Ecclesiastes 8:10

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

Contradictions to the Law of Retribution Not only that, but I have seen the wicked approaching and entering the temple, and as they left the holy temple, they boasted in the city that they had done so. This also is an enigma.

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Eccl 9:5 : 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward– and even the memory of them disappears.
  • Prov 10:7 : 7 The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the reputation of the wicked will rot.
  • Eccl 2:16 : 16 For the wise man, like the fool, will not be remembered for very long, because in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten. Alas, the wise man dies– just like the fool!
  • Eccl 1:11 : 11 No one remembers the former events, nor will anyone remember the events that are yet to happen; they will not be remembered by the future generations.
  • Jer 17:13 : 13 You are the one in whom Israel may find hope. All who leave you will suffer shame. Those who turn away from you will be consigned to the netherworld. For they have rejected you, the LORD, the fountain of life.
  • Luke 16:22 : 22 “Now the poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.
  • Acts 6:13 : 13 They brought forward false witnesses who said,“This man does not stop saying things against this holy place and the law.
  • Heb 10:38 : 38 But my righteous one will live by faith, and if he shrinks back, I take no pleasure in him.
  • 2 Kgs 9:34-35 : 34 He went inside and had a meal. Then he said,“Dispose of this accursed woman’s corpse. Bury her, for after all, she was a king’s daughter.” 35 But when they went to bury her, they found nothing left but the skull, feet, and palms of the hands.
  • Job 21:18 : 18 How often are they like straw before the wind, and like chaff swept away by a whirlwind?
  • Job 21:32-33 : 32 And when he is carried to the tombs, and watch is kept over the funeral mound, 33 The clods of the torrent valley are sweet to him; behind him everybody follows in procession, and before him goes a countless throng.
  • Ps 31:12 : 12 I am forgotten, like a dead man no one thinks about; I am regarded as worthless, like a broken jar.
  • Ps 122:1-5 : 1 A song of ascents, by David. I was glad because they said to me,“We will go to the LORD’s temple.” 2 Our feet are standing inside your gates, O Jerusalem. 3 Jerusalem is a city designed to accommodate an assembly. 4 The tribes go up there, the tribes of the LORD, where it is required that Israel give thanks to the name of the LORD. 5 Indeed, the leaders sit there on thrones and make legal decisions, on the thrones of the house of David.

Similar Verses (AI)

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

  • Eccl 8:14
    83%

    14Here is another enigma that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. I said,“This also is an enigma.”

  • Eccl 3:15-20
    6 verses
    79%

    15Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been; for God will seek to do again what has occurred in the past.

    16The Problem of Injustice and Oppression I saw something else on earth: In the place of justice, there was wickedness, and in the place of fairness, there was wickedness.

    17I thought to myself,“God will judge both the righteous and the wicked; for there is an appropriate time for every activity, and there is a time of judgment for every deed.

    18I also thought to myself,“It is for the sake of people, so God can clearly show them that they are like animals.

    19For the fate of humans and the fate of animals are the same: As one dies, so dies the other; both have the same breath. There is no advantage for humans over animals, for both are fleeting.

    20Both go to the same place, both come from the dust, and to dust both return.

  • Eccl 7:15
    79%

    15Exceptions to the Law of Retribution During the days of my fleeting life I have seen both of these things: Sometimes a righteous person dies prematurely in spite of his righteousness, and sometimes a wicked person lives long in spite of his evil deeds.

  • Eccl 1:13-14
    2 verses
    78%

    13I decided to carefully and thoroughly examine all that has been accomplished on earth. I concluded: God has given people a burdensome task that keeps them occupied.

    14I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man on earth, and I concluded: Everything he has accomplished is futile– like chasing the wind!

  • Eccl 2:15-21
    7 verses
    78%

    15So I thought to myself,“The fate of the fool will happen even to me! Then what did I gain by becoming so excessively wise?” So I lamented to myself,“The benefits of wisdom are ultimately meaningless!”

    16For the wise man, like the fool, will not be remembered for very long, because in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten. Alas, the wise man dies– just like the fool!

    17So I loathed life because what happens on earth seems awful to me; for all the benefits of wisdom are futile– like chasing the wind.

    18Futility of Being a Workaholic So I loathed all the fruit of my effort, for which I worked so hard on earth, because I must leave it behind in the hands of my successor.

    19Who knows if he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so wisely on earth! This also is futile!

    20So I began to despair about all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so hard on earth.

    21For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; however, he must hand over the fruit of his labor as an inheritance to someone else who did not work for it. This also is futile, and an awful injustice!

