Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

凡你手所当做的事要尽力去做；因为在你所必去的阴间没有工作，没有谋算，没有知识，也没有智慧。

凡你手所当做的事，要尽力去做；因为在你所必须去的阴间没有工作，没有谋算，没有知识，也没有智慧。

凡你手所当做的事，要尽力去做；因为在你所必须去的阴间没有工作，没有谋算，没有知识，也没有智慧。

凡你的手能做的，都要尽力去做，因为在你要去的阴间没有工作，没有计划，也没有知识和智慧。

凡是你手可作的，都当尽力去作；因为在你所要去的阴间里，既没有工作，又没有筹谋；没有知识，也没有智慧。

凡是你手当做的，你都当极力去做；因为在你必去的阴间没有工作，没有筹划，没有知识，也没有智慧。

凡你手所當做的事要盡力去做；因為在你所必去的陰間沒有工作，沒有謀算，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

凡你手所當做的事，要盡力去做；因為在你所必須去的陰間沒有工作，沒有謀算，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

凡你手所當做的事，要盡力去做；因為在你所必須去的陰間沒有工作，沒有謀算，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

凡你的手能做的，都要盡力去做，因為在你要去的陰間沒有工作，沒有計劃，也沒有知識和智慧。

凡是你手可作的，都當盡力去作；因為在你所要去的陰間裡，既沒有工作，又沒有籌謀；沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

凡你的手見得可作的事、你總要盡力去作；因為在你所要去的陰間、那裏沒有工作，沒有設計，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

凡是你手當做的，你都當極力去做；因為在你必去的陰間沒有工作，沒有籌劃，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。

爾手可為者、當盡力為之、緣爾將至之陰府、無工作、無籌畫、無知識、無智慧、○

且爾竭心思、為所當為、轉瞬之間、即歸於土、在彼無工作、無計謀、無智慧。

凡爾手所經營之事、當盡力經營、因爾所將往之示阿勒、示阿勒有譯黃泉有譯陰府有譯墳墓無經營、無計謀、無知識、無智慧、○

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

No matter what you do, work at it with all your might. Remember, you are going to the place of the dead. And there isn’t any work or planning or knowledge or wisdom there.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

Whatever your hands find to do, do with all your strength, because there is no work, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest.

Whatever your hands find to do, do with all your strength, because there is no work, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do[ it] with thy might; for[ there is] no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, the place where you will eventually go.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work, nor plan, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, where you are going.

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.

Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

For the dead do not remember you. Who can praise you from the grave?

Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!

So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.

If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

For the dead cannot praise you; they cannot raise their voices in praise. Those who go down to the grave can no longer hope in your faithfulness.Only the living can praise you as I do today. Each generation tells of your faithfulness to the next.

In this way, King Hezekiah handled the distribution throughout all Judah, doing what was pleasing and good in the sight of the Lord his God.In all that he did in the service of the Temple of God and in his efforts to follow God’s laws and commands, Hezekiah sought his God wholeheartedly. As a result, he was very successful.

Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another— or maybe both.

I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, though I am not skilled with words.I will praise your mighty deeds, O Sovereign Lord. I will tell everyone that you alone are just.O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do.Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me.

saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers,“ What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they’re doing? Do they think they can build the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap— and charred ones at that?”

When clouds are heavy, the rains come down. Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls.

“ And now I know that none of you to whom I have preached the Kingdom will ever see me again.I declare today that I have been faithful. If anyone suffers eternal death, it’s not my fault,for I didn’t shrink from declaring all that God wants you to know.“ So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock— his church, purchased with his own blood— over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock.Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following.Watch out! Remember the three years I was with you— my constant watch and care over you night and day, and my many tears for you.

