Ecclesiastes 1:16

I thought to myself, ¹  “I have become much wiser ²  than any of my predecessors who ruled ³  over Jerusalem; ⁴  I ⁵  have acquired much wisdom and knowledge.” ⁶ 

1Ki 3:12,13; 1Ki 4:30; 1Ki 10:7,23,24; 2Ki 5:20; 2Ch 1:10-12; 2Ch 2:12; 2Ch 9:22,23; Ps 4:4; Ps 77:6; Ec 2:9; Isa 10:7-14; Jer 22:14; Eze 38:10,11; Da 4:30; Heb 5:14

¹ tn Heb “I spoke, I, with my heart.”

² tn Heb “I, look, I have made great and increased wisdom.” The expression הִגְדַּלְתִּי וְהוֹסַפְתִּי (higdalti vÿhosafti) is a verbal hendiadys; it means that Qoheleth had become the wisest man in the history of Jerusalem.

³ tn The phrase “who ruled” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

⁵ tn Heb “my heart” (לִבִּי, libbi). The term “heart” is a metonymy of part for the whole (“my heart” = myself).

⁶ tn Heb “My heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge.”