Ecclesiastes 3:20 (GNV)

Passage

All goe to one place, and all was of the dust, and all shall returne to the dust.

Nearby Context

Ecclesiastes 3:18 I considered in mine heart the state of the children of men that God had purged them: yet to see to, they are in themselues as beastes.

Ecclesiastes 3:19 For the condition of the children of men, and the condition of beasts are euen as one condition vnto them. As the one dyeth, so dyeth the other: for they haue all one breath, and there is no excellency of man aboue ye beast: for all is vanitie.

Ecclesiastes 3:20 All goe to one place, and all was of the dust, and all shall returne to the dust.

Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knoweth whether the spirit of man ascend vpward, and the spirit of the beast descend downeward to the earth?

Ecclesiastes 3:22 Therefore I see that there is nothing better then that a man shoulde reioyce in his affaires, because that is his portion. For who shall bring him to see what shalbe after him?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "place", "dust", "shall", and "returne". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "place" and "dust", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "For the condition of the children of..." into verse 21's "Who knoweth whether the spirit of man...", so "place" and "dust" belong inside that flow. In Ecclesiastes context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "place" and "dust" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.