Ecclesiastes 11

Cast Your Bread upon the Waters

1Cast
your bread
upon the waters,
for you will
find it
after many days.

2Give a portion
to seven,
or even
to eight,
for you know
not what disaster
may happen
on earth.

3If the clouds
are full
of rain,
they empty themselves
on the earth,
and if a tree
falls
to the south
or to the north,
in the place
where the tree falls,
there it will lie.

4He
who observes
the wind
will not sow,
and he
who regards
the clouds
will not reap.

5As you
do not know
the way the spirit
comes to the bones
in the womb^[a]
of a woman
with child,
so you
do not know
the work of God
who makes
everything.

6In the morning
sow your seed,
and at evening
withhold not
your hand,
for you
do not know
which will prosper,
this or that,
or whether
both alike
will be good.

7Light is sweet,
and it is
pleasant
for the eyes
to see the sun.

8So if a person
lives many years,
let him rejoice
in them all;
but let him
remember
that the days of darkness
will be many.
All that comes
is vanity.

9Rejoice,
O young man,
in your youth,
and let your heart
cheer you
in the days
of your youth.
Walk
in the ways
of your heart
and the sight
of your eyes.
But know that
for all these things
God
will bring you
into judgment.

10Remove vexation
from your heart,
and put away
pain^[b]
from your body,
for youth and
the dawn of life
are vanity.