Ecclesiastes 2:4-11
New King James Version
4 I made my works great, I built myself (A)houses, and planted myself vineyards. 5 I made myself gardens and orchards, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 6 I made myself water pools from which to [a]water the growing trees of the grove. 7 I acquired male and female servants, and had [b]servants born in my house. Yes, I had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me. 8 (B)I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the special treasures of kings and of the provinces. I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and [c]musical instruments of all kinds.
9 (C)So I became great and [d]excelled (D)more than all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.
10 Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.
I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure,
For my heart rejoiced in all my labor;
And (E)this was my [e]reward from all my labor.
11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was (F)vanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 2:6 irrigate
- Ecclesiastes 2:7 Lit. sons of my house
- Ecclesiastes 2:8 Exact meaning unknown
- Ecclesiastes 2:9 Lit. increased
- Ecclesiastes 2:10 Lit. portion
Ecclesiastes 2:4-11
American Standard Version
4 I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; 5 I made me gardens and parks, and I planted trees in them of all kinds of fruit; 6 I made me pools of water, to water therefrom the forest where trees were reared; 7 I bought men-servants and maid-servants, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of herds and flocks, above all that were before me in Jerusalem; 8 I gathered me also silver and gold, and the treasure of kings and of the provinces; I gat me men-singers and women-singers, and the delights of the sons of men, [a]musical instruments, and that of all sorts. 9 So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom [b]remained with me. 10 And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them; I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced because of all my labor; and this was my portion from all my labor. 11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Ecclesiastes 2:8 Or, concubines very many. The meaning of the Hebrew is very uncertain.
- Ecclesiastes 2:9 Or, stood by me
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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