Ecclesiastes 1:16

Futility of Secular Wisdom

1:16 I thought to myself, ¹ 

“I have become much wiser ²  than any of my predecessors who ruled ³  over Jerusalem; ⁴ 

I ⁵  have acquired much wisdom and knowledge.” ⁶ 

Ecclesiastes 10:20

10:20 Do not curse a king even in your thoughts,

and do not curse the rich ⁷  while in your bedroom; ⁸ 

for a bird ⁹  might report what you are thinking, ¹⁰ 

or some winged creature ¹¹  might repeat your ¹²  words. ¹³ 

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

[1:16]  ² 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]  ³ tn The phrase “who ruled” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:16]  ⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “my heart” (לִבִּי, libbi). The term “heart” is a metonymy of part for the whole (“my heart” = myself).

[1:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “My heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge.”

[10:20]  ⁷ tn Perhaps the referent is people who are in authority because of their wealth.

[10:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “in chambers of your bedroom.”

[10:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “a bird of the air.”

[10:20]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “might carry the voice.” The article is used here with the force of a possessive pronoun.

[10:20]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew phrase בַּעַל הַכְּנָפַיִם (ba’al hakkÿnafayim, “possessor of wings”) is an idiom for a winged creature, that is, a bird (e.g., Prov 1:17; see HALOT 143 s.v. בַּעַל A.6; BDB 127 s.v. בַּעַל 5.a). The term בַּעַל (“master; possessor”) is the construct governing the attributive genitive הַכְּנָפַיִם (“wings”); see IBHS 149-51 §9.5.3b.

[10:20]  ¹² tn The term “your” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[10:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “tell the matter.”