Ecclesiastes 3

1 Everything has its own time—a time for all that happens here:*3:1. This is the Teachers observation, not his instruction. For this reason the verb participle is used, rather than the infinitive, since the infinitive might suggest that this is what should happen, e.g. "a time of killing" (i.e. when it happens) rather than "a time to kill" (when it ought to happen).

2 A time of birth, and a time of death. A time of planting, and a time of harvest.

3 A time of killing, and a time of healing. A time of tearing down, and a time of building up.

4 A time of crying, and a time of laughing. A time of mourning, and a time of dancing.

5 A time of throwing away stones, and a time of gathering up stones.*3:5. This mention of stones and its meaning is debated. Jewish tradition indicates it is a euphemism for making love. A time of embracing, and a time of avoiding embracing.

6 A time of searching, and a time of giving up searching. A time of keeping, and a time of throwing away.

7 A time of tearing, and a time of mending. A time of keeping quiet, a time of speaking up.

8 A time of loving, and a time of hating. A time of warfare, and a time of peace.