Ecclesiastes 11

1 Spread your bread on the water— after a while you will find it.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:1

2 Apportion what you have into seven, or even eight parts, because you don’t know what disaster might befall the land.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:2

3 If the clouds are full of rain, they will pour out on the earth; if a tree falls toward the south or the north, wherever it falls, there it will lay.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:3

4 Whoever keeps staring at the wind won’t sow; whoever daydreams ^{a11:4 Lit. who stares at clouds} won’t reap.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:4

5 Just as you do not understand the way of the spirit in the ^{b11:5 Lit. the bones in the} womb of a pregnant mother, so also you do not know what God is doing in everything he makes.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:5

6 Sow your seed in the morning, and don’t stop working ^{c11:6 Lit. then give your hand no rest} until evening, since you don’t know which of your endeavors will do well, whether this one or that, or even if both will do equally well.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:6

7 How sweet is the daylight, and how pleasant it is for someone’s eyes to behold the sunshine!ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:7

8 Even if a person lives many years, let him enjoy them all, recalling that there will be many days of darkness to come—all of which are pointless.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:8

9 So enjoy yourself in your youth, young man, and be encouraged during your younger days. Live as you like, consistent with your world view, but keep in mind that God will bring you to account for everything.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:9

10 Banish sorrow from your heart, and evil from your body, since both childhood and the prime of life ^{d11:10 Lit. dark hair} are pointless.ISV — Ecclesiastes 11:10