Internet Verse Search Commentaries Word Analysis ITL - draft

Ecclesiastes 7:2

NETBible	It is better to go to a funeral¹ than a feast.² For death³ is the destiny⁴ of every person,⁵ and the living should⁶ take this⁷ to heart.
NIV © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.
NASB © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	It is better to go to a house of mourning Than to go to a house of feasting, Because that is the end of every man, And the living takes it to heart.
NLT © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	It is better to spend your time at funerals than at festivals. For you are going to die, and you should think about it while there is still time.
MSG © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	You learn more at a funeral than at a feast--After all, that's where we'll end up. We might discover something from it.
BBE © SABDAweb Ecc 7:2	It is better to go to the house of weeping, than to go to the house of feasting; because that is the end of every man, and the living will take it to their hearts.
NRSV © bibleoremus Ecc 7:2	It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting; for this is the end of everyone, and the living will lay it to heart.
NKJV © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	Better to go to the house of mourning Than to go to the house of feasting, For that is the end of all men; And the living will take it to heart.
[+] More English


KJV	[It is] better <02896> to go <03212> (8800) to the house <01004> of mourning <060>_, than to go <03212> (8800) to the house <01004> of feasting <04960>_: for <0834> that [is] the end <05490> of all men <0120>_; and the living <02416> will lay <05414> (8799) [it] to his heart <03820>_.
NASB © biblegateway Ecc 7:2	It is better <02896> to go <01980> to a house <01004> of mourning <060> Than <04480> to go <01980> to a house <01004> of feasting <04960> , Because <0834> that is the end <05490> of every <03605> man <0120> , And the living <02416> takes <05414> it to heart <03820> .
LXXM	agayon <18> A-NSN poreuyhnai <4198> V-APN eiv <1519> PREP oikon <3624> N-ASM penyouv <3997> N-GSN h <2228> CONJ oti <3754> CONJ poreuyhnai <4198> V-APN eiv <1519> PREP oikon <3624> N-ASM potou <4224> N-GSM kayoti <2530> CONJ touto <3778> D-NSN telov <5056> N-NSN pantov <3956> A-GSM tou <3588> T-GSM anyrwpou <444> N-GSM kai <2532> CONJ o <3588> T-NSM zwn <2198> V-PAPNS dwsei <1325> V-FAI-3S eiv <1519> PREP kardian <2588> N-ASF autou <846> D-GSM
NET [draft] ITL	It is better <02896> to go <01980> to <0413> a funeral <060> than a feast <04960> . For <0834> death <01931> is the destiny <05490> of every <03605> person <0120> , and the living <02416> should take <05414> this to <0413> heart <03820> .
HEBREW	wbl <03820> la <0413> Nty <05414> yxhw <02416> Mdah <0120> lk <03605> Pwo <05490> awh <01931> rsab <0834> htsm <04960> tyb <01004> la <0413> tklm <01980> lba <060> tyb <01004> la <0413> tkll <01980> bwj (7:2) <02896>

NETBible

It is better to go to a funeral¹ than a feast.² For death³ is the destiny⁴ of every person,⁵ and the living should⁶ take this⁷ to heart.

NET Notes

¹tn Heb “house of mourning.” The phrase refers to a funeral where the deceased is mourned.

²tn Heb “house of drinking”; or “house of feasting.” The Hebrew noun מִשְׁתֶּה (mishteh) can denote (1) “feast; banquet,” occasion for drinking-bouts (1 Sam 25:36; Isa 5:12; Jer 51:39; Job 1:5; Esth 2:18; 5:14; 8:17; 9:19) or (2) “drink” (exilic/postexilic – Ezra 3:7; Dan 1:5, 8, 16); see HALOT 653 s.v. מִשְׁתֶּה 4; BDB 1059 s.v. שָׁתַה.

²sn Qoheleth recommended that people soberly reflect on the brevity of life and the reality of death (It is better to go to a house of mourning) than to waste one’s life in the foolish pursuit of pleasure (than to go to a house of banqueting). Sober reflection on the brevity of life and reality of death has more moral benefit than frivolous levity.

³tn Heb “it”; the referent (“death”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴tn Heb “the end.” The noun סוֹף (sof) literally means “end; conclusion” (HALOT 747 s.v. סוֹף 1; BDB 693 s.v. סוֹף). It is used in this context in reference to death, as the preceding phrase “house of mourning” (i.e., funeral) suggests.

⁵tn Heb “all men” or “every man.”

⁶tn The imperfect tense verb יִתֵּן, yitten (from נָתָן, natan, “to give”) functions in a modal sense, denoting obligation, that is, the subject’s obligatory or necessary conduct: “should” or “ought to” (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 31-32, §172; IBHS 508-9 §31.4g).

⁷tn The word “this” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.