Ecclesiastes 1:10

1:10 Is there anything about which someone can say, “Look at this! It is new!”? ¹ 

It was already ²  done long ago, ³  before our time. ⁴ 

Ecclesiastes 2:7

2:7 I purchased male and female slaves,

and I owned slaves who were born in my house; ⁵ 

I also possessed more livestock – both herds and flocks –

than any of my predecessors in Jerusalem. ⁶ 

Ecclesiastes 3:15

3:15 Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been;

for God will seek to do again ⁷  what has occurred ⁸  in the past. ⁹ 

Ecclesiastes 3:20

3:20 Both go to the same place,

both come from the dust,

and to dust both return.

Ecclesiastes 4:3

4:3 But better than both is the one who has not been born ¹⁰ 

and has not seen the evil things that are done on earth. ¹¹ 

Ecclesiastes 7:10

7:10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these days?” ¹² 

for it is not wise to ask that. ¹³ 

Ecclesiastes 1:16

Futility of Secular Wisdom

1:16 I thought to myself, ¹⁴ 

“I have become much wiser ¹⁵  than any of my predecessors who ruled ¹⁶  over Jerusalem; ¹⁷ 

I ¹⁸  have acquired much wisdom and knowledge.” ¹⁹ 

Ecclesiastes 2:10

2:10 I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; ²⁰ 

I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. ²¹ 

So all my accomplishments gave me joy; ²² 

this was my reward for all my effort. ²³ 

Ecclesiastes 4:16

4:16 There is no end to all the people ²⁴  nor to the past generations, ²⁵ 

yet future generations ²⁶  will not rejoice in him.

This also is profitless and like ²⁷  chasing the wind.

Ecclesiastes 7:14

7:14 In times of prosperity ²⁸  be joyful,

but in times of adversity ²⁹  consider this:

God has made one as well as the other, ³⁰ 

so that no one can discover what the future holds. ³¹ 

[1:10]  ¹ tn Alternately, “[Even when] there is something of which someone might claim…” The terms יֵשׁ דָּבָר שֶׁיֹּאמַר (yesh davar sheyyo’mar) may be an interrogative clause without an introductory interrogative particle (GKC 473 §150.a). In questions, יֵשׁ often implies doubt about the existence of something (BDB 441 s.v. יֵשׁ 2.b). The LXX rendered it as a question, as do most English versions: “Is there anything of which it can be said…?” (KJV, ASV, RSV, MLB, NEB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). On the other hand, יֵשׁ is used elsewhere in the Book of Ecclesiastes as a predication of existence (“There is…”) to assert the existence of something (2:13, 21; 4:8, 9; 5:13[12]; 6:1, 11; 7:15; 8:6, 14; 9:4; 10:5). HALOT 443 s.v. יֵשׁ 2 renders יֵשׁ דָּבָר as “There is something….” This view is taken by several translations: “Even the thing of which we say…” (NAB), “Men may say of something …” (Moffatt), and “Sometimes there is a phenomena of which they say…” (NJPS).

[1:10]  ² tn The perfect tense verb הָיָה (hayah) refers to a past perfect situation: It describes an action that is viewed as a remote past event from the perspective of the past. This past perfect situation is brought out by the temporal adverb כְּבָר (kÿvar, “already”; HALOT 459 s.v. I כְּבָר; BDB 460 s.v. I כְּבָר; cf. 1:10; 2:12, 16; 3:15; 4:2; 6:10; 9:6-7). The expression כְּבָר + הָיָה connotes a past perfect nuance: “it has already been” (Eccl 1:10; see BDB 460 s.v.).

[1:10]  ³ sn This does not deny man’s creativity or inventiveness, only the ultimate newness of his accomplishments. For example, there is no essential difference between the first voyage to the moon and the discovery of America (different point of arrival, different vehicles of travel, but the same essential action and results).

[1:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “in the ages long ago before us.”

[2:7]  ⁵ tn The phrase “sons of a house” (בְנֵי בַיִת, vÿne vayit) appears to be parallel to “a son of my house” (בֶן־בֵּיתִי, ven-beti) which refers to a person born into slavery from male and female servants in the master’s possession, e.g., Eleazar of Damascus (Gen 15:3). The phrase appears to denote children born from male and female slaves already in his possession, that is, “homeborn slaves” (NASB) or “other slaves who were born in my house” (NIV). Apparently confusing the sense of the phrase with the referent of the phrase in Gen 15:3, NJPS erroneously suggests “stewards” in Eccl 2:7.

