Ecclesiastes 11:6

6 In the morning plant your seeds. In the evening keep your hands busy. You don't know what will succeed. It may be one or the other. Or both might do equally well.

Ecclesiastes 11:6 Meaning and Commentary

Ecclesiastes 11:6

In the morning sow thy seed
Do all good works early and diligently, which is expressed by sowing in righteousness, ( Hosea 10:12 ) ; particularly alms deeds, often signified by sowing seed, ( Psalms 112:9 ) ( 2 Corinthians 9:6-10 ) ; this should be in the morning of youth, that persons may be inured to it betimes as Obadiah was; and in the morning of prosperity, as soon as ever Providence smiles on men, and puts it into the power of their hands, who should honour the Lord with the firstfruits of their increase; and in the evening withhold not thine hand;
from sowing seed, from doing good, particularly acts of charity, in the evening of old age, as Jarchi, like old Barzillai; an age in which men are apt to be more tenacious and covetous, and withhold more than is meet; yea, in the evening of adversity do not leave off doing good as much as can be; but do as the Macedonian churches, whose deep poverty abounded to the riches of their liberality in a great trial of affliction, ( 2 Corinthians 8:2 ) ; in short, good is to be done at all times, as opportunity offers, throughout the whole of life, and in all conditions and circumstances; for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that;
the seed sown in the morning or in the evening, which good work shall best succeed; therefore do both, try all ways, make use of all opportunities; or whether they both [shall be] alike good;
acceptable to God, and useful to men; and if so, a man will have no occasion to repent of what he has done both in youth and old age.

Ecclesiastes 11:6 In-Context

4 Anyone who keeps on watching the wind won't plant seeds. Anyone who keeps looking at the clouds won't gather crops.

5 You don't know the path the wind takes. You don't know how a baby is made inside its mother. So you can't understand how God works either. He made everything.

6 In the morning plant your seeds. In the evening keep your hands busy. You don't know what will succeed. It may be one or the other. Or both might do equally well.

7 Light is sweet. People enjoy being out in the sun.

8 No matter how many years a man might live, let him enjoy all of them. But let him remember the dark days. There will be many of them. Nothing that's going to happen will have any meaning.