Ecclesiastes 9:5

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

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.

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Job 14:21 : 21 If his sons are honored, he does not know it; if they are brought low, he does not see it.
  • Isa 26:14 : 14 The dead do not come back to life, the spirits of the dead do not rise. That is because you came in judgment and destroyed them, you wiped out all memory of them.
  • Eccl 8:10 : 10 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.
  • Ps 6:5 : 5 For no one remembers you in the realm of death, In Sheol who gives you thanks?
  • 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.
  • Heb 9:27 : 27 And just as people are appointed to die once, and then to face judgment,
  • Isa 63:16 : 16 For you are our father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not recognize us. You, LORD, are our father; you have been called our protector from ancient times.
  • Job 7:8-9 : 8 The eye of him who sees me now will see me no more; your eyes will look for me, but I will be gone. 9 As a cloud is dispersed and then disappears, so the one who goes down to the grave does not come up again. 10 He returns no more to his house, nor does his place of residence know him any more.
  • Eccl 7:2 : 2 It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart.
  • Ps 88:10-12 : 10 Do you accomplish amazing things for the dead? Do the departed spirits rise up and give you thanks?(Selah) 11 Is your loyal love proclaimed in the grave, or your faithfulness in the place of the dead? 12 Are your amazing deeds experienced in the dark region, or your deliverance in the land of oblivion?
  • Ps 109:15 : 15 May the LORD be constantly aware of them, and cut off the memory of his children from the earth!
  • Job 30:23 : 23 I know that you are bringing me to death, to the meeting place for all the living.

Similar Verses (AI)

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

  • Eccl 9:6
    81%

    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 9:3-4
    2 verses
    79%

    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.

    4Better to Be Poor but Alive than Rich but Dead But whoever is among the living has hope; a live dog is better than a dead lion.

  • Eccl 2:16-17
    2 verses
    77%

    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.

  • Eccl 4:2-3
    2 verses
    77%

    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.

  • Ps 6:5
    76%

    5For no one remembers you in the realm of death, In Sheol who gives you thanks?

  • Ps 115:17
    76%

    17The dead do not praise the LORD, nor do any of those who descend into the silence of death.

  • Eccl 1:11
    76%

    11No 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.

  • Eccl 9:10
    75%

    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 8:10
    74%

    10Contradictions 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.

  • Job 7:9-10
    2 verses
    74%

    9As a cloud is dispersed and then disappears, so the one who goes down to the grave does not come up again.

    10He returns no more to his house, nor does his place of residence know him any more.

  • Isa 26:14
    74%

    14The dead do not come back to life, the spirits of the dead do not rise. That is because you came in judgment and destroyed them, you wiped out all memory of them.

  • Job 14:12
    73%

    12so man lies down and does not rise; until the heavens are no more, they will not awake nor arise from their sleep.

  • Prov 9:18
    73%

    18But they do not realize that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave.

  • Eccl 3:19-22
    4 verses
    73%

    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.

    21Who really knows if the human spirit ascends upward, and the animal’s spirit descends into the earth?

    22So I perceived there is nothing better than for people to enjoy their work, because that is their reward; for who can show them what the future holds?

  • Eccl 6:5-6
    2 verses
    73%

    5though it never saw the light of day nor knew anything, yet it has more rest than that man–

    6if he should live a thousand years twice, yet does not enjoy his prosperity. For both of them die!

  • Ps 88:5
    72%

    5adrift among the dead, like corpses lying in the grave, whom you remember no more, and who are cut off from your power.

  • Eccl 4:16
    72%

    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 6:8
    72%

    8So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool? And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?

  • Eccl 8:7-8
    2 verses
    72%

    7Surely no one knows the future, and no one can tell another person what will happen.

    8Just as no one has power over the wind to restrain it, so no one has power over the day of his death. Just as no one can be discharged during the battle, so wickedness cannot rescue the wicked.

  • Eccl 6:12
    72%

    12For no one knows what is best for a person during his life– during the few days of his fleeting life– for they pass away like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth.

  • Ps 49:9-10
    2 verses
    71%

    9so that he might continue to live forever and not experience death.

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

  • Eccl 3:12
    71%

    12Enjoy Life in the Present I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live,

  • Eccl 9:1
    71%

    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.

  • Eccl 7:2
    71%

    2It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart.

  • Job 28:13
    71%

    13Mankind does not know its place; it cannot be found in the land of the living.

  • Job 8:9
    70%

    9For we were born yesterday and do not have knowledge, since our days on earth are but a shadow.

  • Ps 89:48
    70%

    48No man can live on without experiencing death, or deliver his life from the power of Sheol.(Selah)

  • Job 3:21
    70%

    21to those who wait for death that does not come, and search for it more than for hidden treasures,

  • Ps 49:19
    70%

    19But he will join his ancestors; they will never again see the light of day.

  • Job 14:10
    70%

    10But man dies and is powerless; he expires– and where is he?

  • Eccl 1:9
    70%

    9What exists now is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing truly new on earth.

  • Job 4:21
    69%

    21Is not their excess wealth taken away from them? They die, yet without attaining wisdom.

  • 1 Thess 4:13
    69%

    13The Lord Returns for Believers Now we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest who have no hope.

  • Eccl 8:17
    69%

    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 5:20
    69%

    20For he does not think much about the fleeting days of his life because God keeps him preoccupied with the joy he derives from his activity.

  • Ps 103:16
    69%

    16but when the hot wind blows by, it disappears, and one can no longer even spot the place where it once grew.

  • Isa 38:18
    69%

    18Indeed Sheol does not give you thanks; death does not praise you. Those who descend into the Pit do not anticipate your faithfulness.

  • Ps 146:4
    69%

    4Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground; on that day their plans die.

  • Ps 49:17
    69%

    17For he will take nothing with him when he dies; his wealth will not follow him down into the grave.

  • Eccl 11:8
    69%

    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.