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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Ecclesiastes 1:7

Every river flows into the sea, but the sea is not yet full. The water returns to where the rivers began, and starts all over again.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Covetousness;   Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Rivers;   Sea, the;   Water;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Vanity;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Time;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Ecclesiastes, the Book of;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ecclesiastes, Book of;   Poetry;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Ecclesiastes;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Ecclesiastes, or the Preacher;   Go;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Baruch, Apocalypse of (Greek);   Deism;   Ishmael B. Jose B. Halafta;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for October 4;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
All the streams flow to the sea,yet the sea is never full;to the place where the streams flow,there they flow again.
Hebrew Names Version
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, there they flow again.
King James Version
All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
English Standard Version
All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again.
New American Standard Bible
All the rivers flow into the sea, Yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, There they flow again.
New Century Version
All the rivers flow to the sea, but the sea never becomes full.
Amplified Bible
All the rivers flow into the sea, Yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, There they flow again.
World English Bible
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, there they flow again.
Geneva Bible (1587)
All the riuers goe into the sea, yet the sea is not full: for the riuers goe vnto ye place, whence they returne, and goe.
Legacy Standard Bible
All the rivers go into the sea,Yet the sea is not full.To the place where the rivers go,There they continually go.
Berean Standard Bible
All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full; to the place from which the streams come, there again they flow.
Contemporary English Version
All rivers empty into the sea, but it never spills over; one by one the rivers return to their source.
Complete Jewish Bible
All the rivers flow to the sea, yet the sea is not full; to the place where the rivers flow, there they keep on flowing.
Darby Translation
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full: unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
Easy-to-Read Version
All rivers flow again and again to the same place. They all flow to the sea, but the sea never becomes full.
George Lamsa Translation
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; to the place from whence the rivers flow, thither they return to flow again.
Lexham English Bible
All the streams flow to the sea, but the sea is never full; to the place where the streams flow, there they continue to flow.
Literal Translation
All the rivers are going to the sea; yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers are going, there they are returning to go again .
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
All floudes runne in to the see, & yet the see is not fylled: for loke vnto what place the waters runne, thence they come agayne.
American Standard Version
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
Bible in Basic English
All the rivers go down to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the rivers go, there they go again.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
King James Version (1611)
All the riuers runne into the sea, yet the Sea is not full: vnto the place from whence the riuers come, thither they returne againe.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
All fluddes runne into the sea, and yet is the sea it selfe not fylled: For loke vnto what place the waters runne, thence they come to flowe agayne.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
All the rivers run into the sea; and yet the sea is not filled: to the place whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
English Revised Version
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Alle floodis entren in to the see, and the see fletith not ouer the markis set of God; the floodis turnen ayen to the place fro whennus tho comen forth, that tho flowe eft.
Update Bible Version
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; to the place where the rivers go, there they go again.
Webster's Bible Translation
All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea [is] not full; to the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
New English Translation
All the streams flow into the sea, but the sea is not full, and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again.
New King James Version
All the rivers run into the sea, Yet the sea is not full; To the place from which the rivers come, There they return again.
New Living Translation
Rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows out again to the sea.
New Life Bible
All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is not full. And they return again to the place from which the rivers flow.
New Revised Standard
All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they continue to flow.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
All the streams, flow into the sea, yet, the sea, is not full, - unto the place whither the streams flow, thither, do they again flow.
Douay-Rheims Bible
All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea doth not overflow: unto the place from whence the rivers come, they return, to flow again.
Revised Standard Version
All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again.
Young's Literal Translation
All the streams are going unto the sea, and the sea is not full; unto a place whither the streams are going, thither they are turning back to go.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
All the rivers flow into the sea, Yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, There they flow again.

