Furthermore, I saw under the sun that in the place of judgment there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
Parallel translations
- WEB Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.
- KJV And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there.
- NKJV Moreover I saw under the sun: In the place of judgment, Wickedness was there; And in the place of righteousness, Iniquity was there.
- NASB Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.
- NLT I also noticed that under the sun there is evil in the courtroom. Yes, even the courts of law are corrupt!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
He observed wickedness even in the places of justice and righteousness. Corruption pervades human institutions, even those meant to uphold what is right.
Overview
Qoheleth laments the disturbing reality of injustice where justice should reign. This honest acknowledgment of corruption reflects life in a fallen world. Rather than ending in cynicism, it sets up the next verse's confidence that God will judge, pointing to the final, perfect justice that Christ will administer.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Eccl 4:1Again I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter.
- Eccl 5:8If you see the oppression of the poor and the denial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be astonished at the matter; for one official is watched by a superior, and others higher still are over them.
- Acts 23:3Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit here to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck.”
- Ps 58:1–2For the choirmaster. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A Miktam of David. Do you indeed speak justly, O rulers? Do you judge uprightly, O sons of men?
- Ps 82:2–5“How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
- Ps 94:21–22They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death.
- 1 Kgs 21:9–21In the letters she wrote: “Proclaim a fast and give Naboth a seat of honor among the people.
- Mic 2:2They covet fields and seize them; they take away houses. They deprive a man of his home, a fellow man of his inheritance.
- Mic 7:3Both hands are skilled at evil; the prince and the judge demand a bribe. When the powerful utters his evil desire, they all conspire together.
- Zeph 3:3Her princes are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves, leaving nothing for the morning.
- Isa 59:14So justice is turned away, and righteousness stands at a distance. For truth has stumbled in the public square, and honesty cannot enter.
- Matt 26:59Now the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were seeking false testimony against Jesus in order to put Him to death.
- Jas 2:6But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
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Christ at the center
The search that finds everything 'under the sun' to be vapor exposes the emptiness of life without God and drives us to the one who alone gives meaning, the resurrection that makes our labor not in vain.
How Ecclesiastes 3:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.