Ecclesiastes 1:14

1:14 I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man ¹  on earth, ² 

and I concluded: Everything ³  he has accomplished ⁴  is futile ⁵  – like chasing the wind! ⁶ 

Ecclesiastes 2:20

2:20 So I began to despair ⁷  about all the fruit of ⁸  my labor ⁹ 

for which I worked so hard ¹⁰  on earth. ¹¹ 

Ecclesiastes 2:22

Painful Days and Restless Nights

2:22 What does a man acquire from all his labor

and from the anxiety that accompanies his toil on earth? ¹² 

Ecclesiastes 3:16

The Problem of Injustice and Oppression

3:16 I saw something else on earth: ¹³ 

In the place of justice, there was wickedness,

and in the place of fairness, ¹⁴  there was wickedness.

Ecclesiastes 5:13

Materialism Thwarts Enjoyment of Life

5:13 Here is ¹⁵  a misfortune ¹⁶  on earth ¹⁷  that I have seen:

Wealth hoarded by its owner to his own misery.

Ecclesiastes 6:1

Not Everyone Enjoys Life

6:1 Here is ¹⁸  another misfortune ¹⁹  that I have seen on earth, ²⁰ 

and it weighs ²¹  heavily on people: ²² 

Ecclesiastes 6:5

6:5 though it never saw the light of day ²³  nor knew anything, ²⁴ 

yet it has more rest ²⁵  than that man –

Ecclesiastes 9:13

Most People Are Not Receptive to Wise Counsel

9:13 This is what I also observed about wisdom on earth, ²⁶ 

and it is a great burden ²⁷  to me:

Ecclesiastes 10:5

10:5 I have seen another ²⁸  misfortune ²⁹  on the earth: ³⁰ 

It is an error a ruler makes. ³¹ 

Ecclesiastes 12:2

12:2 before the sun and the light ³²  of the moon and the stars grow dark,

and the clouds disappear ³³  after the rain;

[1:14]  ¹ tn The phrase “by man” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:14]  ² tn Heb “under the sun.”

[1:14]  ³ tn As mentioned in the note on “everything” in 1:2, the term הַכֹּל (hakkol, “everything”) is often limited in reference to the specific topic at hand in the context (e.g., BDB 482 s.v. כֹּל 2). The argument of 1:12-15, like 1:3-11, focuses on secular human achievement. This is clear from the repetition of the root עָשַׂה (’asah, “do, work, accomplish, achieve”) in 1:12-13.

[1:14]  ⁴ tn The phrase “he has accomplished” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:14]  ⁵ tn This usage of הֶבֶל (hevel) denotes “futile, profitless, fruitless” (e.g., 2 Kgs 17:15; Ps 78:33; Prov 13:11; 21:6; Eccl 1:2, 14; 2:1, 14-15; 4:8; Jer 2:5; 10:3; Lam 4:17; see HALOT 236–37 s.v. I הֶבֶל; BDB 210–11 s.v. I הֶבֶל). The term is used with the simile “like striving after the wind” (רְעוּת רוּחַ, rÿ’ut ruakh) – a graphic picture of an expenditure of effort in vain because no one can catch the wind by chasing it (e.g., 1:14, 17; 2:11, 17, 26; 4:4, 6, 16; 6:9; 7:14). When used in this sense, the term is often used with the following synonyms: לְתֹהוּ (lÿtohu, “for nothing, in vain, for no reason”; Isa 49:4); רִיק (riq, “profitless; useless”; Isa 30:7; Eccl 6:11); לֹא הוֹעִיל (“worthless, profitless”; Is 30:6; 57:12; Jer 16:19); “what profit?” (מַה־יִּתְרוֹןֹ, mah-yyitron); and “no profit” (אֵין יִּתְרוֹן, en yyitron; e.g., 2:11; 3:19; 6:9). It is also used in antithesis to terms connoting value: טוֹב (tov, “good, benefit, advantage”) and יֹתְרוֹן (yotÿron, “profit, advantage, gain”). Despite everything that man has accomplished in history, it is ultimately futile because nothing on earth really changes.

[1:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “striving of wind.” The word “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text; it has been added in the translation to make the comparative notion clear.

[2:20]  ⁷ tn Heb “I turned aside to allow my heart despair.” 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.

[2:20]  ⁸ tn The phrase “the fruit of” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity (see the following note on the word “labor”).

[2:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “all my toil.” As in 2:18-19, the term עֲמָלִי (’amali, “my labor”) is a metonymy of cause (i.e., my labor) for effect (i.e., the fruit of my labor). The metonymy is recognized by several translations: “all the fruits of my labor” (NAB); “all the fruit of my labor” (NASB); “all the gains I had made” (NJPS).

