'Nothing' in the Bible

For when he dies he will carry nothing away;His glory will not descend after him.

They staggered and trembled like a drunken man,And were at their wits’ end [all their wisdom was useless].

The wicked will see it and be angered,He will gnash his teeth and melt away [in despair and death];The desire of the wicked will perish and come to nothing.

Those who love Your law have great peace;Nothing makes them stumble.

Even the darkness is not dark to You and conceals nothing from You,But the night shines as bright as the day;Darkness and light are alike to You.

And you treated all my counsel as nothingAnd would not accept my reprimand,

She is more precious than rubies;And nothing you can wish for compares with her [in value].

“All the words of my mouth are in righteousness (upright, in right standing with God);There is nothing contrary to truth or perverted (crooked) in them.

The foolish woman is restless and noisy;She is naive and easily misled and thoughtless, and knows nothing at all [of eternal value].

Treasures of wickedness and ill-gotten gains do not profit,But righteousness and moral integrity in daily life rescues from death.

The hope of the righteous [those of honorable character and integrity] is joy,But the expectation of the wicked [those who oppose God and ignore His wisdom] comes to nothing.

When the wicked man dies, his expectation will perish;And the hope of [godless] strong men perishes.

The soul (appetite) of the lazy person craves and gets nothing [for lethargy overcomes ambition],But the soul (appetite) of the diligent [who works willingly] is rich and abundantly supplied.

There is one who pretends to be rich, yet has nothing at all;Another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.

The crown of the wise is their wealth [of wisdom],But the foolishness of [closed-minded] fools is [nothing but] folly.

The lazy man does not plow when the winter [planting] season arrives;So he begs at the [next] harvest and has nothing [to reap].

If you have nothing with which to pay [another’s debt when he defaults],Why should his creditor take your bed from under you?

Whoever is partner with a thief hates his own life;He hears the curse [when swearing an oath to testify], but discloses nothing [and commits perjury by omission].

Surely I am more brutish and stupid than any man,And I do not have the understanding of a man [for I do not know what I do not know].

That which has been is that which will be [again],And that which has been done is that which will be done again.So there is nothing new under the sun.

So I turned to consider [secular] wisdom, madness, and folly; for what will the man do who succeeds the king? Nothing except what has already been done.

There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and assure himself that there is good in his labor. Even this, I have seen, is from the hand of God.

He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.

I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good as long as they live;

I know that whatever God does, it endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor can anything be taken from it, for God does it so that men will fear and worship Him [with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is God].

So I have seen that there is nothing better than that a man should be happy in his own works and activities, for that is his portion (share). For who will bring him [back] to see what will happen after he is gone?

For when those riches are lost in bad investments and he becomes the father of a son, then there is nothing in his hand [for the support of the child].

As he came naked from his mother’s womb, so he will return as he came; and he will take away nothing from all his labor that he can carry in his hand.

a man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God has not given him the power or capacity to enjoy them [all those things which are gifts from God], but a stranger [in whom he has no interest succeeds him and] enjoys them. This is vanity and it is a [cause of] great distress.

For who [limited by human wisdom] knows what is good for man during his lifetime, during the few days of his futile life? He spends them like a shadow [staying busy, but achieving nothing of lasting value]. For who can tell a man what will happen after him [to his work, his treasure, his plans] under the sun [after his life is over]?

For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they no longer have a reward [here], for the memory of them is forgotten.

Its nobles—there is no one thereWhom they may proclaim king—And all its princes will be nothing.

Hezekiah was pleased and showed them his treasure house—the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his entire armory and everything that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all his area of dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.

Then Isaiah said, “What have they seen in your house?” And Hezekiah answered, “They have seen everything that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”

‘Listen carefully, the days are coming when everything that is in your house and everything that your predecessors have stored up until this day will be carried to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.

All the nations are as nothing before Him,They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless.

It is He who reduces dignitaries to nothing,Who makes the judges (rulers) of the earth meaningless (useless).

