there will be no memory for those who are still to come after them.

  • 16 There was no end of all the people, of all those whose head he was, but they who come later will have no delight in him. This again is to no purpose and desire for wind.

  • 5 The living are conscious that death will come to them, but the dead are not conscious of anything, and they no longer have a reward, because there is no memory of them.

  • Eccl 8:16-17
    2 verses
    76%

    16 When I gave my mind to the knowledge of wisdom and to seeing the business which is done on the earth (and there are those whose eyes see not sleep by day or by night),

    17 Then I saw all the work of God, and that man may not get knowledge of the work which is done under the sun; because, if a man gives hard work to the search he will not get knowledge, and even if the wise man seems to be coming to the end of his search, still he will be without knowledge.

  • 14 The foolish are full of words; man has no knowledge of what will be; and who is able to say what will be after him?

  • Eccl 6:11-12
    2 verses
    76%

    11 There are words without number for increasing what is to no purpose, but what is man profited by them?

    12 Who is able to say what is good for man in life all the days of his foolish life which he goes through like a shade? who will say what is to be after him under the sun?

  • Eccl 3:19-20
    2 verses
    75%

    19 Because the fate of the sons of men and the fate of the beasts is the same. As is the death of one so is the death of the other, and all have one spirit. Man is not higher than the beasts; because all is to no purpose.

    20 All go to one place, all are of the dust, and all will be turned to dust again.

  • 10 And then I saw evil men put to rest, taken even from the holy place; and they went about and were praised in the town because of what they had done. This again is to no purpose.

  • 8 All things are to no purpose, says the Preacher, all is to no purpose.

  • Eccl 1:17-18
    2 verses
    74%

    17 And I gave my heart to getting knowledge of wisdom, and of the ways of the foolish. And I saw that this again was desire for wind.

    18 Because in much wisdom is much grief, and increase of knowledge is increase of sorrow.

  • 4 The hearts of the wise are in the house of weeping; but the hearts of the foolish are in the house of joy.

  • Eccl 9:15-16
    2 verses
    74%

    15 Now there was in the town a poor, wise man, and he, by his wisdom, kept the town safe. But no one had any memory of that same poor man.

    16 Then I said, Wisdom is better than strength, but the poor man's wisdom is not respected, and his words are not given a hearing.

  • Eccl 1:2-3
    2 verses
    74%

    2 All is to no purpose, said the Preacher, all the ways of man are to no purpose.

    3 What is a man profited by all his work which he does under the sun?

  • 15 These two have I seen in my life which is to no purpose: a good man coming to his end in his righteousness, and an evil man whose days are long in his evil-doing.

  • 8 But even if a man's life is long and he has joy in all his years, let him keep in mind the dark days, because they will be great in number. Whatever may come is to no purpose.

  • 6 And though he goes on living a thousand years twice over and does not see good, are not the two going to the same place?

  • Eccl 4:2-3
    2 verses
    73%

    2 So my praise was for the dead who have gone to their death, more than for the living who still have life.

    3 Yes, happier than the dead or the living seemed he who has not ever been, who has not seen the evil which is done under the sun.

  • 3 This is evil in all things which are done under the sun: that there is one fate for all, and the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; while they have life their hearts are foolish, and after that--to the dead.

  • 16 How will money in the hand of the foolish get him wisdom, seeing that he has no sense?

  • 1 All this I took to heart, and my heart saw it all: that the upright and the wise and their works are in the hand of God; and men may not be certain if it will be love or hate; all is to no purpose before them.

  • 7 No one is certain what is to be, and who is able to say to him when it will be?

  • 3 And when the foolish man is walking in the way, he has no sense and lets everyone see that he is foolish.

  • 6 Like the cracking of thorns under a pot, so is the laugh of a foolish man; and this again is to no purpose.

  • 2 Of laughing I said, It is foolish; and of joy--What use is it?

  • 13 This again I have seen under the sun as wisdom and it seemed great to me.

  • 10 Say not, Why were the days which have gone by better than these? Such a question comes not from wisdom.

  • 20 And again, The Lord has knowledge of the reasonings of the wise, that they are nothing.

  • 16 All his days are in the dark, and he has much sorrow, pain, disease, and trouble.

  • 22 So I saw that there is nothing better than for a man to have joy in his work--because that is his reward. Who will make him see what will come after him?

  • 12 Have you seen a man who seems to himself to be wise? There is more hope for the foolish than for him.