I became very upset and threw all of Tobiah’s belongings out of the room.Then I demanded that the rooms be purified, and I brought back the articles for God’s Temple, the grain offerings, and the frankincense.I also discovered that the Levites had not been given their prescribed portions of food, so they and the singers who were to conduct the worship services had all returned to work their fields.I immediately confronted the leaders and demanded,“ Why has the Temple of God been neglected?” Then I called all the Levites back again and restored them to their proper duties.And once more all the people of Judah began bringing their tithes of grain, new wine, and olive oil to the Temple storerooms.I assigned supervisors for the storerooms: Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah, one of the Levites. And I appointed Hanan son of Zaccur and grandson of Mattaniah as their assistant. These men had an excellent reputation, and it was their job to make honest distributions to their fellow Levites.Remember this good deed, O my God, and do not forget all that I have faithfully done for the Temple of my God and its services.In those days I saw men of Judah treading out their winepresses on the Sabbath. They were also bringing in grain, loading it on donkeys, and bringing their wine, grapes, figs, and all sorts of produce to Jerusalem to sell on the Sabbath. So I rebuked them for selling their produce on that day.Some men from Tyre, who lived in Jerusalem, were bringing in fish and all kinds of merchandise. They were selling it on the Sabbath to the people of Judah— and in Jerusalem at that!So I confronted the nobles of Judah.“ Why are you profaning the Sabbath in this evil way?” I asked.“ Wasn’t it just this sort of thing that your ancestors did that caused our God to bring all this trouble upon us and our city? Now you are bringing even more wrath upon Israel by permitting the Sabbath to be desecrated in this way!”Then I commanded that the gates of Jerusalem should be shut as darkness fell every Friday evening, not to be opened until the Sabbath ended. I sent some of my own servants to guard the gates so that no merchandise could be brought in on the Sabbath day.The merchants and tradesmen with a variety of wares camped outside Jerusalem once or twice.But I spoke sharply to them and said,“ What are you doing out here, camping around the wall? If you do this again, I will arrest you!” And that was the last time they came on the Sabbath.Then I commanded the Levites to purify themselves and to guard the gates in order to preserve the holiness of the Sabbath. Remember this good deed also, O my God! Have compassion on me according to your great and unfailing love.About the same time I realized that some of the men of Judah had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.Furthermore, half their children spoke the language of Ashdod or of some other people and could not speak the language of Judah at all.So I confronted them and called down curses on them. I beat some of them and pulled out their hair. I made them swear in the name of God that they would not let their children intermarry with the pagan people of the land.“ Wasn’t this exactly what led King Solomon of Israel into sin?” I demanded.“ There was no king from any nation who could compare to him, and God loved him and made him king over all Israel. But even he was led into sin by his foreign wives.How could you even think of committing this sinful deed and acting unfaithfully toward God by marrying foreign women?”One of the sons of Joiada son of Eliashib the high priest had married a daughter of Sanballat the Horonite, so I banished him from my presence.Remember them, O my God, for they have defiled the priesthood and the solemn vows of the priests and Levites.So I purged out everything foreign and assigned tasks to the priests and Levites, making certain that each knew his work.I also made sure that the supply of wood for the altar and the first portions of the harvest were brought at the proper times. Remember this in my favor, O my God.

I slipped out during the night, taking only a few others with me. I had not told anyone about the plans God had put in my heart for Jerusalem. We took no pack animals with us except the donkey I was riding.After dark I went out through the Valley Gate, past the Jackal’s Well, and over to the Dung Gate to inspect the broken walls and burned gates.Then I went to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but my donkey couldn’t get through the rubble.So, though it was still dark, I went up the Kidron Valley instead, inspecting the wall before I turned back and entered again at the Valley Gate.The city officials did not know I had been out there or what I was doing, for I had not yet said anything to anyone about my plans. I had not yet spoken to the Jewish leaders— the priests, the nobles, the officials, or anyone else in the administration.But now I said to them,“ You know very well what trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire. Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!”Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king. They replied at once,“ Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” So they began the good work.But when Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab heard of our plan, they scoffed contemptuously.“ What are you doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” they asked.I replied,“ The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start rebuilding this wall. But you have no share, legal right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.”Then Eliashib the high priest and the other priests started to rebuild at the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set up its doors, building the wall as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and the Tower of Hananel.People from the town of Jericho worked next to them, and beyond them was Zaccur son of Imri.The Fish Gate was built by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.Meremoth son of Uriah and grandson of Hakkoz repaired the next section of wall. Beside him were Meshullam son of Berekiah and grandson of Meshezabel, and then Zadok son of Baana.Next were the people from Tekoa, though their leaders refused to work with the construction supervisors.The Old City Gate was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.Next to them were Melatiah from Gibeon, Jadon from Meronoth, people from Gibeon, and people from Mizpah, the headquarters of the governor of the province west of the Euphrates River.Next was Uzziel son of Harhaiah, a goldsmith by trade, who also worked on the wall. Beyond him was Hananiah, a manufacturer of perfumes. They left out a section of Jerusalem as they built the Broad Wall.Rephaiah son of Hur, the leader of half the district of Jerusalem, was next to them on the wall.Next Jedaiah son of Harumaph repaired the wall across from his own house, and next to him was Hattush son of Hashabneiah.Then came Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath moab, who repaired another section of the wall and the Tower of the Ovens.Shallum son of Hallohesh and his daughters repaired the next section. He was the leader of the other half of the district of Jerusalem.The Valley Gate was repaired by the people from Zanoah, led by Hanun. They set up its doors and installed its bolts and bars. They also repaired the 1,500 feet of wall to the Dung Gate.The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Recab, the leader of the Beth hakkerem district. He rebuilt it, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallum son of Col hozeh, the leader of the Mizpah district. He rebuilt it, roofed it, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars. Then he repaired the wall of the pool of Siloam near the king’s garden, and he rebuilt the wall as far as the stairs that descend from the City of David.Next to him was Nehemiah son of Azbuk, the leader of half the district of Beth zur. He rebuilt the wall from a place across from the tombs of David’s family as far as the water reservoir and the House of the Warriors.

