Ecclesiastes 4:2

4:2 So I considered those who are dead and gone

more fortunate than those who are still alive.

Ecclesiastes 6:5

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

yet it has more rest than that man –

Ecclesiastes 9:17

Wisdom versus Fools, Sin, and Folly

9:17 The words of the wise are heard in quiet,

more than the shouting of a ruler is heard among fools.


tn The verb שָׁבַח (shavakh) has a two-fold range of meaning: (1) “to praise; to laud”; and (2) “to congratulate” (HALOT 1387 s.v. I שׁבח; BDB 986 s.v. II שָׁבַח). The LXX translated it as ἐπῄνεσα (ephnesa, “I praised”). The English versions reflect the range of possible meanings: “praised” (KJV, ASV, Douay); “congratulated” (MLB, NASB); “declared/judged/accounted/thought…fortunate/happy” (NJPS, NEB, NIV, RSV, NRSV, NAB).

tn Heb “the dead who had already died.”

tn Heb “the living who are alive.”

tn Heb “it never saw the sun.”

tn The word “anything” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

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.

tn The phrase “is heard” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness. Note its appearance in the previous line.