Ecclesiastes 8:3

Modern

Do not hasten to leave his presence, and do not persist in a bad cause, for he will do whatever he pleases.

Traditional

Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him.

Literal

Do not hurry to depart from his face; do not stand in an evil matter, for all that he delights in, he will do.

Latin

Ne festines recedere a facie ejus, neque permaneas in opere malo: quia omne quod voluerit faciet.

Hebrew

English

Do not hasten to leave his presence, and do not persist in a bad cause, for he will do whatever he pleases.

It is pointless to plot against the king because he has great power and can do anything he wants.

Theme notes and profiles

Ecclesiastes 10:4
If the ruler’s temper flares against you, do not abandon your post, for calmness lays great offenses to rest.
Daniel 4:35
All the peoples of the earth are counted as nothing, and He does as He pleases with the army of heaven and the peoples of the earth. There is no one who can restrain His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”
Daniel 5:19
Because of the greatness that He bestowed on him, the people of every nation and language trembled in fear before him. He killed whom he wished and kept alive whom he wished; he exalted whom he wished and humbled whom he wished.
Acts 5:8–9
“Tell me,” said Peter, “is this the price you and your husband got for the land?” “Yes,” she answered, “that is the price.”
Proverbs 14:29
A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man promotes folly.
1 Kings 1:50–52
But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, got up and went to take hold of the horns of the altar.
Proverbs 16:14–15
The wrath of a king is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it.
1 Kings 2:21–24
So Bathsheba said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as his wife.”
Isaiah 48:4
For I knew that you are stubborn; your neck is iron and your forehead is bronze.
Jeremiah 44:16–17
“As for the word you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you!
Proverbs 30:31
…a strutting rooster; a he-goat; and a king with his army around him.