Ecclesiastes 11:7

Light ¹  is sweet, ²  and it is pleasant for a person ³  to see the sun. ⁴ 

Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.

The light is pleasant, and it is good for the eyes to see the sun.

Light is sweet; it’s wonderful to see the sun!

Oh, how sweet the light of day, And how wonderful to live in the sunshine!

Truly the light is sweet, and it is good for the eyes to see the sun.

Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.

Truly the light is sweet, And it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun;

Light ¹  is sweet, ²  and it is pleasant for a person ³  to see the sun. ⁴ 

¹ tn The term “light” (הָאוֹר, ha’or) is used figuratively (metonymy of association) in reference to “life” (e.g., Job 3:20; 33:30; Ps 56:14). By contrast, death is described as “darkness” (e.g., Eccl 11:8; 12:6-7).

² tn The Hebrew term מָתוֹק (matoq, “sweet”) is often used elsewhere in reference to honey. The point is that life is sweet and should be savored like honey.

³ tn Heb “to the eyes.” The term “eyes” is a synecdoche of part (i.e., eyes) for the whole person. Used with the idiom “to see the sun” (i.e., to be alive), Qoheleth is simply saying that the experience of a life is a pleasant thing that should be savored.

⁴ tn The idiom “to see the sun” (both רָאָה הָשָּׁמֶשׁ, ra’ah hashamesh, and חָזָה הַשָּׁמֶשׁ, khazah hashamesh) is an idiom meaning “to be alive” (e.g., Ps 58:9; Eccl 6:5; 7:11; 11:7); cf. BDB 1039 s.v. שֶׁמֶשׁ 4.b. The opposite idiom, “the sun is darkened,” refers to the onset of old age and death (Eccl 12:2).