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 2:10

2:10 I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; ⁷ 

I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. ⁸ 

So all my accomplishments gave me joy; ⁹ 

this was my reward for all my effort. ¹⁰ 

Ecclesiastes 3:14

God’s Sovereignty

3:14 I also know that whatever God does will endure forever;

nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken away from it.

God has made it this way, so that men will fear him.

Ecclesiastes 4:16

4:16 There is no end to all the people ¹¹  nor to the past generations, ¹² 

yet future generations ¹³  will not rejoice in him.

This also is profitless and like ¹⁴  chasing the wind.

Ecclesiastes 5:2

5:2 Do not be rash with your mouth or hasty in your heart to bring up a matter before God,

for God is in heaven and you are on earth!

Therefore, let your words be few.

Ecclesiastes 6:12

6:12 For no one knows what is best for a person during his life ¹⁵  –

during the few days of his fleeting life –

for ¹⁶  they pass away ¹⁷  like a shadow.

Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth. ¹⁸ 

Ecclesiastes 7:14

7:14 In times of prosperity ¹⁹  be joyful,

but in times of adversity ²⁰  consider this:

God has made one as well as the other, ²¹ 

so that no one can discover what the future holds. ²² 

Ecclesiastes 8:12

8:12 Even though a sinner might commit a hundred crimes ²³  and still live a long time, ²⁴ 

yet I know that it will go well with God-fearing people ²⁵  – for they stand in fear ²⁶  before him.

[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.”

[2:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “all which my eyes asked for, I did not withhold from them.”

[2:10]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn Heb “So my heart was joyful from all my toil.”

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

[4:16]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “those who were before them.”

[4:16]  ¹⁵ 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]  ¹⁶ tn The word “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:12]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “For who knows what is good for a man in life?” The rhetorical question (“For who knows…?”) is a negative affirmation, expecting a negative answer: “For no one knows…!” (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 949-51). The translation renders this rhetorical device as a positive affirmation.

[6:12]  ²⁰ tn The vav prefixed to וְיַעֲשֵׂם (vÿya’asem, conjunction + Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine singular from עָשַׂה, ’asah, “to do” + 3rd person masculine plural suffix) functions in an explanatory or epexegetical sense (“For …”).

[6:12]  ²¹ tn The 3rd person masculine plural suffix on the verb וְיַעֲשֵׂם (vÿya’asem, conjunction + Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine singular from ָָעשַׂה, ’asah, “to do” + 3rd person masculine plural suffix) refers to מִסְפַּר יְמֵי־חַיֵּי הֶבְלוֹ (mispar yÿme-khayye hevlo, “the few days of his fleeting life”). The suffix may be taken as an objective genitive: “he spends them [i.e., the days of his life] like a shadow” (HALOT 891 s.v. I ָָעשַׂה 8) or as a subjective genitive: “they [i.e., the days of his life] pass like a shadow” (BDB 795 s.v. ָָעשַׂה II.11).

[6:12]  ²² tn Heb “Who can tell the man what shall be after him under the sun?” The rhetorical question (“For who can tell him…?”) is a negative affirmation, expecting a negative answer: “For no one can tell him…!” (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 949-51). The translation renders this rhetorical device as a positive affirmation.

[7:14]  ²⁵ tn Heb “the day of good.”

[7:14]  ²⁶ tn Heb “the day of evil.”

[7:14]  ²⁷ 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]  ²⁸ 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).

[8:12]  ³¹ tn Heb “does evil one hundred [times].”

[8:12]  ³² tn Heb “and prolongs his [life].”

[8:12]  ³³ tn Heb “those who fear God.”

[8:12]  ³⁴ tn Heb “they fear.”