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Texts -- Ecclesiastes 9:4-6 (NET)

Context
Better to Be Poor but Alive than Rich but Dead
9:4 But whoever is among the living has hope ; a live dog is better than a dead lion . 9:5 For the living know that they will die , but the dead do not know anything ; they have no further reward – and even the memory of them disappears . 9:6 What they loved , as well as what they hated and envied , perished long ago, and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth .

Pericope

NET
  • Ecc 9:4-6 -- Better to Be Poor but Alive than Rich but Dead

Bible Dictionary

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Hymns

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  • [Ecc 9:4] Life Is The Time To Serve The Lord

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • I believe that the message of Ecclesiastes is essentially a positive one. This may seem strange since the vanity of various human endeavors is such a major theme of this book. Nevertheless the total statement that Solomon mad...
  • I. The introductory affirmation 1:1-11A. Title and theme 1:1-21. The title 1:12. The theme 1:2B. The futility of all human endeavor 1:3-111. The vanity of work 1:32. The illustrations from life 1:4-11II. The futility of work ...
  • Rather than saying, "All work is vanity,"Solomon made the same point by asking this rhetorical question that expects a negative response. He used this literary device often throughout the book (cf. 2:2; 3:9; 6:8, 11-12; et al...
  • Clues in the text indicate the value and purpose of 6:10-11:6. The phrases "does not know"and "cannot discover"occur frequently (6:12; 7:14, 24, 28; 8:17; 19:1, 12; 10:14; 11:2, 6). Also the recurrence of "it is good"(7:18) a...
  • The emphasis in this section (9:1-11:6) is on what man does not know because God has not revealed many things. Solomon also emphasized, however, that the remaining mystery in this subject (8:16-17) must not diminish human joy...
  • 9:1 "All this"refers to the general pattern of God's inconsistent retribution that Solomon had discussed. Even though he could not predict whether a given person would experience prosperity or adversity, he believed all peopl...
  • Solomon's emphasis in 9:2-10 was on the fact that a righteous person could not be more certain of his or her earthly future than the wicked. In 9:11-10:11 his point was that the wise cannot be more sure of his or her earthly ...
  • In 1:12-6:9, Solomon demonstrated that all work is ultimately futile for two reasons. It does not yield anything really permanent under the sun. Moreover we can never be sure we will enjoy the fruits of our labor before we di...
  • In conclusion Solomon repeated his original thesis (v. 8; cf. 1:2) and his counsel in view of life's realities (vv. 13-14). In between these statements he set forth his source of authority for writing what we have in Ecclesia...
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