1 Ship your grain across the sea;

after many days you may receive a return.

2 Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight;

you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.

3 If clouds are full of water,

they pour rain on the earth.

Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north,

in the place where it falls, there it will lie.

4 Whoever watches the wind will not plant;

whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

1 Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be. 4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.

1 Send your grain across the seas,

and in time, profits will flow back to you.

2 But divide your investments among many places,

for you do not know what risks might lie ahead.

3 When clouds are heavy, the rains come down.

Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls.

4 Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant.

If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.

1 Cast your bread upon the waters,

For you will find it after many days.

2 Give a serving to seven, and also to eight,

For you do not know what evil will be on the earth.

3 If the clouds are full of rain,

They empty themselves upon the earth;

And if a tree falls to the south or the north,

In the place where the tree falls, there it shall lie.

4 He who observes the wind will not sow,

And he who regards the clouds will not reap.

1 Invest what you have,

because after a while you will get a return.

2 Invest what you have in several different businesses,

because you don’t know what disasters might happen.

3 If clouds are full of rain,

they will shower on the earth.

A tree can fall to the north or south,

but it will stay where it falls.

4 Those who wait for perfect weather

will never plant seeds;

those who look at every cloud

will never harvest crops.

1 Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, yea, even unto eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; and if a tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there shall it be. 4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.

1 Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; and if a tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be. 4 He that observeth the wind will not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds will not reap.

1 Throw your bread on the surface of the water, because you will find it again after many days. 

2 Divide what you have into seven parts, or even into eight, because you don’t know what disaster may happen on earth. 

3 If the clouds are full of rain, they will let it pour down on the earth. If a tree falls north or south, the tree will remain where it fell. 

4 Whoever watches the wind will never plant. Whoever looks at the clouds will never harvest. 

1 Send your bread on the surface of the waters,

for after many days you may find it.

2 Give a portion to seven or even to eight,

for you don’t know what disaster may happen on earth.

3 If the clouds are full, they will pour out rain on the earth;

whether a tree falls to the south or the north,

the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.

4 One who watches the wind will not sow,

and the one who looks at the clouds will not reap.

1 Send out your bread upon the waters,

for after many days you will get it back.

2 Divide your means seven ways, or even eight,

for you do not know what disaster may happen on earth.

3 When clouds are full,

they empty rain on the earth;

whether a tree falls to the south or to the north,

in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.

4 Whoever observes the wind will not sow;

and whoever regards the clouds will not reap.

1 Send out your bread on the water,

for in many days you will find it.

2 Divide your share in seven or in eight,

for you do not know what disaster will happen on the earth.

3 When the clouds are full,

they empty rain on the earth.

Whether a tree falls to the south or whether it falls to the north,

the place where the tree falls—there it will be.

4 Whoever watches the wind will not sow;

whoever watches the clouds will not reap.

1 Put your money into trade across the ocean.

After a while you will earn something from it.

2 Give shares of what you earn to a lot of people.

After all, you don’t know what great trouble might come on the land.

3 Clouds that are full of water

pour rain down on the earth.

A tree might fall to the south or the north.

It will stay in the place where it falls.

4 Anyone who keeps on watching the wind won’t plant seeds.

Anyone who keeps looking at the clouds won’t gather crops.

1 Cast your bread on the surface of the waters, for you will find it after many days.

2 Divide your portion to seven, or even to eight, for you do not know what misfortune may occur on the earth.

3 If the clouds are full, they pour out rain upon the earth; and whether a tree falls toward the south or toward the north, wherever the tree falls, there it lies.

4 He who watches the wind will not sow and he who looks at the clouds will not reap.