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Ecclesiastes 3:21

No one knows [RHQ] for sure that when we die, our souls/spirits go up to heaven and the souls/spirits of animals go down to the place where the dead are.”

Translation for Translators

In The King James Version

Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

In Context

20People and animals all die and are buried. We are all made of soil, and when we die, our corpses become soil again.

22So I concluded that the best thing for us people to do is to be happy about the work that we do, because that is what God has given to us. I say that because no one of us [RHQ] knows what happens to us after we die.

Read all of Ecclesiastes 3

Cross References

Ecclesiastes 12:7Then our corpses will decay and become dirt again, and our spirits will return to God, the one who gave us our spirits.

John 14:3And because I will go there and prepare a place for you, I will return and take you there to be with me. I will do that so that you may also be where I am.

2 Corinthians 5:1We know that these bodies we live in here in this world are like [MET] tents. They are like temporary living/dwelling places. So we should not be concerned about what happens to our bodies. We know that if we are killed {if someone kills us}, God will give us permanent living places. Those permanent living places [MET] will not be houses that people have made. They will be new bodies in which we will live forever in heaven.

Philippians 1:23That is, I am not sure which of those two I prefer. I long to leave this world and go to be with Christ, because that will be very much better for me.

Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 3:17-22

Immutability of God's Counsel; The Extent of Mortality. 16 And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there. 17 I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work. 18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. 19 For that which befalleth the… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

King James VersionBíblia Almeida (Português)Luther Bibel (Deutsch)Bible Louis Segond (Français)Библия (Русский)聖經 (中文)성경 (한국어)الكتاب المقدس (العربية)बाइबल (हिन्दी)Biblia (Kiswahili)Bibbia Diodati (Italiano)Alkitab (Bahasa Indonesia)Kinh Thánh (Tiếng Việt)

Study Ecclesiastes 3:21

Matthew HenryJamieson-Fausset-BrownAdam ClarkeJohn WesleyJohn CalvinKeil and DelitzschScofieldFamily Bible NotesGeneva Bible Notes (1599)
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