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Good News Translation
Ecclesiastes 3:16
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I also observed under the sun: there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness.
Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there.
Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.
Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
I also saw this here on earth: Where there should have been justice, there was evil; where there should have been right, there was wrong.
Moreover, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
And moreouer I haue seene vnder the sunne the place of iudgement, where was wickednesse, and the place of iustice where was iniquitie.
Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
Furthermore, I saw under the sun that in the place of judgment there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
Everywhere on earth I saw violence and injustice instead of fairness and justice.
Another thing I observed under the sun: There, in the same place as justice, was wickedness; there, in the same place as righteousness, was wickedness.
And moreover I saw under the sun, that in the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there.
I also saw these things in this life: I saw that the courts should be filled with goodness and fairness, but there is evil there now.
And moreover, I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there.
I saw something else under the sun: instead of justice there was evil; instead of righteousness there was wickedness.
And again I saw under the sun the place of justice: wickedness is there; and the place of righteousness, wickedness is there.
Morouer, I sawe vnder ye Sonne, vngodlynesse in the steade of iudgment, & iniquite in steade of rightuousnesse.
And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
And again, I saw under the sun, in the place of the judges, that evil was there; and in the place of righteousness, that evil was there.
And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
And moreouer, I sawe vnder the Sunne the place of iudgement, that wickednesse was there; and the place of righteousnesse, that iniquitie was there.
Moreouer, I sawe vnder the sunne vngodlynes in the steade of iudgement, & iniquitie in steade of righteousnesse.
And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgement, there was the ungodly one; and the place of righteousness, there was the godly one.
And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
I siy vndur sunne vnfeithfulnesse in the place of doom; and wickidnesse in the place of riytfulnesse.
And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, [that] wickedness [was] there; and the place of righteousness, [that] iniquity [was] there.
I saw something else on earth: In the place of justice, there was wickedness, and in the place of fairness, there was wickedness.
Moreover I saw under the sun: In the place of judgment, Wickedness was there; And in the place of righteousness, Iniquity was there.
I also noticed that under the sun there is evil in the courtroom. Yes, even the courts of law are corrupt!
Also I have seen under the sun that in the place of what is right and fair there is sin. And in the place of what is right and good there is wrong-doing.
Moreover I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, wickedness was there, and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there as well.
Then, again, I saw under the sun, the place of justice, that there was lawlessness, and, the place of righteousness, that there was lawlessness.
I saw under the sun in the place of judgment wickedness, and in the place of justice iniquity.
Moreover I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.
And again, I have seen under the sun the place of judgment -- there [is] the wicked; and the place of righteousness -- there [is] the wicked.
I took another good look at what's going on: The very place of judgment—corrupt! The place of righteousness—corrupt! I said to myself, "God will judge righteous and wicked." There's a right time for every thing, every deed—and there's no getting around it. I said to myself regarding the human race, "God's testing the lot of us, showing us up as nothing but animals."
Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Ecclesiastes 4:1, Ecclesiastes 5:8, 1 Kings 21:9-21, Psalms 58:1, Psalms 58:2, Psalms 82:2-5, Psalms 94:21, Psalms 94:22, Isaiah 59:14, Micah 2:2, Micah 7:3, Zephaniah 3:3, Matthew 26:59, Acts 23:3, James 2:6
Reciprocal: Psalms 82:5 - all the Psalms 94:20 - throne Ecclesiastes 2:17 - work Ecclesiastes 7:15 - there is a just Ecclesiastes 7:25 - the reason Ecclesiastes 10:5 - as an Isaiah 26:10 - favour Daniel 3:10 - hast made Zephaniah 3:5 - just Acts 24:25 - righteousness
Cross-References
Now the snake was the most cunning animal that the Lord God had made. The snake asked the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?"
The woman saw how beautiful the tree was and how good its fruit would be to eat, and she thought how wonderful it would be to become wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, and he also ate it.
As soon as they had eaten it, they were given understanding and realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and covered themselves.
That evening they heard the Lord God walking in the garden, and they hid from him among the trees.
But the Lord God called out to the man, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden; I was afraid and hid from you, because I was naked."
"Who told you that you were naked?" God asked. "Did you eat the fruit that I told you not to eat?"
The man answered, "The woman you put here with me gave me the fruit, and I ate it."
And he said to the woman, "I will increase your trouble in pregnancy and your pain in giving birth. In spite of this, you will still have desire for your husband, yet you will be subject to him."
