Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. New Living Translation God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to those who please him. But if a sinner becomes wealthy, God takes the wealth away and gives it to those who please him. This, too, is meaningless—like chasing the wind. English Standard Version For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. Berean Standard Bible To the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner He assigns the task of gathering and accumulating that which he will hand over to one who pleases God. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. King James Bible For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit. New King James Version For God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight; but to the sinner He gives the work of gathering and collecting, that he may give to him who is good before God. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind. New American Standard Bible For to a person who is good in His sight, He has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good in God’s sight. This too is futility and striving after wind. NASB 1995 For to a person who is good in His sight He has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good in God’s sight. This too is vanity and striving after wind. NASB 1977 For to a person who is good in His sight He has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good in God’s sight. This too is vanity and striving after wind. Legacy Standard Bible For to a man who is good before Him, He has given wisdom and knowledge and gladness, while to the sinner He has given the endeavor of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good before God. This too is vanity and striving after wind. Amplified Bible For to the person who pleases Him God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner He gives the work of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who pleases God. This too is vanity and chasing after the wind. Christian Standard Bible For to the person who is pleasing in his sight, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give to the one who is pleasing in God’s sight. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. Holman Christian Standard Bible For to the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner He gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give to the one who is pleasing in God’s sight. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. American Standard Version For to the man that pleaseth him God giveth wisdom, and knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that pleaseth God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. Aramaic Bible in Plain English For to the man who is good before him he gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, and to sinners he gives the task to increase and to gather and to give what is good before LORD JEHOVAH, and this also is futility and agitation of spirit Brenton Septuagint Translation For God has given to the man who is good in his sight, wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but he has given to the sinner trouble, to add and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God; for this is also vanity and waywardness of spirit. Contemporary English Version If we please God, he will make us wise, understanding, and happy. But if we sin, God will make us struggle for a living, then he will give all we own to someone who pleases him. This makes no more sense than chasing the wind. Douay-Rheims Bible God hath given to a man that is good in his sight, wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he hath given vexation, and superfluous care, to heap up and to gather together, and to give it to him that hath pleased God: but this also is vanity, and a fruitless solicitude of the mind. English Revised Version For to the man that pleaseth him God giveth wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that pleaseth God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. GOD'S WORD® Translation God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to anyone who pleases him. But to the person who continues to sin, he gives the job of gathering and collecting [wealth]. The sinner must turn his wealth over to the person who pleases God. Even this is pointless. [It's like] trying to catch the wind. Good News Translation God gives wisdom, knowledge, and happiness to those who please him, but he makes sinners work, earning and saving, so that what they get can be given to those who please him. It is all useless. It is like chasing the wind. International Standard Version After all, to the person who is good in God's sight, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner he gives the troublesome task of acquiring and accumulating in order to leave it to someone who is good in the sight of God. This also is pointless and chasing after the wind. JPS Tanakh 1917 For to the man that is good in His sight He giveth wisdom, and knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner He giveth the task, to gather and to heap up, that he may leave to him that is good in the sight of God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. Literal Standard Version For to a man who [is] good before Him, He has given wisdom, and knowledge, and joy; and to a sinner He has given travail, to gather and to heap up, to give to the good before God. Even this [is] vanity and distress of spirit. Majority Standard Bible To the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner He assigns the task of gathering and accumulating that which he will hand over to one who pleases God. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. New American Bible For to the one who pleases God, he gives wisdom and knowledge and joy; but to the one who displeases, God gives the task of gathering possessions for the one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chase after wind. NET Bible For to the one who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner, he gives the task of amassing wealth--only to give it to the one who pleases God. This task of the wicked is futile--like chasing the wind! New Revised Standard Version For to the one who pleases him God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy; but to the sinner he gives the work of gathering and heaping, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind. New Heart English Bible For to the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind. Webster's Bible Translation For God giveth to a man who is good in his sight, wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth toil, to gather, and to amass, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit. World English Bible For to the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind. Young's Literal Translation For to a man who is good before Him, He hath given wisdom, and knowledge, and joy; and to a sinner He hath given travail, to gather and to heap up, to give to the good before God. Even this is vanity and vexation of spirit. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Futility of Work…25For apart from Him, who can eat and who can find enjoyment? 26To the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner He assigns the task of gathering and accumulating that which he will hand over to one who pleases God. