9. What gain has the worker from his toil?

That is, unless the appointed time, or καιρός, is here, he achieves nothing. The worker has nothing else except his own appointed time. If this does not come, he can achieve nothing. But if the appointed time is right, then he is right, too.

10. I have seen the travail, which God has given to the sons of men to be exercised in it.

This is a clarification of everything that has preceded it. “In all those labors,” he says, “I have seen that men cannot achieve anything by themselves unless their appointed time is here.” But those who want to anticipate their appointed time prematurely have travail, care, and anxieties; this is intended to make them learn from their experience and to refrain from care about future things, but to use the things that are present.

11. He has made everything beautiful in its time.

Now this is the second part. Those who do not expect their appointed time are afflicted, while those who do expect it are delighted. For everything that God makes or that happens through the gift of God in its appointed time is pleasant. That is to say, when the heart is empty of cares and yet something happens to it that is pleasant or some interesting sight comes along, this is very delightful. Therefore such people have pleasure where others have affliction, because they do things at the time which has been appointed by God. (Luther’s Works, v.15 p.52-53)

A time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted.

These are works of human life, but they are not in our hands any more than life itself is. In the spring there is planting, in the autumn there is plucking up. All of this is as God gives and ordains it, and it cannot be done otherwise by us.

3. A time to kill, and a time to heal;a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4. a time to weep, and a time to laugh;a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5. a time to cast away and a time to gather stones together;a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6. a time to seek, and a time to lose;a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7. a time to rend, and a time to sew;a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8. a time to love, and a time to hate;a time for war, and a time for peace.

This catalog requires experience, so that it may be applied to the entire course of life. For this is what happens: one man plants, and another plucks; or one man acquires, and another tears down. In short, for each of the works of human life there is a defined time, outside of which, regardless of what you do, you will accomplish nothing and work in vain. There is a time to weep, there is a time to laugh. It often happens that when we want to be very joyous, a sudden disturbance arises. Therefore joy has its appointed time. Experience proves all of this, namely, that by our own counsels we can achieve nothing, but whatever is to be done is presented to us at its appointed time. Therefore let us not torment ourselves about future things, but enjoy present things. (Luther’s Works, v.15 p.51-52)