Ecclesiastes 1:15 Meaning and Explanation
“That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Some things in life are bent beyond our power to straighten, and some lacks are beyond our power to fill or count.
What Does Ecclesiastes 1:15 Mean?
The Preacher states a proverb that sums up the limit he has struck. By human effort, what is crooked stays crooked, and what is missing cannot be supplied or even fully reckoned. There are wrongs we cannot set right and gaps we cannot close on our own.
This is a humbling truth, and an honest one. The world is bent in ways no amount of wisdom or labor under the sun can mend. Rather than despair, the verse leaves the reader looking upward, for the straightening of what is crooked and the supplying of what is lacking belong to God, who alone is able to make the rough places plain.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ecclesiastes 1:15
What does Ecclesiastes 1:15 mean?
Some things in life are bent beyond our power to straighten, and some lacks are beyond our power to fill or count.