Ecclesiastes 2:26

2:26 For to the one who pleases him, ¹  God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy,

but to the sinner, he gives the task of amassing ²  wealth ³  –

only to give ⁴  it ⁵  to the one who pleases God.

This ⁶  task of the wicked ⁷  is futile – like chasing the wind!

Acts 3:19

3:19 Therefore repent and turn back so that your sins may be wiped out,

Acts 10:31

10:31 and said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your acts of charity ⁸  have been remembered before God. ⁹ 

Acts 10:2

10:2 He ¹⁰  was a devout, God-fearing man, ¹¹  as was all his household; he did many acts of charity for the people ¹²  and prayed to God regularly.

Colossians 2:17

2:17 these are only ¹³  the shadow of the things to come, but the reality ¹⁴  is Christ! ¹⁵ 

Colossians 2:1

2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, ¹⁶  and for those in Laodicea, and for those who have not met me face to face. ¹⁷ 

Colossians 2:3

2:3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Hebrews 13:21

13:21 equip you with every good thing to do his will, working in us ¹⁸  what is pleasing before him through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever. ¹⁹  Amen.

Hebrews 13:1

Final Exhortations

13:1 Brotherly love must continue.

Hebrews 3:4

3:4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.

Hebrews 3:1

Jesus and Moses

3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, ²⁰  partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, ²¹ 

Hebrews 3:1

Jesus and Moses

3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, ²²  partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, ²³ 

[2:26]  ¹ tn Heb “for to a man who is good before him.”

[2:26]  ² sn The phrase the task of amassing wealth (Heb “the task of gathering and heaping up”) implicitly compares the work of the farmer reaping his crops and storing them up in a barn, to the work of the laborer amassing wealth as the fruit of his labor. However, rather than his storehouse being safe for the future, the sinner is deprived of it.

[2:26]  ³ tn The word “wealth” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:26]  ⁴ sn The three-fold repetition of the Hebrew word translated “give” in the first part of this verse creates irony: God “gives” the righteous the ability to prosper and to find enjoyment in his work; but to the wicked He “gives” the task of “giving” his wealth to the righteous.

[2:26]  ⁵ tn The word “it” (an implied direct object) does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:26]  ⁶ tn The antecedent of the demonstrative pronoun זֶה (zeh, “this”) is debated: (1) Some refer it to the enjoyment which Qoheleth had just commended in 2:24-26. However, this is inconsistent with the enjoyment theme found elsewhere in the book. It also ignores the fact that 2:24-26 states that such enjoyment is a good gift from God. (2) Others refer it to the term “toil” (עָמָל, ’amal) which is repeated throughout 2:18-26. However, Qoheleth affirmed that if one is righteous, he can find enjoyment in his toil, even though so much of it is ultimately futile. (3) Therefore, it seems best to refer it to the grievous “task” (עִנְיָן, ’inyan) God has given to the sinner in 2:26b. Consistent with the meaning of הֶבֶל (hevel, “futile; profitless; fruitless”), 2:26b emphasizes that the “task” of the sinner is profitless: he labors hard to amass wealth, only to see the fruit of his labor given away to someone else. The righteous man’s enjoyment of his work and the fruit of his labor under the blessing of God (2:24-26a) is not included in this.

[2:26]  ⁷ tn The phrase “task of the wicked” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:31]  ⁸ tn Or “your gifts to the needy.”

[10:31]  ⁹ sn This statement is a paraphrase rather than an exact quotation of Acts 10:4.

[10:2]  ¹⁰ tn In the Greek text this represents a continuation of the previous sentence. Because of the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was begun here in the translation.

[10:2]  ¹¹ sn The description of Cornelius as a devout, God-fearing man probably means that he belonged to the category called “God-fearers,” Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 43-44, and Sir 11:17; 27:11; 39:27.

[10:2]  ¹² tn Or “gave many gifts to the poor.” This was known as “giving alms,” or acts of mercy (Sir 7:10; BDAG 315-16 s.v. ἐλεημοσύνη).

[2:17]  ¹³ tn The word “only,” though not in the Greek text, is supplied in the English translation to bring out the force of the Greek phrase.

[2:17]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “but the body of Christ.” The term body here, when used in contrast to shadow (σκιά, skia) indicates the opposite meaning, i.e., the reality or substance itself.

[2:17]  ¹⁵ tn The genitive τοῦ Χριστοῦ (tou Cristou) is appositional and translated as such: “the reality is Christ.”

[2:1]  ¹⁶ tn Or “I want you to know how hard I am working for you…”

[2:1]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “as many as have not seen my face in the flesh.”

[13:21]  ¹⁸ tc Some mss (C P Ψ 6 629* 630 1505 pm latt sy^h) read ὑμῖν (Jumin, “in you”) here, but ἡμῖν (Jhmin) has stronger external support (Ì⁴⁶ א A D^vid K 0243 0285 33 81 104 326 365 629^c 1175 1739 1881 pm sy^p co). It is also more likely that ἡμῖν would have been changed to ὑμῖν in light of the “you” which occurs at the beginning of the verse than vice versa.

[13:21]  ¹⁹ tc ‡ Most mss (א A [C*] 0243 0285 33 1739 1881 Ï latt) include the words “and ever” here, but the shorter reading (supported by Ì⁴⁶ C³ D Ψ 6 104 365 1505 al) is preferred on internal grounds. It seemed more likely that scribes would assimilate the wording to the common NT doxological expression “for ever and ever,” found especially in the Apocalypse (cf., e.g., 1 Tim 1:17; 2 Tim 4:18; Rev 4:9; 22:5) than to the “forever” of Heb 13:8. Nevertheless, a decision is difficult here. NA²⁷ places the phrase in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[3:1]  ²⁰ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.

[3:1]  ²¹ tn Grk “of our confession.”

[3:1]  ²² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.

[3:1]  ²³ tn Grk “of our confession.”