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. Cross References Job 27:16 Though he heaps up silver like dust and piles up a wardrobe like clay, Job 27:17 what he lays up, the righteous will wear, and his silver will be divided by the innocent. Job 32:8 But there is a spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding. Job 38:36 Who has put wisdom in the heart or given understanding to the mind? Psalm 39:6 Surely every man goes about like a phantom; surely he bustles in vain; he heaps up riches not knowing who will haul them away. Psalm 51:6 Surely You desire truth in the inmost being; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Proverbs 2:6 For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. Treasury of Scripture For God gives to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he gives travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit. in his sight Genesis 7:1 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Luke 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. wisdom 2 Chronicles 31:20,21 And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the LORD his God… Proverbs 3:13-18 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding… Isaiah 3:10,11 Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings… to the sinner Job 27:16,17 Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay; … Proverbs 13:22 A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just. Proverbs 28:8 He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor. Jump to Previous Amass Chasing Gather Gathering Gives God's Good Heap Joy Leave Pleases Sight Sinner Spirit Striving Task Toil Travail Vanity Vexation Wind WisdomJump to Next Amass Chasing Gather Gathering Gives God's Good Heap Joy Leave Pleases Sight Sinner Spirit Striving Task Toil Travail Vanity Vexation Wind WisdomEcclesiastes 2 1. the vanity of human courses is the work of pleasure12. Though the wise be better than the fool, yet both have one event 18. The vanity of human labor, in leaving it they know not to whom 24. Nothing better than joy in our labor but that is God's gift (26) On the doctrine that the wicked amass wealth for the righteous, see marginal references.Verse 26. - For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight. The subject "God" is not, in the Hebrew, an omission which is supposed to justify its virtual insertion in ver. 25. The Vulgate boldly supplies it here, Homini bone in conspectu sue dedit Deus. To the man that finds favor in God's sight (1 Samuel 29:6; Nehemiah 2:5), i.e. who pleases him, ha gives blessings, while he withholds them or takes them away from the man who displeases him. The blessings specified are wisdom, and knowledge, and joy. The only true wisdom which is not grief, the only true knowledge which is not sorrow (Ecclesiastes 1:18), and the only joy in life, are the gifts of God to those whom he regards as good. But to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up. The sinner takes great pains, expends continuous labor, that he may amass wealth, but it passes into other. (more worthy) hands. Horace, 'Carm.,' 2:14. 25 - "Absumet heres Caecuba dignior Servata centum clavibus." The moral government of God is here recognized, as below, Ecclesiastes 3:15, 17, etc., and a further thought is added on the subject of retribution: That he may give to him that is good before God. This idea is found in Proverbs 28:8, "He that augmenteth his substance by usury and increase, gathereth it for him that hath pity upon the poor;" and Ecclesiastes 13:22, "The wealth of the sinner is laid up for the righteous" (comp. Job 27:16, 17). So in the parable of the talents, the talent of the unprofitable servant is given unto him who had made best use of his money (Matthew 25:28). This also is vanity. It is a question what is the reference here. Delitzsch considers it to be the striving after pleasure in and from labor (ver. 24); Knobel, the arbitrary distribution of the good things of this life; but, put thus baldly, this could hardly be termed a "feeding on wind;" nor could that expression be applied to the "gifts of God" to which Bullock confines the reference. Wright, Hengstenberg, Gratz, and others deem that what is meant is the collecting and heaping up of riches by the sinner, which has already been decided to be vanity (vers. 11, 17, 18); and this Would limit the general conclusion to a particular instance. Taking the view contained in ver. 24 as the central idea of the passage, we see that Koheleth feels that the restriction upon man's enjoyment of labor imposed by God's moral government makes that toil vain because its issue is not in men's hands, and it is a striving for or a feeding on wind because the result is unsatisfying and vanishes in the grasp.
Hebrew Toכִּ֤י (kî) Conjunction Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction the man לְאָדָם֙ (lə·’ā·ḏām) Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 120: Ruddy, a human being who is pleasing שֶׁטּ֣וֹב (šeṭ·ṭō·wḇ) Pronoun - relative | Adjective - masculine singular Strong's 2896: Pleasant, agreeable, good in His sight, לְפָנָ֔יו (lə·p̄ā·nāw) Preposition-l | Noun - common plural construct | third person masculine singular Strong's 6440: The face He gives נָתַ֛ן (nā·ṯan) Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 5414: To give, put, set wisdom חָכְמָ֥ה (ḥāḵ·māh) Noun - feminine singular Strong's 2451: Wisdom and knowledge וְדַ֖עַת (wə·ḏa·‘aṯ) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular Strong's 1847: Knowledge and joy, וְשִׂמְחָ֑ה (wə·śim·ḥāh) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular Strong's 8057: Blithesomeness, glee but to the sinner וְלַחוֹטֶא֩ (wə·la·ḥō·w·ṭe) Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular Strong's 2398: To miss, to sin, to forfeit, lack, expiate, repent, lead astray, condemn He assigns נָתַ֨ן (nā·ṯan) Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 5414: To give, put, set the task עִנְיָ֜ן (‘in·yān) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 6045: Ado, employment, an affair of gathering לֶאֱס֣וֹף (le·’ĕ·sō·wp̄) Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct Strong's 622: To gather for, any purpose, to receive, take away, remove and accumulating [that which] וְלִכְנ֗וֹס (wə·liḵ·nō·ws) Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct Strong's 3664: To collect, to enfold he will hand over לָתֵת֙ (lā·ṯêṯ) Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct Strong's 5414: To give, put, set to one who pleases לְטוֹב֙ (lə·ṭō·wḇ) Preposition-l | Adjective - masculine singular Strong's 2896: Pleasant, agreeable, good God. הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm) Article | Noun - masculine plural Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative This זֶ֥ה (zeh) Pronoun - masculine singular Strong's 2088: This, that too גַּם־ (gam-) Conjunction Strong's 1571: Assemblage, also, even, yea, though, both, and is futile הֶ֖בֶל (he·ḇel) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 1892: Emptiness, vanity, transitory, unsatisfactory and a pursuit וּרְע֥וּת (ū·rə·‘ūṯ) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct Strong's 7469: A feeding upon, grasping after of the wind. רֽוּחַ׃ (rū·aḥ) Noun - common singular Strong's 7307: Wind, breath, exhalation, life, anger, unsubstantiality, a region of the sky, spirit Links Ecclesiastes 2:26 NIVEcclesiastes 2:26 NLT Ecclesiastes 2:26 ESV Ecclesiastes 2:26 NASB Ecclesiastes 2:26 KJV Ecclesiastes 2:26 BibleApps.com Ecclesiastes 2:26 Biblia Paralela Ecclesiastes 2:26 Chinese Bible Ecclesiastes 2:26 French Bible Ecclesiastes 2:26 Catholic Bible OT Poetry: Ecclesiastes 2:26 For to the man who pleases him (Ecclesiast. Ec Ecc Eccles.) |
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