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How many chapters are in Ecclesiastes?

Ecclesiastes has 12 chapters and 222 verses. The King James Version text of Ecclesiastes runs 5,579 words, about 23 minutes of reading at 238 words a minute. It is book 21 of the 66 books of the Bible (21st of the 39 Old Testament books) and the 35th longest by word count.

12
Chapters
of 1,189 in the Bible
222
Verses (KJV)
WEB: 222
5,579
Words (KJV)
35th longest of 66
23 min
Reading time
at 238 words a minute

Verses in each chapter of Ecclesiastes

The longest chapter is Ecclesiastes 7 with 29 verses; the shortest is Ecclesiastes 11 with 10.

Chapter 1
18
Chapter 2
26
Chapter 3
22
Chapter 4
16
Chapter 5
20
Chapter 6
12
Chapter 7
29
Chapter 8
17
Chapter 9
18
Chapter 10
20
Chapter 11
10
Chapter 12
14

Longest and shortest verse in Ecclesiastes

Longest: Ecclesiastes 4:8, 57 words in the KJV.

There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

Ecclesiastes 4:8 (KJV)

Shortest: Ecclesiastes 1:12, 9 words in the KJV.

I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

Ecclesiastes 1:12 (KJV)

How Ecclesiastes begins and ends

First verse, Ecclesiastes 1:1

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

Ecclesiastes 1:1 (KJV)

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem:

Ecclesiastes 1:1 (WEB)

Last verse, Ecclesiastes 12:14

For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:14 (KJV)

For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:14 (WEB)

Ecclesiastes in our topic collections

26 verses from Ecclesiastes appear on our Bible verse topic pages, most often in these topics:

Ecclesiastes: common questions

How many chapters are in the book of Ecclesiastes?

Ecclesiastes has 12 chapters. The longest chapter is Ecclesiastes 7 with 29 verses; the shortest is Ecclesiastes 11 with 10.

How many verses are in Ecclesiastes?

Ecclesiastes has 222 verses in the King James Version, and the same number in the World English Bible.

How long does it take to read Ecclesiastes?

About 23 minutes at an average silent reading speed of 238 words a minute. The KJV text is 5,579 words and the World English Bible text is 5,495 words.

What is the longest verse in Ecclesiastes?

Ecclesiastes 4:8 is the longest verse in Ecclesiastes, at 57 words in the King James Version. The shortest is Ecclesiastes 1:12 (9 words): "I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem."

Study Ecclesiastes

Previous book: ProverbsNext book: Song of Solomon

Compare all 66 books on how many books are in the Bible, see the Bible by the numbers, or work out how long it takes to read the Bible at your own pace.

Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-02.