Contextual Overview

4 Generations come and generations go, but the world stays just the same. 5 The sun still rises, and it still goes down, going wearily back to where it must start all over again. 6 The wind blows south, the wind blows north—round and round and back again. 7 Every river flows into the sea, but the sea is not yet full. The water returns to where the rivers began, and starts all over again. 8 Everything leads to weariness—a weariness too great for words. Our eyes can never see enough to be satisfied; our ears can never hear enough.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the rivers run: Job 38:10, Job 38:11, Psalms 104:6-9

return again: Heb. return to go

Reciprocal: Genesis 1:9 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 1:8
He named the dome "Sky." Evening passed and morning came—that was the second day.
Genesis 1:9
Then God commanded, "Let the water below the sky come together in one place, so that the land will appear"—and it was done.
Genesis 1:11
Then he commanded, "Let the earth produce all kinds of plants, those that bear grain and those that bear fruit"—and it was done.
Genesis 1:15
they will shine in the sky to give light to the earth"—and it was done.
Genesis 1:24
Then God commanded, "Let the earth produce all kinds of animal life: domestic and wild, large and small"—and it was done.
Genesis 1:28
blessed them, and said, "Have many children, so that your descendants will live all over the earth and bring it under their control. I am putting you in charge of the fish, the birds, and all the wild animals.
Genesis 1:29
I have provided all kinds of grain and all kinds of fruit for you to eat;
Job 26:8
It is God who fills the clouds with water and keeps them from bursting with the weight.
Psalms 104:10
You make springs flow in the valleys, and rivers run between the hills.
Psalms 148:4
Praise him, highest heavens, and the waters above the sky.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea [is] not full,.... Which flow from fountains or an formed by hasty rains; these make their way to the sea, yet the sea is not filled therewith, and made to abound and overflow the earth, as it might be expected it would. So Seneca says z we wonder that the accession of rivers is not perceived in the sea; and Lucretius a observes the same, that it is wondered at that the sea should not increase, when there is such a flow of waters to it from all quarters; besides the wandering showers and flying storms that fall into it, and yet scarce increased a drop; which he accounts for by the exhalations of the sun, by sweeping and drying winds, and by what the clouds take up. Homer b makes every sea, all the rivers, fountains, and wells, flow, from the main ocean. Hence Pindar c calls the lake or fountain Camarina the daughter of the ocean But Virgil d makes the rivers to flow into it, as the wise man here; with which Aristotle e agrees. So Lactantius f says, "mare quod ex fluminibus constat", the sea consists of rivers. Both may be true, for, through secret passages under ground, the waters of it are caused to pass back again to their respective places from whence they flowed, as follows;

unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again; this also illustrates the succession of men, age after age, and the revolution of things in the world, their unquiet and unsettled state; and the unsatisfying nature of all things; as the sea is never full with what comes into it, so the mind of man is never satisfied with all the riches and honour he gains, or the knowledge of natural things he acquires; and it suggests that even water, as fluctuating a body as it is, yet has the advantage of men; that though it is always flowing and reflowing, yet it returns to its original place, which man does not. And from all these instances it appears that all things are vanity, and man has no profit of all his labour under the sun.

z Nat. Quaest. l. 3. c. 4. a De Rerum Natura, l. 6. b Iliad. 21. v. 193, &c. c Olymp. Ode 5. v. 4. d "Omnia sub magna", &c. Georgic. l. 4. v. 366, &c. e Meterolog. l. 1. c. 13. f De Orig. Error. l. 2. c. 6.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The place - i. e., The spring or river-head. It would seem that the ancient Hebrews regarded the clouds as the immediate feeders of the springs (Proverbs 8:28, and Psalms 104:10, Psalms 104:13). Genesis 2:6 indicates some acquaintance with the process and result of evaporation.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ecclesiastes 1:7. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full — The reason is, nothing goes into it either by the; rivers or by rain, that does not come from it: and to the place whence the rivers come, whether from the sea originally by evaporation, or immediately by rain, thither they return again; for the water exhaled from the sea by evaporation is collected in the clouds, and in rain, c., falls upon the tops of the mountains and, filtered through their fissures, produce streams, several of which uniting, make rivers, which flow into the sea. The water is again evaporated by the sun; the vapours collected are precipitated; and, being filtered through the earth, become streams, &c., as before.


 
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