[2:7]  ⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:15]  ⁹ tn The phrase “to do again” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[3:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “God will seek that which is driven away.” The meaning of יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת־נִרְדָּף (yÿvaqqesh ’et-nirdaf) is difficult to determine: יְבַקֵּשׁ (yÿvaqqesh) is Piel imperfect 3rd person masculine singular from בָּקַשׁ (baqash, “to seek”) and נִרְדָּף (nirdaf) is a Niphal participle 3rd person masculine singular from רָדַף (radaf, “to drive away”). There are several options: (1) God watches over the persecuted: יְבַקֵּשׁ (“seeks”) functions as a metonymy of cause for effect (i.e., to protect), and אֶת־נִרְדָּף (“what is driven away”) refers to “those who are persecuted.” But this does not fit the context. (2) God will call the past to account: יְבַקֵּשׁ functions as a metonymy of cause for effect (i.e., to hold accountable), and אֶת־נִרְדָּף is a metonymy of attribute (i.e., the past). This approach is adopted by several English translations: “God requires that which is past” (KJV), “God will call the past to account” (NIV) and “God summons each event back in its turn” (NEB). (3) God finds what has been lost: יְבַקֵּשׁ functions as a metonymy of cause for effect (i.e., to find), and אֶת־נִרְדָּף refers to what has been lost: “God restores what would otherwise be displaced” (NAB). (4) God repeats what has already occurred: יְבַקֵּשׁ functions as a metonymy of effect (i.e., to repeat), and אֶת־נִרְדָּף is a metonymy (i.e., that which has occurred). This fits the context and provides a tight parallel with the preceding line: “That which is has already been, and that which will be has already been” (3:15a) parallels “God seeks [to repeat] that which has occurred [in the past].” This is the most popular approach among English versions: “God restores that which has past” (Douay), “God seeks again that which is passed away” (ASV), “God seeks what has passed by” (NASB), “God seeks what has been driven away” (RSV), “God seeks out what has passed by” (MLB), “God seeks out what has gone by” (NRSV), and “God is ever bringing back what disappears” (Moffatt).

[3:15]  ¹¹ tn The phrase “in the past” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[4:3]  ¹³ tn The word “born” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[4:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[7:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “these.” “Days” does not appear in the Hebrew text as second time, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[7:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “It is not from wisdom that you ask about this.”

[1:16]  ²¹ tn Heb “I spoke, I, with my heart.”

[1:16]  ²² tn Heb “I, look, I have made great and increased wisdom.” The expression הִגְדַּלְתִּי וְהוֹסַפְתִּי (higdalti vÿhosafti) is a verbal hendiadys; it means that Qoheleth had become the wisest man in the history of Jerusalem.

[1:16]  ²³ tn The phrase “who ruled” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:16]  ²⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:16]  ²⁵ tn Heb “my heart” (לִבִּי, libbi). The term “heart” is a metonymy of part for the whole (“my heart” = myself).

[1:16]  ²⁶ tn Heb “My heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge.”

[2:10]  ²⁵ tn Heb “all which my eyes asked for, I did not withhold from them.”

[2:10]  ²⁶ tn Heb “I did not refuse my heart any pleasure.” The term לִבִּי (libbi, “my heart”) is a synecdoche of part (i.e., heart) for the whole (i.e., whole person); see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 648. The term is repeated twice in 2:10 for emphasis.

[2:10]  ²⁷ tn Heb “So my heart was joyful from all my toil.”

[2:10]  ²⁸ tn Heb “and this was my portion from all my toil.”

[4:16]  ²⁹ tn Heb “the people.” The term עַם (’am, “people”) can refer to the subjects of the king (BDB 766 s.v. עַם 2).

[4:16]  ³⁰ tn Heb “those who were before them.”

[4:16]  ³¹ tn Heb “those coming after.” The Hebrew term הָאַחֲרוֹנִים (ha’akharonim, “those coming after”) is derived from the preposition אַחַר (’akhar, “behind”). When used in reference to time, it refers to future generations (e.g., Deut 29:21; Pss 48:14; 78:4, 6; 102:19; Job 18:20; Eccl 1:11; 4:16); cf. HALOT 36 s.v. אַחַר B.3; BDB 30 s.v. אַחַר 2.b).

[4:16]  ³² tn The word “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[7:14]  ³³ tn Heb “the day of good.”

[7:14]  ³⁴ tn Heb “the day of evil.”

[7:14]  ³⁵ tn Less probable renderings of this line are “God hath made the one side by side with the other” (ASV) and “God has set the one alongside the other” (NEB).

[7:14]  ³⁶ tn Heb “anything after him.” This line is misinterpreted by several versions: “that man may not find against him any just complaint” (Douay); “consequently, man may find no fault with Him” (NJPS); “so that man cannot find fault with him in anything” (NAB).