  • Eccl 12:8
    78%

    8Concluding Refrain: Qoheleth Restates His Thesis“Absolutely futile!” laments the Teacher,“All of these things are futile!”

  • Eccl 2:11-12
    2 verses
    78%

    11Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it, I concluded:“All these achievements and possessions are ultimately profitless– like chasing the wind! There is nothing gained from them on earth.”

    12Wisdom is Better than Folly Next, I decided to consider wisdom, as well as foolish behavior and ideas. For what more can the king’s successor do than what the king has already done?

  • Eccl 9:1-3
    3 verses
    77%

    1Everyone Will Die So I reflected on all this, attempting to clear it all up. I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their works, are in the hand of God; whether a person will be loved or hated– no one knows what lies ahead.

    2Everyone shares the same fate– the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the ceremonially clean and unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. What happens to the good person, also happens to the sinner; what happens to those who make vows, also happens to those who are afraid to make vows.

    3This is the unfortunate fact about everything that happens on earth: the same fate awaits everyone. In addition to this, the hearts of all people are full of evil, and there is folly in their hearts during their lives– then they die.

  • Eccl 8:9
    77%

    9While applying my mind to everything that happens in this world, I have seen all this: Sometimes one person dominates other people to their harm.

  • Eccl 4:7
    77%

    7Labor Motivated by Greed So I again considered another futile thing on earth:

  • Eccl 4:2-4
    3 verses
    76%

    2So I considered those who are dead and gone more fortunate than those who are still alive.

    3But better than both is the one who has not been born and has not seen the evil things that are done on earth.

    4Labor Motivated by Envy Then I considered all the skillful work that is done: Surely it is nothing more than competition between one person and another. This also is profitless– like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 4:15-16
    2 verses
    76%

    15I considered all the living who walk on earth, as well as the successor who would arise in his place.

    16There is no end to all the people nor to the past generations, yet future generations will not rejoice in him. This also is profitless and like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 8:11
    76%

    11When a sentence is not executed at once against a crime, the human heart is encouraged to do evil.

  • Eccl 6:1
    75%

    1Not Everyone Enjoys Life Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs heavily on people:

  • Eccl 11:8
    75%

    8So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many– all that is about to come is obscure.

  • Eccl 9:13
    74%

    13Most People Are Not Receptive to Wise Counsel This is what I also observed about wisdom on earth, and it is a great burden to me:

  • Eccl 6:11
    74%

    11The more one argues with words, the less he accomplishes. How does that benefit him?

  • Eccl 9:5-6
    2 verses
    74%

    5For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward– and even the memory of them disappears.

    6What they loved, as well as what they hated and envied, perished long ago, and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth.

  • Eccl 1:2
    74%

    2Introduction: Utter Futility“Futile! Futile!” laments the Teacher,“Absolutely futile! Everything is futile!”

  • Eccl 3:10
    74%

    10I have observed the burden that God has given to people to keep them occupied.

  • Eccl 5:16
    73%

    16This is another misfortune: Just as he came, so will he go. What did he gain from toiling for the wind?

  • Eccl 2:23
    73%

    23For all day long his work produces pain and frustration, and even at night his mind cannot relax! This also is futile!

  • Eccl 10:5
    73%

    5I have seen another misfortune on the earth: It is an error a ruler makes.

  • Eccl 6:9
    73%

    9It is better to be content with what the eyes can see than for one’s heart always to crave more. This continual longing is futile– like chasing the wind.

  • Ps 49:10
    73%

    10Surely one sees that even wise people die; fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away and leave their wealth to others.

  • Eccl 9:10
    73%

    10Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, the place where you will eventually go.

  • Eccl 2:1
    73%

    1Futility of Self-Indulgent Pleasure I thought to myself,“Come now, I will try self-indulgent pleasure to see if it is worthwhile.” But I found that it also is futile.

  • Eccl 6:4
    72%

    4Though the stillborn child came into the world for no reason and departed into darkness, though its name is shrouded in darkness,

  • Eccl 8:16-17
    2 verses
    72%

    16Limitations of Human Wisdom When I tried to gain wisdom and to observe the activity on earth– even though it prevents anyone from sleeping day or night–

    17then I discerned all that God has done: No one really comprehends what happens on earth. Despite all human efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp it. Even if a wise person claimed that he understood, he would not really comprehend it.

  • Eccl 1:17
    72%

    17So I decided to discern the benefit of wisdom and knowledge over foolish behavior and ideas; however, I concluded that even this endeavor is like trying to chase the wind!