We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work.

“ Even a tree has more hope! If it is cut down, it will sprout again and grow new branches.Though its roots have grown old in the earth and its stump decays,at the scent of water it will bud and sprout again like a new seedling.“ But when people die, their strength is gone. They breathe their last, and then where are they?As water evaporates from a lake and a river disappears in drought,people are laid to rest and do not rise again. Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up nor be roused from their sleep.

But we prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves.Then the people of Judah began to complain,“ The workers are getting tired, and there is so much rubble to be moved. We will never be able to build the wall by ourselves.”Meanwhile, our enemies were saying,“ Before they know what’s happening, we will swoop down on them and kill them and end their work.”The Jews who lived near the enemy came and told us again and again,“ They will come from all directions and attack us!”So I placed armed guards behind the lowest parts of the wall in the exposed areas. I stationed the people to stand guard by families, armed with swords, spears, and bows.

Are your wonderful deeds of any use to the dead? Do the dead rise up and praise you? InterludeCan those in the grave declare your unfailing love? Can they proclaim your faithfulness in the place of destruction?Can the darkness speak of your wonderful deeds? Can anyone in the land of forgetfulness talk about your righteousness?

The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, nor are they remembered.Whatever they did in their lifetime— loving, hating, envying— is all long gone. They no longer play a part in anything here on earth.

But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me— and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.

who were building the wall. The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon.All the builders had a sword belted to their side. The trumpeter stayed with me to sound the alarm.Then I explained to the nobles and officials and all the people,“ The work is very spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall.When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding. Then our God will fight for us!”We worked early and late, from sunrise to sunset. And half the men were always on guard.I also told everyone living outside the walls to stay in Jerusalem. That way they and their servants could help with guard duty at night and work during the day.During this time, none of us— not I, nor my relatives, nor my servants, nor the guards who were with me— ever took off our clothes. We carried our weapons with us at all times, even when we went for water.

So the Jewish elders continued their work, and they were greatly encouraged by the preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo. The Temple was finally finished, as had been commanded by the God of Israel and decreed by Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, the kings of Persia.The Temple was completed on March 12, during the sixth year of King Darius’s reign.

Then Jesus explained:“ My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.

Now seek the Lord your God with all your heart and soul. Build the sanctuary of the Lord God so that you can bring the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant and the holy vessels of God into the Temple built to honor the Lord’s name.”

Then David continued,“ Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that all the work related to the Temple of the Lord is finished correctly.

Therefore, I will always remind you about these things— even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught.And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live.For our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that I must soon leave this earthly life,so I will work hard to make sure you always remember these things after I am gone.

But Caleb tried to quiet the people as they stood before Moses.“ Let’s go at once to take the land,” he said.“ We can certainly conquer it!”

Using every resource at my command, I have gathered as much as I could for building the Temple of my God. Now there is enough gold, silver, bronze, iron, and wood, as well as great quantities of onyx, other precious stones, costly jewels, and all kinds of fine stone and marble.“ And now, because of my devotion to the Temple of my God, I am giving all of my own private treasures of gold and silver to help in the construction. This is in addition to the building materials I have already collected for his holy Temple.

When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. He is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am.

Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them.They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum.My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else.

At last the wall was completed to half its height around the entire city, for the people had worked with enthusiasm.