Ecclesiastes 8:4

inasmuch as a king’s command is authoritative, and none can say to him, “What are you doing?”

Ecclesiastes 7:5

It is better to listen to the reproof of someone wise than to listen to the praise of fools.

Ecclesiastes 7:21

Finally, don’t pay attention to everything that is said, so that you may not hear your slave reviling you;

Ecclesiastes 10:16

Alas for you, O land whose king is a lackey and whose ministers dine in the morning!

Ecclesiastes 9:15

Present in the city was a poor wise man who might have savednwho might have saved Or “and it was he who saved.” it with his wisdom, but nobody thought ofothought of Or “remembered.” that poor man.

Ecclesiastes 12:2

before sun and light and moon and stars grow dark, and the clouds come back again after the rain:

Ecclesiastes 2:6

I constructed pools of water, enough to irrigate a forest shooting up with trees.

Ecclesiastes 8:11

the fact that the sentence imposed for evil deeds is not executed swiftly, which is why people are emboldened to do evil—

Ecclesiastes 8:8

No one has authority over the lifebreath—to hold back the lifebreath;ihold back the lifebreath From leaving the body when the time comes; see 12.7; cf. Ps. 104.29; 146.4. there is no authority over the day of death. There is no mustering out from that war; wickednessjwickedness Emendation yields “riches.” is powerless to save its owner.

Ecclesiastes 3:18

gMeaning of parts of verse uncertain. So I decided, as regards human beings, to dissociate them [from] the divine beings and to face the fact that they are animals.hContrast Ps. 8.5–6.

Ecclesiastes 9:8

Let your clothes always be freshly washed, and your head never lack ointment.

Ecclesiastes 7:7

for cheatingfcheating Emendation yields “riches.” may rob the wise of reason and destroy the prudence of the cautious.gthe cautious Lit. “caution”; cf. postbiblical mathun “cautious.”

Ecclesiastes 9:1

For all this I noted, and I ascertainedaascertained Meaning of verb uncertain; construction as in Hos. 12.3; Ezra 3.12. all this: that the actions of even the righteous and the wise are determined by God. Even love! Even hate! Humankind knows none of these in advance—

Ecclesiastes 8:1

Who is like the sage,aWho is like the sage Some ancient versions read “Who here is wise.” and who knows the meaning of the adage:“Wisdom lights up a person’s face,So that deep discontentbdiscontent Lit. “face”; cf. 1 Sam. 1.18; Job 9.27. is dissembled”?

Ecclesiastes 2:16

because the wise, just likeelike See note at 1.11. the foolish, are not remembered forever; for, as the succeeding days roll by, both are forgotten. Alas, the wise die, just likeflike See note at 1.11. the foolish!

Ecclesiastes 3:20

Both go to the same place; both came from dust and both return to dust.

Ecclesiastes 2:21

For sometimes a person whose fortune was made with wisdom, knowledge, and skill must hand it on to be the portion of somebody who did not toil for it. That too is futile, and a grave evil.

Ecclesiastes 3:8

A time for loving and a time for hating;A time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 12:4

And the doors to the streetfdoors to the street I.e., the ears. are shut—With the noise of the hand mill growing fainter,And the song of the bird growing feebler,ggrowing feebler Exact meaning of Heb. uncertain. And all the strains of music dying down;hstrains of music dying down Cf. 2 Sam. 19.36.

Ecclesiastes 11:9

O youth, enjoy yourself while you are young! Let your heart lead you to enjoyment in the days of your youth. Follow the desires of your heart and the glances of your eyes—but know well that God will call you to account for all such things—

Ecclesiastes 1:8

All such things are wearisome:No one can ever state them;The eye never has enough of seeing,Nor the ear enough of hearing.

Ecclesiastes 2:3

I ventured to tempt my flesh with wine, and to grasp folly, while letting my mind direct with wisdom, to the end that I might learn which of the two was better for mortals to practice in their few days of life under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 4:10

For should they fall, one can raise the other; but woe to someone who is alone and falls with no companion to assist!

Ecclesiastes 8:9

All these things I observed; I noted all that went on under the sun, while people still had authority over others to treat them unjustly.

Ecclesiastes 1:6

Southward blowing,Turning northward,Ever turning blows the wind;On its rounds the wind returns.

Ecclesiastes 7:19

Wisdom is more of a stronghold to someone wise than ten magnateslten magnates Emendation yields “the riches of the magnates”; cf. Prov. 18.11. that a city may contain.

Ecclesiastes 7:28

As for what I sought further but did not find: I found only one [true] human being in a thousand, and among all these I did not find a [truly compatible] woman.

