Ecclesiastes 2:11

2:11 Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished ¹ 

and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it, ² 

I concluded: ³  “All these ⁴  achievements and possessions ⁵  are ultimately ⁶  profitless ⁷  –

like chasing the wind!

There is nothing gained ⁸  from them ⁹  on earth.” ¹⁰ 

Ecclesiastes 3:17

3:17 I thought to myself, “God will judge both the righteous and the wicked;

for there is an appropriate time for every activity,

and there is a time of judgment ¹¹  for every deed.

Ecclesiastes 11:8

11:8 So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all,

but let him remember that the days of darkness ¹²  will be many – all that is about to come is obscure. ¹³ 

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

12:13 Having heard everything, I have reached this conclusion: ¹⁴ 

Fear God and keep his commandments,

because this is the whole duty ¹⁵  of man.

12:14 For God will evaluate every deed, ¹⁶ 

including every secret thing, whether good or evil.

[2:11]  ¹ tn Heb “all my works that my hands had done.”

[2:11]  ² tn Heb “and all the toil with which I had toiled in doing it.” The term עָמַל (’amal, “toil”) is repeated to emphasize the burden and weariness of the labor which Qoheleth exerted in his accomplishments.

[2:11]  ³ tn Heb “Behold!”

[2:11]  ⁴ tn The term הַכֹּל (hakkol, “everything” or “all”) must be qualified and limited in reference to the topic that is dealt with in 2:4-11. This is an example of synecdoche of general for the specific; the general term “all” is used only in reference to the topic at hand. This is clear from the repetition of כֹּל (kol, “everything”) and (“all these things”) in 2:11.

[2:11]  ⁵ tn The phrase “achievements and possessions” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ⁶ tn The term “ultimately” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ⁷ tn The parallelism with יִתְרוֹן (yitron), “profit; advantage; gain”) indicates that הֶבֶל (hevel) should be nuanced as “profitless, fruitless, futile” in this context. While labor offers some relative and temporal benefits, such as material acquisitions and the enjoyment of the work of one’s hands, there is no ultimate benefit to be gained from secular human achievement.

[2:11]  ⁸ tn The noun יִתְרוֹן (yitron, “profit”) has a two-fold range of meanings: (1) “what comes of [something]; result” (Eccl 1:3; 2:11; 3:9; 5:8, 15; 7:12; 10:10) and (2) “profit; advantage” (Eccl 2:13; 10:11); see HALOT 452–53 s.v. יִתְרוֹי. It is derived from the noun יֶתֶר (yeter, “what is left behind; remainder”; HALOT 452 s.v. I יֶתֶר). The related verb יָתַר (yatar) denotes “to be left over; to survive” (Niphal) and “to have left over” (Hiphil); see HALOT 451–52 s.v. יתר. When used literally, יִתְרוֹן refers to what is left over after expenses (gain or profit); when used figuratively, it refers to what is advantageous or of benefit. Though some things have relative advantage over others (e.g., light over darkness, and wisdom over folly in 2:13), there is no ultimate profit in man’s labor due to death.

[2:11]  ⁹ tn The phrase “from them” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[3:17]  ¹¹ tn The phrase “a time of judgment” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[11:8]  ²¹ tn The phrase “the days of darkness” refers to the onset of old age (Eccl 12:1-5) and the inevitable experience of death (Eccl 11:7-8; 12:6-7). Elsewhere, “darkness” is a figure of speech (metonymy of association) for death (Job 10:21-22; 17:13; 18:18).

[11:8]  ²² tn The term הֶבֶל (hevel) here means “obscure,” that is, unknown. This sense is derived from the literal concept of breath, vapor or wind that cannot be seen; thus, the idea of “obscure; dark; difficult to understand; enigmatic” (see HALOT 236–37 s.v. I הֶבֶל; BDB 210–11 s.v. I הֶבֶל). It is used in this sense in reference to enigmas in life (6:2; 8:10, 14) and the future which is obscure (11:8).

[12:13]  ³¹ tn Heb “The end of the matter, everything having been heard.”

[12:13]  ³² tn Heb “This is all men”; or “This is the whole of man.” The phrase זֶה כָּל־הָאָדָם (zeh kol-ha’adam, “this is all men”) features rhetorical elision of a key word. The ambiguity over the elided word has led to no less than five basic approaches: (1) “this is the whole duty of man” (KJV, ASV, RSV, NAB, NIV); (2) “this is the duty of all men” (MLB, ASV margin, RSV margin); (3) “this applies to all men” (NASB, NJPS); (4) “this is the whole duty of all men” (NRSV, Moffatt); and (5) “there is no more to man than this” (NEB). The four-fold repetition of כֹּל (kol, “all”) in 12:13-14 suggests that Qoheleth is emphasizing the “bottom line,” that is, the basic duty of man is simply to fear and obey God: After “all” (כֹּל) has been heard in the book, his conclusion is that the “whole” (כֹּל) duty of man is to obey God because God will bring “all” (כֹּל) acts into judgment, including “all” (כֹּל) that is hidden, whether good or bad. See D. Barthélemy, ed., Preliminary and Interim Report on the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, 3:596.

[12:14]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “will bring every deed into judgment.”