Bible verse
For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.
Ecclesiastes 9:12 · BSB
The verses around it, from Ecclesiastes 9.
8 Let your garments always be white, and never spare the oil for your head.
9 Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your labor under the sun.
10 Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.
11 I saw something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; neither is the bread to the wise, nor the wealth to the intelligent, nor the favor to the skillful. For time and chance happen to all.
12 For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.
13 I have also seen this wisdom under the sun, and it was great to me:
14 There was a small city with few men. A mighty king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege ramps against it.
15 Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.
16 And I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.”
KJV
For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so [are] the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them.
ASV
For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare, even so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them.
ERV
For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare, even so, are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them.
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Scripture quotations are from the Berean Standard Bible, which is free of copyright restrictions for use on websites. Read the full Bible on Great Faith.