Ecclesiastes 8:8

New International Reader's Version

No one can stop the wind from blowing. And no one has the power to decide when they will die. No one is let out of the army in times of war. And evil won’t let go of those who practice it.

Cross References

2 Samuel 14:14

All of us must die. We are like water spilled on the ground. It can’t be put back into the jar. But that is not what God desires. Instead, he finds a way to bring back anyone who was driven away from him.

2 Kings 7:15

They followed the trail of Aram’s soldiers all the way to the Jordan River. They found clothes and supplies all along the road. The soldiers had thrown them down when they ran away. So the men who were sent out returned. They reported to the king what they had seen.

Job 14:5

You decide how long anyone will live. You have established the number of his months. You have set a limit to the number of his days.

Job 34:14

If he really wanted to, he could hold back his spirit and breath.

Psalm 89:48

Who can live and not die? Who can escape the power of the grave?

Psalm 9:17

Sinful people go down to the place of the dead. So do all the nations that forget God.

Proverbs 12:3

No one can become strong and steady by doing evil. But if people do what is right, they can’t be removed from the land.

Proverbs 14:32

When trouble comes, sinners are brought down. But godly people seek safety in God even as they die.

Ecclesiastes 3:21

Who can know whether the spirit of a person goes up? Who can tell whether the spirit of an animal goes down into the earth?”

Ecclesiastes 8:13

Sinful people don’t respect God. So things won’t go well with them. Like a shadow, they won’t be around very long.

Ecclesiastes 9:12

No one knows when trouble will come to them. Fish are caught in nets. Birds are taken in traps. And people are trapped by hard times that come when they don’t expect them.

Isaiah 28:15

You brag, “We have entered into a covenant with the place of the dead. We have made an agreement with the grave. When a terrible plague comes to punish us, it can’t touch us. That’s because we depend on lies to keep us safe. We hide behind what isn’t true.”

Isaiah 28:18

Your covenant with death will be called off. The agreement you made with the place of the dead will not stand. When the terrible plague comes to punish you, you will be struck down by it.

Isaiah 47:10

You have felt secure in your evil ways. You have said, ‘No one sees what I’m doing.’ Your wisdom and knowledge lead you astray. You say to yourself, ‘I am like a god. No one is greater than I am.’

1 Corinthians 15:43

It is planted without honor. But it is raised in glory. It is planted in weakness. But it is raised in power.

2 Corinthians 13:4

It is true that Christ was nailed to the cross because he was weak. But Christ lives by God’s power. In the same way, we share his weakness. But by God’s power we will live with Christ as we serve you.

Hebrews 9:27

People have to die once. After that, God will judge them.