Discovery BoxEcclesiastes 2:17 
Context2:17 So I loathed 1 life 2 because what
happens 3 on earth 4 seems awful to me;
for all the benefits of wisdom 5 are futile – like chasing the wind.
Ecclesiastes 4:16
Context4:16 There is no end to all the people 6 nor to the past generations, 7
yet future generations 8 will not rejoice in him.
This also is profitless and like 9 chasing the wind.
1 tn Or “I hated.”
2 tn The term הַחַיִּים (hakhayyim, “life”) functions as a metonymy of association, that is, that which is associated with life, that is, the profitlessness and futility of human secular achievement.
3 tn Heb “the deed that is done.” The root עָשָׂה (’asah, “to do”) is repeated in הַמַּעֲשֶׂה שֶׁנַּעֲשָׂה (hamma’aseh shenna’asah, “the deed that is done”) for emphasis. Here, the term “deed” does not refer to human accomplishment, as in 2:1-11, but to the fact of death that destroys any relative advantage of wisdom over folly (2:14a-16). Qoheleth metaphorically describes death as a “deed” that is “done” to man.
4 tn Heb “under the sun.”
5 tn Heb “all,” referring here to the relative advantage of wisdom.
6 tn Heb “the people.” The term עַם (’am, “people”) can refer to the subjects of the king (BDB 766 s.v. עַם 2).
7 tn Heb “those who were before them.”
8 tn Heb “those coming after.” The Hebrew term הָאַחֲרוֹנִים (ha’akharonim, “those coming after”) is derived from the preposition אַחַר (’akhar, “behind”). When used in reference to time, it refers to future generations (e.g., Deut 29:21; Pss 48:14; 78:4, 6; 102:19; Job 18:20; Eccl 1:11; 4:16); cf. HALOT 36 s.v. אַחַר B.3; BDB 30 s.v. אַחַר 2.b).
9 tn The word “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.