‘Do not fear [anything], for I am with you;Do not be afraid, for I am your God.I will strengthen you, be assured I will help you;I will certainly take hold of you with My righteous right hand [a hand of justice, of power, of victory, of salvation].’

“Indeed, all those who are angry with you will be put to shame and humiliated;Those who strive against you will be as nothing and will perish.

“You shall search for those who quarrel with you, but will not find them;They who war against you will be as nothing, as nothing at all.

Hear this! You [idols] are less than nothing,And your work is worthless;The worshiper who chooses you [as a god] is repulsive.

Who has made a god or cast an idol which is profitable for nothing?

“I have not spoken in secret,In a corner of a land of darkness;I did not say to the descendants of Jacob,‘Seek Me in vain [with no benefit for yourselves].’I, the Lord, speak righteousness [the truth—trustworthy, a straightforward correlation between deeds and words],Declaring things that are upright.

“Therefore disaster will come on you;You will not know how to make it disappear [with your magic].And disaster will fall on youFor which you cannot atone [with all your offerings to your gods];And destruction about which you do not knowWill come on you suddenly.

Then I said, “I have labored in vain,I have spent My strength for nothing and vanity (pride, uselessness);However My justice is with the Lord,And My reward is with My God.”

For the Lord says this, “You were sold for nothing and you will be redeemed, but not with money.”

For the Lord God says this, “My people went down at the first into Egypt to live there; and [many years later Sennacherib] the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.

But now, what do I have here,” declares the Lord, “seeing that My people have been taken away without reason? Those who rule over them howl [with taunting and mockery of salvation],” declares the Lord, “and My name is continually blasphemed all day long.

“[Cease your mad running after idols to]Keep your feet from becoming bareAnd your throat from becoming dry;But you said, ‘It is hopeless!For I have loved strangers and foreign gods,And I will walk after them.’

For the Lord of hosts has said,“Cut down her treesAnd build a siege [mound] against Jerusalem.This is the city which must be punished;There is nothing but oppression inside her [walls].

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat the meat.

O Lord, correct me [along with Your people], but with mercy and in just measure—Not in Your anger, or You will crush me and bring me to nothing.

Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the waistband from the place where I had hidden it. And behold, the waistband was decayed and ruined; it was completely worthless.

These wicked and malevolent people, who refuse to listen to My words, who walk in the stubborn way of their heart and have followed other gods [which are nothing—just man-made carvings] to serve them and to worship them, let them be just like this waistband which is completely worthless.

[Then said Jeremiah] “O Lord, my Strength and my Stronghold,And my Refuge in the day of distress and need,The nations will come to YouFrom the ends of the earth and say,‘Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies and illusion,[Worthless] things in which there is no benefit!’

‘Ah Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! There is nothing too difficult or too wonderful for You—

They entered and took possession of it, but they did not obey Your voice or walk in Your law; they have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do. Therefore You have caused all this disaster and suffering to come upon them.

Then King Zedekiah sent and had Jeremiah the prophet brought to him at the third entrance that is in the house of the Lord. And the king said to Jeremiah, “I am going to ask you something; hide nothing from me.”

But Nebuzaradan the [Babylonian] captain of the bodyguard left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who had nothing, and gave them vineyards and fields at that time.

Then Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Now hear me, I will pray to the Lord your God in accordance with your words; and I will declare to you whatever message the Lord answers; I will keep nothing back from you.”

“I know his [insolent] wrath,” says the Lord,“But it is futile;His idle boasts [in his deeds] have accomplished nothing.

Come against her from the farthest border.Open her storehouses;Pile it up like heaps of rubbish.Burn and destroy her completely;Let nothing be left of her.

and say, ‘You, O Lord, have promised concerning this place to cut it off and destroy it, so that there shall be nothing living in it, neither man nor animal, but it will be perpetually desolate.’

“Is it nothing to you, all you who pass this way?Look and see if there is any pain like my painWhich was severely dealt out to me,Which the Lord has inflicted [on me] on the day of His fierce anger.

“Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are long and every vision fails’?

