A time to weep almost certainly means a time to weep in lamentation, hence Good News Translation “a time for sorrow.” Note, however, that this verb is set over against the verb “laugh.”

A time to laugh: although Qoheleth sometimes uses “laugh” with a negative meaning (as in 7.3), here it appears to be joyous laughter (Good News Translation “a time for joy”).

Suggestions for translation are:

• Sometimes it is right to weep [in mourning], sometimes it is right to laugh [for joy].

• We weep at certain times, and we laugh at certain times.

A time to mourn reminds us that we don’t always mourn, and that even for periods of mourning there are fixed limits.

A time to dance illustrates the opposite reaction to mourning. Dancing is usually associated with moments of great joy and thanksgiving, and may be for religious or other purposes. Whichever it is, the point Qoheleth stresses is that we do these things only when it is appropriate. So “there is a right time to mourn and a right time to dance.” Dancing may have different meanings and purposes in cultures other than the Israelite one, so it is possible that some clarification is called for. In many parts of Africa, for example, dancing is an inherent part of mourning. So the translator may find it necessary to use a term like “celebration” to show what the dancing expresses.

Two possible examples for translation are:

• There is a time to sit and mourn and a time to rise up and dance.

• There is a time to mourn in sorrow, and a time to dance for joy.

Translators should avoid the Good News Translation example “He sets the time for…,” which suggests that God is the one who determines the time. As explained above, this makes the translation go beyond the ideas expressed in the poem.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Zogbo, Lynell. A Handbook on the Book of Ecclesiates. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .