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 3:13

3:13 and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil,

for these things ⁶  are a gift from God.

Ecclesiastes 4:6

4:6 Better is one handful with some rest

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

Ecclesiastes 6:7

6:7 All of man’s labor is for nothing more than ⁸  to fill his stomach ⁹  –

yet his appetite ¹⁰  is never satisfied!

Ecclesiastes 7:23

Human Wisdom is Limited

7:23 I have examined all this by wisdom;

I said, “I am determined ¹¹  to comprehend this” ¹²  – but it was beyond my grasp. ¹³ 

Ecclesiastes 10:9

10:9 One who quarries stones may be injured by them;

one who splits logs may be endangered by them.

[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.”

[3:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “for it.” The referent of the 3rd person feminine singular independent person pronoun (“it”) is probably the preceding statement: “to eat, drink, and find satisfaction.” This would be an example of an anacoluthon (GKC 505-6 §167.b). Thus the present translation uses “these things” to indicate the reference back to the preceding.

[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.

[6:7]  ¹⁶ tn The phrase “for nothing more than” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “All man’s work is for his mouth.” The term “mouth” functions as a synecdoche of part (i.e., mouth) for the whole (i.e., person), substituting the organ of consumption for the person’s action of consumption (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 641-43), as suggested by the parallelism with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “his appetite”).

[6:7]  ¹⁸ tn The term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “desire; appetite”) is used as a metonymy of association, that is, the soul is associated with man’s desires and appetites (BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 5.c; 6.a).

[7:23]  ²¹ tn The cohortative אֶחְכָּמָה (’ekhkamah, from חָכַם, khakham,“to be wise”) emphasizes the resolve (determination) of Qoheleth to become wise enough to understand the perplexities of life.

[7:23]  ²² tn Or “I am determined to become wise”

[7:23]  ²³ tn Or “but it eluded me”; Heb “but it was far from me.”