[2:20]  ¹⁰ tn Here the author uses an internal cognate accusative construction (accusative noun and verb from the same root) for emphasis: שֶׁעָמַלְתִּי הֶעָמָל (he’amal she’amalti, “the toil for which I had toiled”); see IBHS 167 §10.2.1g.

[2:20]  ¹¹ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[2:22]  ¹³ tn Heb “under the sun.” The rhetorical question is an example of negative affirmation, expecting a negative answer: “Man acquires nothing” (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 949-51).

[3:16]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[3:16]  ²⁰ tn Or “righteousness.”

[5:13]  ²⁵ tn Heb “there is.” The term יֵשׁ (yesh, “there is”) is often used in aphorisms to assert the existence of a particular situation that occurs sometimes. It may indicate that the situation is not the rule but that it does occur on occasion, and may be nuanced “sometimes” (e.g., Prov 11:24; 13:7, 23; 14:12; 16:25; 18:24; 20:15; Eccl 2:21; 4:8; 5:12; 6:1; 7:15 [2x]; 8:14 [3x]).

[5:13]  ²⁶ tn The noun רָעָה (ra’ah, “evil”) probably means “misfortune” (HALOT 1263 s.v. רָעָה 4) or “injustice, wrong” (HALOT 1262 s.v. רָעָה 2.b). The phrase רָעָה רַבָּה (ra’ah rabbah) connotes “grave injustice” or “great misfortune” (Eccl 2:17; 5:12, 15; 6:1; 10:5).

[5:13]  ²⁷ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[6:1]  ³¹ tn The term יֵשׁ (yesh, “there is”) is often used in aphorisms to assert the existence of a particular situation that occurs sometimes. It may indicate that the situation is not the rule but that it does occur on occasion, and may be nuanced “sometimes” (Prov 11:24; 13:7, 23; 14:12; 16:25; 18:24; 20:15; Eccl 2:21; 4:8; 5:12; 6:1; 7:15 [2x]; 8:14 [3x]).

[6:1]  ³² tn The noun רָעָה (ra’ah, “evil”) probably means “misfortune” (HALOT 1263 s.v. רָעָה 4) or “injustice, wrong” (HALOT 1262 s.v. רָעָה 2.b); see, e.g., Eccl 2:17; 5:12, 15; 6:1; 10:5.

[6:1]  ³³ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[6:1]  ³⁴ tn The word “weighs” does not appear in Hebrew, but is added in the translation for smoothness.

[6:1]  ³⁵ tn Heb “it is great upon men.” The phrase וְרַבָּה הִיא עַל־הָאָדָם (vÿrabbah hi’ ’al-ha’adam) is taken in two basic ways: (1) commonality: “it is common among men” (KJV, MLB), “it is prevalent among men” (NASB), “that is frequent among men” (Douay). (2) oppressiveness: “it lies heavy upon men” (RSV, NRSV), “it weighs heavily upon men” (NEB, NAB, NIV), “it presses heavily on men” (Moffatt), “it is heavy upon men” (ASV), and “a grave one it is for man” (NJPS). The preposition עַל (’al, “upon”) argues against the first in favor of the second; the notion of commonality would be denoted by the preposition בְּ (bet, “among”). The singular noun אָדָם (’adam) is used as a collective, denoting “men.” The article on הָאָדָם (ha’adam) is used in a generic sense referring to humankind as a whole; the generic article is often used with a collective singular (IBHS 244 §13.5.1f).

[6:5]  ³⁷ tn Heb “it never saw the sun.”

[6:5]  ³⁸ tn The word “anything” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:5]  ³⁹ sn The Hebrew term translated rest here refers to freedom from toil, anxiety, and misery – part of the miserable misfortune that the miserly man of wealth must endure.

[9:13]  ⁴³ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[9:13]  ⁴⁴ tn The term “burden” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:5]  ⁴⁹ tn The term “another” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation to indicate that this is not the first “misfortune” described by the Teacher. See 5:13, 16; 6:1-2.

[10:5]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “an evil.”

[10:5]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[10:5]  ⁵² tn Heb “like an error that comes forth from the presence of a ruler.”

[12:2]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “the light and the moon and the stars.” The phrase “the light and the moon” is a hendiadys (two separate terms denoting one idea) or perhaps even a hendiatris (three separate terms denoting one idea) for “the light of the moon and stars” (e.g., Gen 1:14).

[12:2]  ⁵⁶ tn The verb שׁוּב (shuv, “to return”) here denotes “to desist” (HALOT 1430 s.v. שׁוּב 3). It pictures the disappearance of the clouds as a result of the precipitation of their contents.