Ecclesiastes 3:1

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1-10

The scope of these verses is to show, 1. That we live in a world of changes, that the several events of time, and conditions of human life, are vastly different from one another, and yet occur promiscuously, and we are continually passing and repassing between them, as in the revolutions of every day and every year. In the wheel of nature (Jas. 3:6) sometimes one spoke is uppermost and by and by the contrary; there is a constant ebbing and flowing, waxing and waning; from one extreme to the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1

To every thing there is a season ,.... A set determined time, when everything shall come into being, how long it shall continue, and in what circumstances; all things that have been, are, or shall be, were foreordained by God, and he has determined the times before appointed for their being, duration, and end; which times and seasons he has in his own power: there was a determined time for the whole universe, and for all persons and things in it; a settled fixed moment for the world to... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ecclesiastes 3:1

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose - Two general remarks may be made on the first eight verses of this chapter. God by his providence governs the world, and has determined particular things and operations to particular times. In those times such things may be done with propriety and success; but if we neglect the appointed seasons, we sin against this providence, and become the authors of our own distresses. God has given to man that portion of duration called... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1

To every thing there is u season, and a time to every purpose under heaven . . "Season" and "time" are rendered by the LXX . καιρός and χρόνος . The word for "season" ( zeman ), denotes a fixed, definite portion of time; while eth , " time ," signifies rather the beginning of a period, or is used as a general appellation. The two ideas are sometimes concurrent in the New Testament; e . g . Acts 1:7 ; 1 Thessalonians 5:1 . So in Wis. 8:8, "wisdom to foreseeth... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

The providence of God disposes and arranges every detail of man's life. This proposition is stated first generally, and then worked out in particular by means of antithetical sentences. In Hebrew manuscripts and most printed texts Ecclesiastes 3:2-8 are arranged in two parallel columns, so that one "time" always stands under another. A similar arrangement is found in Joshua 12:9 , etc; containing the catalogue of the conquered Canaanite kings; and in Esther 9:7 , etc; giving the names of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

Section 4. In confirmation of the truth that man's happiness depends upon the will of God, Koheleth proceeds to show how Providence arranges even the minutest concerns; that man can alter nothing, must make the best of things as they are, bear with anomalies, bounding his desires by this present life. read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ecclesiastes 3:1

Everything - More particularly, the actions of people (e. g. his own, Ecclesiastes 2:1-8) and events which happen to people, the world of Providence rather than the world of creation. It would seem that most of his own works described in Ecclesiastes 2:1-8 were present to his mind. The rare word translated “season” means emphatically “fitting time” (compare Nehemiah 2:6; Esther 9:27, Esther 9:31). read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Ecclesiastes 3:1

Ecclesiastes 3:1. To every thing, &c. Solomon having mentioned God’s overruling providence in the latter end of the foregoing chapter, proceeds in this to illustrate the imperfection of human wisdom, which is confined to a certain season for all things that it would effect, which if we neglect, or let slip, all our contrivances signify nothing. He then shows that the utmost perfection at which our wisdom can arrive in this world, consists, 1st, In being contented with this order in... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 3:1-15

Events controlled by God’s fixed order (3:1-15)In 1:1-11 the author considered the ceaseless toil and repetition in the natural world and decided that life was useless. Now (ignoring for the moment the conclusions he has just outlined in 2:24-26) he considers the fixed order of events in the world. It appears to him that everything happens at the time God has decided it will happen. In view of this, all human effort to improve life is useless. People can change nothing (3:1-9).Human beings may... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Ecclesiastes 3:1

a season = an appointed time. Hebrew. zrman. Compare Ezra 10:14 .Nehemiah 2:6 . Esther 9:27 . A word is not necessarily a "later" word, because there has not been occasion for it to be used, or needed before. See App-76 . a time = a season. Note the 28 "seasons" (= 4x7. See App-10 .) In Hebrew Manuscripts these are set out in 14 lines; 2 in a line, with a space between each pair. purpose. Hebrew. hephez. Alleged to be later Hebrew. See App-76 . under the heaven. See note on Ecclesiastes... read more

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