11 translations · Hebrew
Ecclesiastes 11:6
In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don’t withhold your hand; for you don’t know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both will be equally good.
Ecclesiastes 11:6 in 11 translations
- WEB World English Bible
- In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don’t withhold your hand; for you don’t know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both will be equally good.
- KJV King James Version
- In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
- BSB Berean Standard Bible
- Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.
- ASV American Standard Version
- In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
- LSV Literal Standard Version
- In the morning sow your seed, || And at evening do not withdraw your hand, || For you do not know which is right, this or that, || Or whether both of them alike [are] good.
- FBV Free Bible Version
- In the morning, sow your seed. In the evening, don't stop. For you have no way of knowing which crop will grow well—one may be profitable, or the other—or maybe both.
- YLT Young’s Literal Translation
- In the morning sow thy seed, And at even withdraw not thy hand, For thou knowest not which is right, this or that, Or whether both of them alike [are] good.
- DBY Darby Translation
- In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
- WBT Webster’s Bible
- In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
- WEBC World English Bible (Catholic)
- In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don’t withhold your hand; for you don’t know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both will be equally good.
- DRA Douay-Rheims 1899
- In the morning sow thy seed, and In the evening let not thy hand cease: for thou knowest not which may rather spring up, this or that: and if both together, it shall be the better.
The Hebrew words
Each word of the Hebrew text in order, with its transliteration, the Berean Standard Bible’s English for it, and its Strong’s number and short definition.
| Word | Transliteration | English (BSB) | Strong’s |
|---|---|---|---|
| בַּבֹּ֙קֶר֙ | bab·bō·qer | in the morning | H1242 בֹּ֫קֶר morning |
| זְרַ֣ע | zə·ra‘ | Sow | H2232 זָרַע to sow |
| אֶת־ | ’eṯ- | — | H853 אֵת [Obj.] |
| זַרְעֶ֔ךָ | zar·‘e·ḵā | your seed | H2233 זֶ֫רַע seed |
| וְלָעֶ֖רֶב | wə·lā·‘e·reḇ | in the evening | H6153 עֶ֫רֶב evening |
| אַל־ | ’al- | and do not | H408 אַל not |
| תַּנַּ֣ח | tan·naḥ | rest | H5117 נוּחַ to rest |
| יָדֶ֑ךָ | yā·ḏe·ḵā | your hands | H3027 יָד hand |
| כִּי֩ | kî | for | H3588 כִּי for |
| אֵֽינְךָ֨ | ’ê·nə·ḵā | you do not | H369 אַ֫יִן nothing |
| יוֹדֵ֜ע | yō·ḏēʿ | know | H3045 יָדַע to know |
| אֵ֣י | ’ê | which | H335 אַי where? |
| זֶ֤ה | zeh | — | H2088 זֶה this |
| יִכְשָׁר֙ | yiḵ·šār | will succeed | H3787 כָּשֵׁר to succeed |
| הֲזֶ֣ה | hă·zeh | whether this | H2088 זֶה this |
| אוֹ־ | ’ōw- | or | H176 אוֹ or |
| זֶ֔ה | zeh | that | H2088 זֶה this |
| וְאִם־ | wə·’im- | or if | H518 אִם if |
| שְׁנֵיהֶ֥ם | šə·nê·hem | both | H8147 שְׁנַ֫יִם two |
| כְּאֶחָ֖ד | kə·’e·ḥāḏ | will equally | H259 אֶחָד one |
| טוֹבִֽים׃ | ṭō·w·ḇîm | prosper | H2896 טוֹב pleasant |
Related verses
- 2 Corinthians 9:10–11
Now may he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness; you being enriched in everything to all generosity, which produces through us thanksgiving to God.
- Isaiah 55:10
For as the rain comes down and the snow from the sky, and doesn’t return there, but waters the earth, and makes it grow and bud, and gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
- Haggai 1:6–11
You have sown much, and bring in little. You eat, but you don’t have enough. You drink, but you aren’t filled with drink. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm, and he who earns wages earns wages to put them into a bag with holes in it.” This is what Yahweh of Armies says: “Consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, bring wood, and build the house. I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified,” says Yahweh. …
- Hosea 10:12
Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according to kindness. Break up your fallow ground; for it is time to seek Yahweh, until he comes and rains righteousness on you.
- 2 Corinthians 9:6
Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
- Zechariah 8:11–12
But now I will not be to the remnant of this people as in the former days,” says Yahweh of Armies. “For the seed of peace and the vine will yield its fruit, and the ground will give its increase, and the heavens will give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things.
- John 4:36–38
He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit to eternal life; that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true, ‘One sows, and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you haven’t labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”
- 1 Corinthians 3:5–7
Who then is Apollos, and who is Paul, but servants through whom you believed; and each as the Lord gave to him? I planted. Apollos watered. But God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
- Haggai 2:17–19
I struck you with blight, mildew, and hail in all the work of your hands; yet you didn’t turn to me,’ says Yahweh. ‘Consider, please, from this day and backward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, since the day that the foundation of Yahweh’s temple was laid, consider it. Is the seed yet in the barn? Yes, the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree haven’t produced. From today I will bless you.’”
- 2 Timothy 4:2
preach the word; be urgent in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching.
Cross references from OpenBible.info, CC BY 4.0, most-voted first; text from the World English Bible.
In context
4 He who observes the wind won’t sow; and he who regards the clouds won’t reap.
5 As you don’t know what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child; even so you don’t know the work of God who does all.
6 In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don’t withhold your hand; for you don’t know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both will be equally good.
7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to see the sun.
8 Yes, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that comes is vanity.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 11 in the World English Bible.
Edition and source notes
Each translation is shown as its source prints it, in its own verse numbering; where an edition numbers this verse differently, its own reference is given. The World English Bible, King James Version and Berean Standard Bible link to their chapter pages. Edition notes.
Literal Standard Version (2020) © Covenant Press and the Covenant Christian Coalition, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0. Imported from the checksum-pinned eBible.org USFX source; the extracted verse text is an adaptation shared under the same license. Free Bible Version (2018) © Dr. Jonathan Gallagher, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0. Imported from the checksum-pinned eBible.org USFX source; the extracted verse text is an adaptation shared under the same license.
The original words and their English come from the Berean Standard Bible translation tables (public domain); lemmas and short definitions from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0), with Greek definitions based on Abbott-Smith.
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