Ecclesiastes 11:8
in Ecclesiastes 11So if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all. But let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is futile.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Yea, if a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
KJV
But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
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This verse in Ecclesiastes 11
Commentary
13 notes on this verseHe shews himself to live with good heed and circumspection, who, in considering the shortness of the present life does not look to the furtherance but to the ending of it, so as to gather from the end, that all is nought that delights while it is passing. For hence it is said by Solomon, But if a man live many years and rejoice in them all, yet let him remember the time of darkness, and the days that shall be many; and when they come, the past shall be convinced of vanity.
This site's exposition
Light is sweet
on Ecclesiastes 11:7-8
Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun calls ordinary life good, the voice that named futility also naming plain pleasure. Verse 8 balances it: if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, yet let him remember the days of darkness.
This site's exposition
remember the days of darkness
Wesley takes the days of darkness as the grave, many more than the years a man lives under the sun. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown draw the practical end: sow good seed while light lasts. Rejoice and remember belong together.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
"In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening withhold not your hand: for you know not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun: But if a man lives many years, and rejoices in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that which comes is vanity.
In the spiritual sense [this saying] is even more valid, for "young men" are those who are strong because they have the Word of God and because they have power against evil. John, for example, writes, "I write to you, young people, because you are …
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
BonaventureCommentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 11 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
Second, he calls back from evil by consideration of future punishment. If a man has lived many years etc. Above he exhorted to good by consideration of reward; here he intends to call back from evil by consideration of future punishment: and indeed he does …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Light was the first thing made in the formation of the great world, as the eye is one of the first in the formation of the body, the little world. It is pleasant to see the light; the heathen were so charmed with the pleasure of it that they worshipped the sun.
4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. 5 As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
): All that comes is vanity; yea, though a man live many years and rejoice in them all, All that has come already, and all that is yet to come, how much soever men promise themselves from the concluding scenes, it is all vanity.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Darkness - Of death, or of the state of the dead. Many - Far more than the days of this short life. All - All things which befall any man belonging only to this life, are but vain, because they are short and transitory.
But if a man live many years,.... Enjoying light and life, and beholding the sun with much delight and pleasure.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
If a man live many years - And even have prosperity through the whole; yet the days of darkness - times of affliction, weakness, and perhaps old age, will be many. If he die not a violent death, which no man can wish, he will die a lingering death; and this is ordinarily attended with many pains, and many sorrows; therefore let him prepare to meet his God; and to carry this thought through life, that all must terminate in death.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
But while man thankfully enjoys life, "let him remember" it will not last for ever. The "many days of darkness," that is, the unseen world (Job 10:21, 22; Ps 88:12), also days of "evil" in this world (Ec 11:2), are coming; therefore sow the good seed while life and good days last, which are not too long for accomplishing life's duties.
The words behind it
18 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּ֣י | ki | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אִם־ | ʾim- | except | H518 → | 1069 times |
| שָׁנִ֥ים | shanim | years | H8141 → | 877 times |
| הַרְבֵּ֛ה | harbeh | [surely] a multitude | H7235 → | 227 times |
| יִחְיֶ֥ה | yichyeh | <he> will live | H2421 → | 282 times |
| הָאָדָ֖ם | haadam | <the> person | H120 → | 551 times |
| בְּכֻלָּ֣ם | bekhulam | in all of them | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| יִשְׂמָ֑ח | yismach | let him be take pleasure | H8055 → | 155 times |
| וְיִזְכֹּר֙ | veyizkor | and he may remember | H2142 → | 230 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְמֵ֣י | yemei | [the] days of | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| הַחֹ֔שֶׁךְ | hachoshekh | <the> darkness | H2822 → | 80 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| הַרְבֵּ֥ה | harbeh | [surely] many | H7235 → | 227 times |
| יִהְי֖וּ | yihyu | <they> will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| שֶׁבָּ֥א | sheba' | that <it> has come | H935 → | 2568 times |
| הָֽבֶל׃ | havel | [is] futility | H1892 → | 73 times |
כִּ֣יthat
kiH3588 →4482 times
אִם־except
ʾim-H518 →1069 times
שָׁנִ֥יםyears
shanimH8141 →877 times
הַרְבֵּ֛ה[surely] a multitude
harbehH7235 →227 times
יִחְיֶ֥ה<he> will live
yichyehH2421 →282 times
הָאָדָ֖ם<the> person
haadamH120 →551 times
בְּכֻלָּ֣םin all of them
bekhulamH3605 →5413 times
יִשְׂמָ֑חlet him be take pleasure
yismachH8055 →155 times
וְיִזְכֹּר֙and he may remember
veyizkorH2142 →230 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְמֵ֣י[the] days of
yemeiH3117 →2304 times
הַחֹ֔שֶׁךְ<the> darkness
hachoshekhH2822 →80 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
הַרְבֵּ֥ה[surely] many
harbehH7235 →227 times
יִהְי֖וּ<they> will be
yihyuH1961 →3559 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
שֶׁבָּ֥אthat <it> has come
sheba'H935 →2568 times
הָֽבֶל׃[is] futility
havelH1892 →73 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
John 12:35Then Jesus told them, “For a little while longer, the Light will be among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you. The one who walks in the…
it leads to
- John 12:46
I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Me should remain in darkness.
- John 16:16
In a little while you will see Me no more, and then after a little while you will see Me.”
- Ephesians 5:8
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,
- 1 John 1:6–7
If we say we have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
- John 8:12
Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”
- John 12:46
Through
Ecclesiastes 7:14In the day of prosperity, be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider this: God has made one of these along with the other, so that a man cannot discover anything that will…
it leads to
- Ecclesiastes 3:4
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
- Ecclesiastes 3:22
I have seen that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will come after him?
- Ecclesiastes 3:4
Through
Deuteronomy 32:29If only they were wise, they would understand it; they would comprehend their fate.
it leads to
- Psalms 81:13
If only My people would listen to Me, if Israel would follow My ways,
- Psalms 81:13
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
About Ecclesiastes
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bonaventure, Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 11; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Ecclesiastes; Didymus the Blind, COMMENTARY ON ECCLESIASTES 335:5; Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book 9; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Ecclesiastes; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.