Ecclesiastes 3:5

Contemporary English Version

for throwing stones and gathering stones, embracing and parting.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing;

Hebrew Names Version
A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones together; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;

King James Version
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

English Standard Version
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

New American Standard Bible
A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.

New Century Version
There is a time to throw away stones and a time to gather them. There is a time to hug and a time not to hug.

Amplified Bible
A time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.

World English Bible
A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones together; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;

Geneva Bible (1587)
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones: a time to embrace, and a time to be farre from embracing.

Legacy Standard Bible
A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.

Berean Standard Bible
a time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

Complete Jewish Bible
a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

Darby Translation
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Easy-to-Read Version
There is a time to throw weapons down and a time to pick them up. There is a time to hug someone and a time to stop holding so tightly.

George Lamsa Translation
A time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;

Good News Translation
the time for making love and the time for not making love, the time for kissing and the time for not kissing.

Lexham English Bible
a time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;

Literal Translation
a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
A tyme to cast awaye stones, and a tyme to gather stones together: A tyme to enbrace, & a tyme to refrayne from enbracynge:

American Standard Version
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Bible in Basic English
A time to take stones away and a time to get stones together; a time for kissing and a time to keep from kissing;

JPS Old Testament (1917)
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; {S}{S}{N}

King James Version (1611)
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together: a time to imbrace, and a time to refraine from imbracing.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
A tyme to cast away stones, and a tyme to gather stones together: A tyme to imbrace, and a tyme to refrayne from imbracyng.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
a time to throw stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to abstain from embracing;

English Revised Version
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Tyme to scatere stoonys, and tyme to gadere togidere; tyme to colle, and tyme to be fer fro collyngis.

Update Bible Version
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Webster's Bible Translation
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

New English Translation
A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

New King James Version
A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;

New Living Translation
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to turn away.

New Life Bible
There is a time to throw stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to kiss, and a time to turn from kissing.

New Revised Standard
a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
A time to cast away stones, and a time to heap up stones, - A time to embrace, and a time to be far from loving embrace;

Douay-Rheims Bible
A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather. A time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.

Revised Standard Version
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Young's Literal Translation
A time to cast away stones, And a time to heap up stones. A time to embrace, And a time to be far from embracing.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.

Contextual Overview

¹ Everything on earth has its own time and its own season. ² There is a time for birth and death, planting and reaping, ³ for killing and healing, destroying and building, ⁴ for crying and laughing, weeping and dancing, ⁵ for throwing stones and gathering stones, embracing and parting. ⁶ There is a time for finding and losing, keeping and giving, ⁷ for tearing and sewing, listening and speaking. ⁸ There is also a time for love and hate, for war and peace. ⁹ What do we gain by all of our hard work? ¹⁰ I have seen what difficult things God demands of us.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

to cast: Joshua 4:3-9, Joshua 10:27, 2 Samuel 18:17, 2 Samuel 18:18, 2 Kings 3:25

a time to embrace: Exodus 19:15, 1 Samuel 21:4, 1 Samuel 21:5, Song of Solomon 2:6, Song of Solomon 2:7, Joel 2:16, 1 Corinthians 7:5

refrain from: Heb. be far from

Reciprocal: Genesis 31:46 - Gather

Cross-References

Genesis 2:17
except the one that has the power to let you know the difference between right and wrong. If you eat any fruit from that tree, you will die before the day is over!"

Genesis 3:2
The woman answered, "God said we could eat fruit from any tree in the garden,

Genesis 3:3
except the one in the middle. He told us not to eat fruit from that tree or even to touch it. If we do, we will die."

Genesis 3:6
The woman stared at the fruit. It looked beautiful and tasty. She wanted the wisdom that it would give her, and she ate some of the fruit. Her husband was there with her, so she gave some to him, and he ate it too.

Genesis 3:7
Right away they saw what they had done, and they realized they were naked. Then they sewed fig leaves together to make something to cover themselves.

Genesis 3:10
The man answered, "I was naked, and when I heard you walking through the garden, I was frightened and hid!"

Genesis 3:13
The Lord God then asked the woman, "What have you done?" "The snake tricked me," she answered. "And I ate some of that fruit."

Genesis 3:14
So the Lord God said to the snake: "Because of what you have done, you will be the only animal to suffer this curse— For as long as you live, you will crawl on your stomach and eat dirt.

Genesis 3:15
You and this woman will hate each other; your descendants and hers will always be enemies. One of hers will strike you on the head, and you will strike him on the heel."

Genesis 3:22
The Lord said, "These people now know the difference between right and wrong, just as we do. But they must not be allowed to eat fruit from the tree that lets them live forever."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together,.... To cast stones out of a field or vineyard where they are hurtful, and to gather them together to make walls and fences of, or build houses with; and may be understood both of throwing down buildings, as the temple of Jerusalem, so that not one stone was left upon another; of pouring out the stones of the sanctuary, and of gathering them again and laying them on one another; which was done when the servants of the Lord took pleasure in the stones of Zion, and favoured the dust thereof. Some understand this of precious stones, and of casting them away through luxury, wantonness, or contempt, and gathering them again: and it may be applied, as to the neglect of the Gentiles for a long time, and the gathering of those stones of which children were raised to Abraham; so of the casting away of the Jews for their rejection of the Messiah, and of the gathering of them again by conversion, when they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign on his land, Zechariah 9:16;

a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing: or "to be far from" g it; it may not only design conjugal embraces h, but parents embracing their children, as Jacob did his; and one brother embracing another, as Esau Jacob, and one friend embracing another; all which is very proper and agreeable at times: but there are some seasons so very calamitous and distressing, in which persons are obliged to drop such fondnesses: it is true, in a spiritual sense, of the embraces of Christ and believers, which sometimes are, and sometimes are not, enjoyed, Proverbs 4:8.

g עת לרחק "tempus elongandi se", Pagninus, Montanus; "tempus longe fieri", V. L. h "Optatos dedit amplexus", Virgil. Aeneid. 8. v. 405.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Stones may be regarded either as materials for building, or as impediments to the fertility of land (see 2 Kings 3:19, 2 Kings 3:25; Isaiah 5:2).

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ecclesiastes 3:5. A time to cast away stones, - to gather stones, - to embrace, - to refrain —

"One while domestic cares abortive prove,

And then successful. Nature now invites

Connubial pleasures: but, when languid grown,

No less rejects."