Ecclesiastes 2:20

2:20 So I began to despair ¹  about all the fruit of ²  my labor ³ 

for which I worked so hard ⁴  on earth. ⁵ 

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? ⁶ 

Ecclesiastes 4:6

4:6 Better is one handful with some rest

than two hands full of toil ⁷  and chasing the wind.

Ecclesiastes 4:11

4:11 Furthermore, if two lie down together, they can keep each other warm,

but how can one person keep warm by himself?

Ecclesiastes 4:15

4:15 I considered all the living who walk on earth, ⁸ 

as well as the successor ⁹  who would arise ¹⁰  in his place.

Ecclesiastes 5:13-14

Materialism Thwarts Enjoyment of Life

5:13 Here is ¹¹  a misfortune ¹²  on earth ¹³  that I have seen:

Wealth hoarded by its owner to his own misery.

5:14 Then that wealth was lost through bad luck; ¹⁴ 

although he fathered a son, he has nothing left to give him. ¹⁵ 

Ecclesiastes 7:3

7:3 Sorrow ¹⁶  is better than laughter,

because sober reflection ¹⁷  is good for the heart. ¹⁸ 

Ecclesiastes 7:16-17

7:16 So do not be excessively righteous or excessively ¹⁹  wise; ²⁰ 

otherwise ²¹  you might ²²  be disappointed. ²³ 

7:17 Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool;

otherwise ²⁴  you might die before your time.

Ecclesiastes 7:21

7:21 Also, do not pay attention to everything that people ²⁵  say;

otherwise, ²⁶  you might even hear ²⁷  your servant cursing you.

Ecclesiastes 8:6

8:6 For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter,

for the oppression ²⁸  of the king ²⁹  is severe upon his victim. ³⁰ 

Ecclesiastes 9:13

Most People Are Not Receptive to Wise Counsel

9:13 This is what I also observed about wisdom on earth, ³¹ 

and it is a great burden ³²  to me:

Ecclesiastes 10:5

10:5 I have seen another ³³  misfortune ³⁴  on the earth: ³⁵ 

It is an error a ruler makes. ³⁶ 

Ecclesiastes 10:13

10:13 At the beginning his words ³⁷  are foolish

and at the end ³⁸  his talk ³⁹  is wicked madness, ⁴⁰ 

Ecclesiastes 10:19

10:19 Feasts ⁴¹  are made ⁴²  for laughter,

and wine makes life merry, ⁴³ 

but money is the answer ⁴⁴  for everything.

[2:20]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[2:22]  ⁶ 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).

[4:6]  ¹¹ sn Qoheleth lists three approaches to labor: (1) the competitive workaholic in 4:4, (2) the impoverished sluggard in 4:5, and (3) the contented laborer in 4:6. The balanced approach rebukes the two extremes.

[4:15]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[4:15]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the second youth.” It is not clear whether “the second” (הַשֵּׁנִי, hasheni) refers to the young man who succeeds the old king or a second youthful successor.

[4:15]  ¹⁸ tn The verb עָמַד (’amad, “to stand”) may denote “to arise; to appear; to come on the scene” (e.g., Ps 106:30; Dan 8:22, 23; 11:2-4; 12:1; Ezra 2:63; Neh 7:65); cf. BDB 764 s.v. עָמַד 6.a; HALOT 840 s.v. עמד 1.a.

[5:13]  ²¹ 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]  ²² 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]  ²³ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[5:14]  ²⁶ tn Or “through a bad business deal.” The basic meaning of עִנְיַן (’inyan) is “business; affair” (HALOT 857 s.v. עִנְיָן) or “occupation; task” (BDB 775 s.v. עִנְיָן). The term is used in a specific sense in reference to business activity (Eccl 8:16), as well as in a more general sense in reference to events that occur on earth (Eccl 1:13; 4:8). BDB suggests that the phrase עִנְיַן רָע (’inyan ra’) in 5:13 refers to a bad business deal (BDB 775 s.v. עִנְיָן); however, HALOT suggests that it means “bad luck” (HALOT 857 s.v. עִנְיָן). The English versions reflect the same two approaches: (1) bad luck: “some misfortune” (NAB, NIV) and (2) a bad business deal: “a bad investment” (NASB), “a bad venture” (RSV, NRSV, MLB), “some unlucky venture” (Moffatt, NJPS), “an unlucky venture” (NEB), “an evil adventure” (ASV).

[5:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “there is nothing in his hand.”

[7:3]  ³¹ tn NEB suggests “grief”; NJPS, “vexation.”

[7:3]  ³² tn Heb “in sadness of face there is good for the heart.”

[7:3]  ³³ tn Or possibly “Though the face is sad, the heart may be glad.”

[7:16]  ³⁶ tn The adjective יוֹתֵר (yoter) means “too much; excessive,” e.g., 2:15 “excessively wise” (HALOT 404 s.v. יוֹתֵר 2; BDB 452 s.v. יוֹתֵר). It is derived from the root יֶתֶר (yeter, “what is left over”; cf. HALOT 452 s.v. I יֶתֶר) and related to the verb יָתַר (yatar, Niphal “to be left over” and Hiphil “to have left over”; cf. HALOT 451-52). In 2:15 the adjective יוֹתֵר is used with the noun יִתְרוֹן (yitron, “advantage; profit”) in a wordplay or pun: The wise man has a relative “advantage” (יִתְרוֹן) over the fool (2:13-14a); however, there is no ultimate advantage because both share the same fate – death (2:14b-15a). Thus, Qoheleth’s acquisition of tremendous wisdom (1:16; 2:9) was “excessive” because it exceeded its relative advantage over folly: it could not deliver him from the same fate as the fool. He strove to obtain wisdom, yet it held no ultimate advantage. Likewise, in 7:16, Qoheleth warns that wisdom and righteous behavior do not guarantee an advantage over wickedness and folly, because the law of retribution is sometimes violated.

