Discovery BoxEcclesiastes 4:6 
Context4:6 Better is one handful with some rest
than two hands full of toil 1 and chasing the wind.
Ecclesiastes 7:20
Context7:20 For 2 there is not one truly 3 righteous person on the earth
who continually does good and never sins.
Ecclesiastes 8:4
Context8:4 Surely the king’s authority 4 is absolute; 5
no one can say 6 to him, “What are you doing?”
1 sn Qoheleth lists three approaches to labor: (1) the competitive workaholic in 4:4, (2) the impoverished sluggard in 4:5, and (3) the contented laborer in 4:6. The balanced approach rebukes the two extremes.
2 tn The introductory particle כִּי (ki) is rendered variously: “for” (KJV); “indeed” (NASB); not translated (NIV); “for” (NJPS). The particle functions in an explanatory sense, explaining the need for wisdom in v. 19. Righteousness alone cannot always protect a person from calamity (7:15-16); therefore, something additional, such as wisdom, is needed. The need for wisdom as protection from calamity is particularly evident in the light of the fact that no one is truly righteous (7:19-20).
3 tn The term “truly” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity. Qoheleth does not deny the existence of some people who are relatively righteous.
4 tn Heb “word.”
5 tn Heb “supreme.”
6 tn Heb “Who can say…?”