Ecclesiastes 7:1

aThe author now offers a number of practical maxims, which, however, he concludes (vv. 23–24) are of limited value. A good name is better than fragrant oil, and the day of death than the day of birth.bUntil the moment of death, people risk forfeiting their good name.

Ecclesiastes 2:7

I bought male and female slaves, and I acquired stewards. I also acquired more cattle, both herds and flocks, than all who were before me in Jerusalem.

Ecclesiastes 10:19

TheyiThey The ministers of v. 16. make a banquet for revelry; wine makes life merry, and money answers every need.

Ecclesiastes 2:26

One, namely, who pleases [God] is given the wisdom and shrewdness for enjoyment;hthe wisdom and shrewdness for enjoyment Lit. “wisdom and knowledge and enjoyment.” while one who displeases is given the urge to gather and amass—only for handing on to someone who is pleasing to God. That too is futile and pursuit of wind.

Ecclesiastes 4:15

[However,] I reflected about all the living who walk under the sun withgwho walk under the sun with I.e., are contemporaries of. that youthful successorhthat youthful successor Or: “the next youngster,” i.e., whoever comes in line to displace the youth mentioned in v. 13. who steps into his place.

Ecclesiastes 7:14

So in a time of good fortune enjoy the good fortune; and in a time of misfortune, reflect: The one no less than the other was God’s doing; consequently, mortals may find no fault with [God].jThe one no less than the other … find no fault with [God] So Rashi; cf. the same thought in Job 1.22; 2.10.

Ecclesiastes 11:3

If the clouds are filled, they will pour down rain on the earth; and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, the tree will stay where it falls.aif a tree falls to the south or to the north, the tree will stay where it falls Emendation yields, “if a thunderbolt (lit. arrow, cf., e.g., 2 Sam. 22.15) falls … where the thunderbolt falls, only there will it strike.”

Ecclesiastes 7:29

But, see, this I did find:ramong all these … this I did find Force of Heb. uncertain. God made human beings plain, but they have engaged in too much reasoning.

Ecclesiastes 7:23

All this I tested with wisdom. I thought I could fathom it,pit Refers back to 6.12. but it eludes me.

Ecclesiastes 2:20

And so I came to view with despair all the gains I had made under the sun.

Ecclesiastes 8:17

and I have observed all that God brings to pass. Indeed, human beings cannot guess the events that occur under the sun. For humans try strenuously, but fail to guess them; and even if those who are wise should think to discover them they would not be able to guess them.

Ecclesiastes 3:9

What value, then, can those who labor get from what they earn?

Ecclesiastes 10:18

Through slothfulness the ceiling sags,Through lazy hands the house caves in.

Ecclesiastes 1:15

A twisted thing that cannot be made straight,A lack that cannot be made good.

Ecclesiastes 6:12

Who can possibly know what is best for people to do in life—the few days of this fleeting life? ForeFor Lit. “according to the shadow that”; cf. Qumran Aramaic beṭel and Syriac meṭṭol; and see 8.13. who can tell what the future holds for them under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 10:2

A sage’s mind tends toward the right hand, a fool’s toward the left.bI.e., a sage’s mind brings good luck; a fool’s brings bad luck.

Ecclesiastes 7:2

It is better to go to a house of mourning than to a house of feasting; for that is the end of every mortal, and the living should take it to heart.

Ecclesiastes 4:7

And I have noted this further futility under the sun:

Ecclesiastes 10:7

I have seen slaves on horseback, and nobles walking on the ground like slaves.

Ecclesiastes 11:4

Whoever watches the wind will never sow; and whoever observes the clouds will never reap.

Ecclesiastes 2:10

I withheld from my eyes nothing they asked for, and denied myself no enjoyment; rather, I got enjoyment out ofbout of Septuagint and a few Heb. manuscripts have “(in exchange) for”; cf. 2.24; 3.13, 22; 5.17. all my wealth. And that was all I got out of my wealth.

Ecclesiastes 12:5

When one is afraid of heightsAnd there is terror on the road.—For the almond tree may blossom,The grasshopper be burdened,iThe grasshopper be burdened Emendation yields “The squill (postbiblical Heb. ḥaṣab) resume its burden,” i.e., its blossom stalk and its leaves. And the caper bush may bud again;jcaper bush may bud again These plants, after seeming dead for part of the year, revive, unlike human beings; cf. Job 14.7–10. But mortals set out for their eternal abode,With mourners all around in the street.—

Ecclesiastes 7:11

Wisdom is as good as a patrimony, and even better, for those who behold the sun.