[7:16]  ³⁷ tn Heb “So do not be overly righteous and do not be overly wise.” The Hitpael verb תִּתְחַכַּם (titkhakkam, from חָכַם, khakham, “to be wise”) means “to make or show yourself wise” (HALOT 314 s.v. חכם; BDB 314 s.v. חָכַם). The Hitpael may be understood as: (1) benefactive reflexive use which refers to an action done for one’s own behalf (e.g., Gen 20:7; Josh 9:12; 1 Kgs 8:33; Job 13:27): because the law of retribution is sometimes violated, it is not wise for a person to be overly dependent upon wisdom or righteousness for his own benefit; (2) estimative-declarative reflexive which denotes esteeming or presenting oneself in a certain state, without regard to the question of truthfulness (e.g., 2 Sam 13:5; Prov 13:6; Esth 8:17): it is useless to overly esteem oneself as wise or to falsely present oneself as wiser than he really is because the law of retribution sometimes fails to reward the wise. The enigma of this line – “overly righteous and overly wise” – may be resolved by proper classification of the Hitpael stem of this verb.

[7:16]  ³⁸ tn Heb “Why?” The question is rhetorical.

[7:16]  ³⁹ tn The imperfect of שָׁמֵם (shamem) functions in a modal sense, denoting possibility: “you might be…” (see IBHS 508 §31.4e).

[7:16]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “Why should you ruin yourself?”; or “Why should you destroy yourself?” The verb שָׁמֵם (shamem) is traditionally taken as “to destroy; to ruin oneself.” For its use here HALOT 1566 s.v. שׁמם 2 has “to cause oneself ruin”; BDB 1031 s.v. שָׁמֵם 2 has “cause oneself desolation, ruin.” Most English versions take a similar approach: “Why destroy yourself?” (KJV, ASV, NEB, NRSV, MLB, NIV); “Why ruin yourself?” (NAB, NASB). However, in the Hitpolel stem the root שׁמם never means this elsewhere, but is always nuanced elsewhere as “to be appalled; to be astonished; to be dumbfounded; to be confounded; to be horrified” (e.g., Ps 143:4; Isa 59:16; 63:5; Dan 8:27); cf. BDB 1031 s.v. שָׁמֵם 1; HALOT 1566 s.v. שׁמם 1. It is taken this way in the English version of the Tanakh: “or you may be dumbfounded” (NJPS). Likewise, Cohen renders, “Why should you be overcome with amazement?” (A. Cohen, The Five Megilloth [SoBB], 154). If a person was trusting in his own righteousness or wisdom to guarantee prosperity, he might be scandalized by the exceptions to the doctrine of retribution that Qoheleth had observed in 7:15. D. R. Glenn (“Ecclesiastes,” BKCOT, 994) notes: “This fits in nicely with Solomon’s argument here. He urged his readers not to be over-righteous or over-wise ‘lest they be confounded or astonished.’ He meant that they should not depend on their righteousness or wisdom to guarantee God’s blessing because they might be confounded, dismayed, or disappointed like the righteous people whom Solomon had seen perishing in spite of their righteousness [in 7:15].” See GKC 149 §54.c.

[7:17]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “Why?” The question is rhetorical.

[7:21]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:21]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “so that you do not hear…”; or “lest you hear….”

[7:21]  ⁴⁸ tn The imperfect tense verb תִשְׁמַע (tishma’; from שָׁמַע [shama’, “to hear”]) functions in a modal sense, denoting possibility: “you might hear” (see IBHS 508 §31.4e).

[8:6]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “evil”; or “misery.”

[8:6]  ⁵² tn Heb “the man.”

[8:6]  ⁵³ tn Heb “upon him.”

[9:13]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[9:13]  ⁵⁷ tn The term “burden” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:5]  ⁶¹ 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]  ⁶² tn Heb “an evil.”

[10:5]  ⁶³ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[10:5]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “like an error that comes forth from the presence of a ruler.”

[10:13]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “the words of his mouth.”

[10:13]  ⁶⁷ sn The terms “beginning” and “end” form a merism, a figure of speech in which two opposites are contrasted to indicate totality (e.g., Deut 6:7; Ps 139:8; Eccl 3:2-8). The words of a fool are madness from “start to finish.”

[10:13]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “his mouth.”

[10:13]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “madness of evil.”

[10:19]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “bread.” The term לֶחֶם (lekhem) is used literally of “bread” and figuratively (i.e., by metonymy) for a “feast” (BDB 536–37 s.v. לֶחֶם). BDB suggests that עֹשִׂיה לֶחֶם (’osih lekhem) in Eccl 10:19 means “make a feast” (BDB 537 s.v. לֶחֶם 1.a). This obscure line has occasioned numerous proposals: “a feast is made for laughter” (KJV, ASV, NIV); “feasts are made for laughter” (NRSV); “men feast for merrymaking” (Moffatt); “men prepare a meal for enjoyment” (NASB); “the table has its pleasures” (NEB); “they [i.e., rulers of v. 16] make a banquet for revelry” (NJPS); “people prepare a banquet for enjoyment” (MLB); “for laughter they make bread and wine, that the living may feast” (Douay); “bread is made for laughter” (RSV); “bread [and oil] call forth merriment” (NAB).

[10:19]  ⁷² tn The subject of the verb is not specified. When active verbs have an unspecified subject, they are often used in a passive sense: “Bread [feasts] are made….”

[10:19]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and wine gladdens life.”

[10:19]  ⁷⁴ tn Or “and [they think that] money is the answer for everything.”