Ecclesiastes 8
1 Who is as the wise? and who knoweth the explanation of things? A man's wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face is changed.
[I will tell you about] those who are truly wise [RHQ] with the result that they can explain why everything happens. Being wise enables people to be happy [MTY] and enables them to smile.
2 I [say], Keep the king's commandment, and [that] on account of the oath of God.
You solemnly promised God that you would obey what the king commands, so do that.
3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight; persist not in an evil thing: for he doeth whatever pleaseth him,
Do not quickly disobey the king. And do not join those who want to rebel against him, because the king will do what he wants to do.
4 because the word of a king is power; and who may say unto him, What doest thou?
We need to obey what the king says more than we need to obey what anyone else says; no one can say to the king, “(Why are you doing that?/You should not be doing that.) [RHQ]”
5 Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing; and a wise man's heart knoweth time and manner.
If you obey what the king commands, he will not harm you. [So] be wise, and know the correct/right time to do things and the right way to do them.
6 For to every purpose there is time and manner. For the misery of man is great upon him;
Although people experience many troubles/difficulties, there is a right/correct time to do things, and there is a right/correct way [to do them].
7 for he knoweth not that which shall be; for who can tell him how it shall be?
No one knows what will happen in the future, so there is no one [RHQ] who can tell us what is going to happen.
8 There is no man who hath control over the spirit to retain the spirit; and no one hath control over the day of death; and there is no discharge in that war, neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.
We cannot control the wind, and we cannot control when we will die. Soldiers are not permitted to go home during a battle, and evil people will not be saved by [doing what is] evil.
9 All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time when man ruleth man to his hurt.
I thought about all those things, and I thought about all [HYP] the other things that happen on this earth. I saw that [sometimes] people cause those whom they control to suffer.
10 And I have also seen the wicked buried and going away; and such as had acted rightly went from [the] holy place, and were forgotten in the city. This also is vanity.
I also saw that [sometimes] after evil [people] die, they are highly honored at their funerals by the people in the cities where they had done [evil] deeds. It seemed to be difficult to understand why that happens.
11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to do evil.
If evil people are not immediately punished, it causes [other] people [SYN] to [also] want to do evil things.
12 Though a sinner do evil a hundred times, and prolong his [days], yet I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, because they fear before him;
But even if sinful people commit 100 crimes, and [even if they] live for a long time, I know that things will go better for those who greatly respect and revere God.
13 but it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong [his] days as a shadow, because he feareth not before God.
[I also know] that things will not go well go for those who are evil, because they do not revere God. Shadows [do not last a long time]. Similarly [SIM], evil people will not live a long time.
14 There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there are righteous [men] unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; and there are wicked [men] to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.
Another thing that [sometimes] happens on this earth is that bad things happen to righteous people, and good things happen to evil people. It is difficult to understand why that happens.
15 And I commended mirth, because there is nothing better for man under the sun than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry; for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God hath given him under the sun.
[So] I decided that I would recommend that people be happy while they are alive, because the best thing that people can do here on this earth is to eat and drink and be happy. Enjoying doing those things will help people while they do their work, all the time that God has given to them to remain alive here on the earth.
16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes),
I thought about being wise and about people who work very hard, working day and night and not taking time to sleep.
17 then I saw that all [is] the work of God, [and] that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however man may labour to seek [it] out, yet doth he not find [it]; and even, if a wise [man] think to know [it], he shall not be able to find [it] out.
Then I thought about everything [HYP] that God has done, and I realized that no one can understand everything that happens here on this earth. Truly, people are not able to fully understand everything [that God understands], even if they try hard to do that. Even if wise people claim that they understand it all, they cannot.
