Ecclesiastes 7:21

7:21 Also, do not pay attention to everything that people ¹  say;

otherwise, ²  you might even hear ³  your servant cursing you.

Ecclesiastes 9:10

9:10 Whatever you find to do with your hands, ⁴ 

do it with all your might,

because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, ⁵ 

the place where you will eventually go. ⁶ 

[7:21]  ¹ tn Heb “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:21]  ² tn Heb “so that you do not hear…”; or “lest you hear….”

[7:21]  ³ 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).

[9:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “Whatever your hand finds to do.”

[9:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “Sheol.”

[9:10]  ⁶ tn Or “where you are about to go.”