And he said to the man, "You listened to your wife and ate the fruit which I told you not to eat. Because of what you have done, the ground will be under a curse. You will have to work hard all your life to make it produce enough food for you.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment,.... Courts of judicature, where judges sit, and, causes are brought before them, and are heard and tried; such as were the Jewish sanhedrim, of which the Midrash and Jarchi interpret it;
[that] wickedness [was] there, wicked judges sat there, and wickedness was committed by them; instead of doing justice they perverted it; condemned the righteous, and acquitted the wicked; and oppressed the widow, fatherless, and stranger, whose cause, being just, they should have defended. So the Targum,
"in which lying judges condemn the innocent.''
Well does the wise man say he saw this "under the sun", for there is nothing of this kind above it; nor approved of by him that is above it;
and the place of righteousness, [that] iniquity [was] there; this signifies the same as before, only it is expressed in different words. The Midrash and Jarchi interpret this of the middle gate in Jerusalem, where Nergal Sharezer, and other princes of the king of Babylon, sat, and which Solomon foresaw by a spirit of prophecy; but the better sense is, that Solomon had observed a great deal of this kind in reading the histories and annals of nations; knew that much of this sort was practised in other countries, and had seen a great deal of it in his own, done in inferior courts, and by subordinate officers; and though he was a wise and righteous prince, yet was not able to rectify all these abuses, for want of sufficient proof, which yet he lamented, and it gave him a concern; compare with this Isaiah 1:21.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
That great anomaly in the moral government of this world, the seemingly unequal distribution of rewards and punishments, will be rectified by God, who has future times and events under His control Ecclesiastes 3:16-17. As for people, they are placed by God, who is their teacher, in a humble condition, even on a level with inferior animals, by death, that great instance of their subjection to vanity Ecclesiastes 3:18-19, which reduces to its original form all that was made of the dust of the ground Ecclesiastes 3:20. And though the destinies of man and beast are different, yet in our present lack of knowledge as to God’s future dealing with our spirits Ecclesiastes 3:21, man finds his portion (see the Ecclesiastes 2:10 note) in such labor and such joy as God assigns to him in his lifetime Ecclesiastes 3:22.
Ecclesiastes 3:16
I saw ... - Rather, I have seen (as in Ecclesiastes 3:10) under the sun the place etc. The place of judgment means the seat of the authorized judge. Compare “the place of the holy” Ecclesiastes 8:10.
Ecclesiastes 3:17
A time there - i. e., a time with God.
Ecclesiastes 3:18
literally, I said in my heart with regard to the sons of men, it is that God may prove them and show them that they are beasts, they themselves. “Showing” is the reading of the Septuagint and Syriac: the present Hebrew text reads “seeing.” The meaning is that the long delay of God’s judgment Ecclesiastes 3:16-17 is calculated to show people that the brevity of their life renders them incapable of following out and understanding His distributive justice.
Ecclesiastes 3:19
That which befalleth the sons of men - literally, the event (happenstance) of the sons of men, i. e., what comes upon them from outside, by virtue of the ordinance of God. See the Ecclesiastes 2:14 note. Death in particular Ecclesiastes 3:2, Ecclesiastes 3:11 is a part of the “work that God doeth.”
Ecclesiastes 3:21
The King James Version of this verse is the only rendering which the Hebrew text, as now pointed, allows. It is in accordance with the best Jewish and many modern interpreters. A slightly different pointing would be requisite to authorize the translation, “Who knows the spirit of the sons of man whether it goes above, and, the spirit of the beast whether it goes down below?” etc., which, though it seems neither necessary nor suitable, is sanctioned by the Septuagint and other versions and by some modern interpreters.
Who knoweth - This expression (used also in Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 6:12) does not necessarily imply complete and absolute ignorance. In Psalms 90:11, it is applied to what is partially understood: compare similar forms of expression in Proverbs 31:10; Psalms 94:16; Isaiah 53:1. Moreover, it is evident from marginal references that Solomon did not doubt the future existence and destination of the soul. This verse can only be construed as a confession of much ignorance on the subject.
Ecclesiastes 3:22
What shall be after him - i. e., What shall become of the results of his work after he is dead. Compare Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 6:12.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse 16. The place of judgment, that wickedness was there — The abuse of power, and the perversion of judgment, have been justly complained of in every age of the world. The following paraphrase is good: -
"But what enjoyment can our labours yield,
When e'en the remedy prescribed by heaven
To cure disorders proves our deadliest bane?
When God's vicegerents, destined to protect
The weak from insolence of power, to guard
Their lives and fortunes, impious robbers turn?
And, or by force or fraud, deprive of both?----
To what asylum shall the injured fly
From her tribunal, where perverted law
Acquits the guilty, the innocent condemns?"
C.
