Ecclesiastes 3:9

Man is Ignorant of God’s Timing

3:9 What benefit can a worker ¹  gain from his toil? ² 

Ecclesiastes 4:4

Labor Motivated by Envy

4:4 Then I considered ³  all the skillful work ⁴  that is done:

Surely it is nothing more than ⁵  competition ⁶  between one person and another. ⁷ 

This also is profitless – like ⁸  chasing the wind.

Ecclesiastes 9:10

9:10 Whatever you find to do with your hands, ⁹ 

do it with all your might,

because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, ¹⁰ 

the place where you will eventually go. ¹¹ 

[3:9]  ¹ tn The term הָעוֹשֶׂה (ha’oseh, article + Qal active participle ms from עָשַׂה, ’asah, “to do”) functions substantively (“the worker”); see BDB 794 s.v. עָשַׂה II.1. This is a figurative description of man (metonymy of association), and plays on the repetition of עָשַׂה (verb: “to do,” noun: “work”) throughout the passage. In the light of God’s orchestration of human affairs, man’s efforts cannot change anything. It refers to man in general with the article functioning in a generic sense (see IBHS 244-45 §13.5.1f; Joüon 2:511 §137.m).

[3:9]  ² sn This rhetorical question is an example of negative affirmation, expecting a negative answer: “Man gains nothing from his toil!” (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 949-51). Any advantage that man might gain from his toil is nullified by his ignorance of divine providence.

[4:4]  ³ tn Heb “saw.”

[4:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “all the toil and all the skill.” This Hebrew clause (אֶת־כָּל־עָמָל וְאֵת כָּל־כִּשְׁרוֹן, ’et-kol-’amal vÿ’et kol-kishron) is a nominal hendiadys (a figurative expression in which two independent phrases are used to connote the same thing). The second functions adverbially, modifying the first, which retains its full nominal function: “all the skillful work.”

[4:4]  ⁵ tn The phrase “nothing more than” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[4:4]  ⁶ tn The noun קִנְאַה (qin’ah, “competition”) has a wide range of meanings: “zeal; jealousy; envy; rivalry; competition; suffering; animosity; anger; wrath” (HALOT 1110 s.v.; BDB 888 s.v.). Here, as in 9:6, it denotes “rivalry” (BDB 888 s.v. 1) or “competitive spirit” (HALOT 1110 s.v. 1.b). The LXX rendered it ζῆλος (zhlos, “envy; jealousy”). The English versions reflect this broad range: “rivalry” (NEB, NAB, NASB), “envy” (KJV, ASV, RSV, NRSV, MLB, NIV, NJPS), and “jealousy” (Moffatt).

[4:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “a man and his neighbor.”

[4:4]  ⁸ tn The word “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[9:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “Whatever your hand finds to do.”

[9:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “Sheol.”

[9:10]  ⁷ tn Or “where you are about to go.”