Thus says the Lord God, “Woe (judgment is coming) to the foolish prophets who are following their own spirit [claiming to have seen things] but have [in fact] seen nothing.

if a man does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing,

I will make your horde [of people] fall by the swords of the mighty—all of them are tyrants among the nations,And they will devastate the pride and presumption of Egypt,And all its hordes will be destroyed.

“All the inhabitants of the earth are regarded as nothing.But He does according to His will in the host of heavenAnd among the inhabitants of the earth;And no one can hold back His handOr say to Him, ‘What have You done?’

Then after the sixty-two weeks [of years] the Anointed One will be cut off [and denied His Messianic kingdom] and have nothing [and no one to defend Him], and the people of the [other] prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.

There is [false] swearing of oaths, deception (broken faith), murder, stealing, and adultery;They employ violence, so that one [act of] bloodshed follows closely on another.

I will not execute the fierceness of My anger;I will not return to Ephraim to destroy him again.For I am God and not man, the Holy One in your midst [who will not revoke My covenant],And I will not come in wrath or enter the city [in judgment].

Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey?Does a young lion growl from his den if he has not captured something?

Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there is no bait in it?Does a trap spring up from the ground when it has caught nothing at all? [Of course not! So it is that Israel has earned her impending judgment.]

Surely the Lord God does nothingWithout revealing His secret plan [of the judgment to come]To His servants the prophets.

“But do not resort to Bethel [to worship the golden calf]Nor enter [idolatrous] Gilgal,Nor cross over to Beersheba [and its idols];For Gilgal will certainly go into captivity and exile,And Bethel will come to nothing.

“If thieves came to you,If robbers by night—How you will be ruined!—Would they not steal only until they had enough?If grape gatherers came to you,Would they not leave some grapes for gleaning?

Thus says the Lord concerning the [false] prophets who lead my people astray;When they have something good to bite with their teeth,They call out, “Peace,”But against the one who gives them nothing to eat,They declare a holy war.

Her officials within her are roaring lions;Her judges are [as hungry as] the wolves at evening,They leave nothing for the morning.

‘Who is left among you who saw this house (temple) in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison?

And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one [about this]; but go, show yourself to the priest [for inspection] and present the offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony (evidence) to them [of your healing].”

“So do not be afraid of them, for nothing is hidden that will not be revealed [at the judgment], or kept secret that will not be made known [at the judgment].

All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables, and He said nothing to them without [using] a parable.

They replied, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.”

Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home].”

He answered, “Because of your little faith [your lack of trust and confidence in the power of God]; for I assure you and most solemnly say to you, if you have [living] faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and [if it is God’s will] it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.

Seeing a lone fig tree at the roadside, He went to it and found nothing but leaves on it; and He said to it, “Never again will fruit come from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears [an oath] by the sanctuary of the temple, that is nothing (non-binding); but whoever swears [an oath] by the gold of the temple is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].’

Fill up, then, the [allotted] measure of the guilt of your fathers’ sins.

for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;

While he was seated on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous and innocent Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.”

saying to him, “See that you tell no one anything [about this]; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your purification what Moses commanded, as proof to them [that you are really healed].”

For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been kept secret, but that it would come to light [that is, things are hidden only temporarily, until the appropriate time comes for them to be known].

For whoever has [a teachable heart], to him more [understanding] will be given; and whoever does not have [a yearning for truth], even what he has will be taken away from him.”

He told them to take nothing for the journey except a mere walking stick—no bread, no [traveler’s] bag, no money in their belts—

In those days, when there was again a large crowd [gathered before Him] and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples and told them,

“I feel compassion for the crowd; they have been with Me now for three days and have nothing [left] to eat.

Seeing at a distance a fig tree in leaf, He went to see if He would find anything on it. But He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.

A young man was following Him, wearing [only] a linen sheet over his naked body; and some men seized him.

They went out and fled from the tomb, for they were seized with trembling and astonishment; and they said nothing [about it] to anyone, because they were afraid.