Pengkhotbah 2:11

2:11 Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished ¹ 

and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it, ² 

I concluded: ³  “All these ⁴  achievements and possessions ⁵  are ultimately ⁶  profitless ⁷  –

like chasing the wind!

There is nothing gained ⁸  from them ⁹  on earth.” ¹⁰ 

Pengkhotbah 3:19

3:19 For the fate of humans ¹¹  and the fate of animals are the same:

As one dies, so dies the other; both have the same breath.

There is no advantage for humans over animals,

for both are fleeting.

Pengkhotbah 5:19

5:19 To every man whom God has given wealth, and possessions,

he has also given him the ability ¹² 

to eat from them, to receive his reward and to find enjoyment in his toil;

these things ¹³  are the gift of God.

Pengkhotbah 8:17

8:17 then I discerned all that God has done: ¹⁴ 

No one really comprehends what happens ¹⁵  on earth. ¹⁶ 

Despite all human ¹⁷  efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp ¹⁸  it. ¹⁹ 

Even if ²⁰  a wise person claimed ²¹  that he understood,

he would not really comprehend ²²  it. ²³ 

[2:11]  ¹ tn Heb “all my works that my hands had done.”

[2:11]  ² tn Heb “and all the toil with which I had toiled in doing it.” The term עָמַל (’amal, “toil”) is repeated to emphasize the burden and weariness of the labor which Qoheleth exerted in his accomplishments.

[2:11]  ³ tn Heb “Behold!”

[2:11]  ⁴ tn The term הַכֹּל (hakkol, “everything” or “all”) must be qualified and limited in reference to the topic that is dealt with in 2:4-11. This is an example of synecdoche of general for the specific; the general term “all” is used only in reference to the topic at hand. This is clear from the repetition of כֹּל (kol, “everything”) and (“all these things”) in 2:11.

[2:11]  ⁵ tn The phrase “achievements and possessions” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ⁶ tn The term “ultimately” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ⁷ tn The parallelism with יִתְרוֹן (yitron), “profit; advantage; gain”) indicates that הֶבֶל (hevel) should be nuanced as “profitless, fruitless, futile” in this context. While labor offers some relative and temporal benefits, such as material acquisitions and the enjoyment of the work of one’s hands, there is no ultimate benefit to be gained from secular human achievement.

[2:11]  ⁸ tn The noun יִתְרוֹן (yitron, “profit”) has a two-fold range of meanings: (1) “what comes of [something]; result” (Eccl 1:3; 2:11; 3:9; 5:8, 15; 7:12; 10:10) and (2) “profit; advantage” (Eccl 2:13; 10:11); see HALOT 452–53 s.v. יִתְרוֹי. It is derived from the noun יֶתֶר (yeter, “what is left behind; remainder”; HALOT 452 s.v. I יֶתֶר). The related verb יָתַר (yatar) denotes “to be left over; to survive” (Niphal) and “to have left over” (Hiphil); see HALOT 451–52 s.v. יתר. When used literally, יִתְרוֹן refers to what is left over after expenses (gain or profit); when used figuratively, it refers to what is advantageous or of benefit. Though some things have relative advantage over others (e.g., light over darkness, and wisdom over folly in 2:13), there is no ultimate profit in man’s labor due to death.

[2:11]  ⁹ tn The phrase “from them” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[3:19]  ¹¹ tn Heb “of the sons of man.”

[5:19]  ¹² tn The syntax of this verse is difficult. The best approach is to view הִשְׁלִיטוֹ (hishlito, “he has given him the ability”) as governing the three following infinitives: לֶאֱכֹל (le’ekhol, “to eat”), וְלָשֵׂאת (vÿlase’t, “and to lift” = “to accept [or receive]”), and וְלִשְׂמֹחַ (vÿlismoakh, “and to rejoice”). This statement parallels 2:24-26 which states that no one can find enjoyment in life unless God gives him the ability to do so.

[5:19]  ¹³ tn Heb “this.” The feminine singular demonstrative pronoun זֹה (zoh, “this”) refers back to all that preceded it in the verse (e.g., GKC 440-41 §135.p), that is, the ability to enjoy the fruit of one’s labor is the gift of God (e.g., Eccl 2:24-26). The phrase “these things” is used in the translation for clarity.

[8:17]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “all the work of God.”

[8:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the work that is done.”

[8:17]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[8:17]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “his”; the referent (man, in a generic sense) has been specified in the translation as the adjective “human” for clarity.

[8:17]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “find.”

[8:17]  ¹⁹ tn The term “it” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[8:17]  ²⁰ tn The particle אִם (’im, “even if”) introduces the protasis in a real conditional clause (“If a wise man …”); see IBHS 636-37 §38.2d; R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 74, §453.

[8:17]  ²¹ tn The imperfect tense verb יֹאמַר (yo’mar, “to say”) functions in a modal sense, denoting possibility (see IBHS 508 §31.4e; R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 31, §169).

[8:17]  ²² tn Heb “he cannot find”; or “he does not find.”

[8:17]  ²³ tn The term “it” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is an implied direct object and has been supplied in the translation for smoothness and stylistic reasons.