Pengkhotbah 4:9

Labor is Beneficial When Its Rewards Are Shared

4:9 Two people are better than one,

because they can reap ¹  more benefit ²  from their labor.

Pengkhotbah 6:5

6:5 though it never saw the light of day ³  nor knew anything, ⁴ 

yet it has more rest ⁵  than that man –

Pengkhotbah 7:21

7:21 Also, do not pay attention to everything that people ⁶  say;

otherwise, ⁷  you might even hear ⁸  your servant cursing you.

Pengkhotbah 7:27

7:27 The Teacher says:

I discovered this while trying to discover the scheme of things, item by item.

[4:9]  ¹ tn Heb “they have.”

[4:9]  ² tn Heb “a good reward.”

[6:5]  ³ tn Heb “it never saw the sun.”

[6:5]  ⁴ tn The word “anything” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:5]  ⁵ sn The Hebrew term translated rest here refers to freedom from toil, anxiety, and misery – part of the miserable misfortune that the miserly man of wealth must endure.

[7:21]  ⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

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

[7:21]  ⁸ 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).