Darby Bible
Ecclesiastes 2:1
1I said in my heart, Come now, I will try thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure. But behold, this also is vanity.
Ecclesiastes 2:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity.
- New International Version (NIV)I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless.
- English Standard Version (ESV)I said in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy yourself." But behold, this also was vanity.
- New King James Version (NKJV)I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with mirth; therefore enjoy pleasure”; but surely, this also was vanity.
Context of Ecclesiastes 2:1
I said in my heart, Come now, I will try thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure. But behold, this also is vanity. 2I said of laughter, Madness! and of mirth, What availeth it? 3I searched in my heart how to cherish my flesh with wine, while practising my heart with wisdom; and how to lay hold on folly, till I should see what was that good for the children of men which they should do under the heavens all the days of their life.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 2Ecclesiastes 2:1 word by word
אָמַ֤רְתִּֽי אֲנִי֙ בְּלִבִּ֔י לְכָה־נָּ֛א אֲנַסְּכָ֛ה בְשִׂמְחָ֖ה וּרְאֵ֣ה בְט֑וֹב וְהִנֵּ֥ה גַם־ה֖וּא הָֽבֶל׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 2:1
- Ecclesiastes 2:15And I said in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool so will it happen even to me; and why was I then so wise? Then I said in my heart that this also is vanity.
- Ecclesiastes 1:16I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I have become great and have acquired wisdom more than all they that have been before me over Jerusalem; and my heart hath seen much of wisdom and knowledge.
- Ecclesiastes 3:17I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
- Psalms 10:6He saith in his heart, I shall not be moved; from generation to generation I shall be in no adversity.
- Psalms 14:1The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They have corrupted themselves, they have done abominable works: there is none that doeth good.
- Psalms 27:8My heart said for thee, Seek ye my face. Thy face, O Jehovah, will I seek.
- Psalms 30:6As for me, I said in my prosperity, I shall never be moved.
- Luke 12:19and I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much good things laid by for many years; repose thyself, eat, drink, be merry.
- Genesis 11:3And they said one to another, Come on, let us make bricks, and burn [them] thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.
- 2 Kings 5:5And the king of Syria said, Well! go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand [shekels] of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
- Isaiah 5:5And now, let me tell you what I am about to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be eaten up; I will break down its wall, and it shall be trodden under foot;
- James 4:13Go to now, ye who say, To-day or to-morrow will we go into such a city and spend a year there, and traffic and make gain,
- James 5:1Go to now, ye rich, weep, howling over your miseries that [are] coming upon [you].
- Ecclesiastes 8:15And I commended mirth, because there is nothing better for man under the sun than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry; for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God hath given him under the sun.
- Ecclesiastes 11:9Rejoice, young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thy heart, and in the sight of thine eyes; but know that for all these [things] God will bring thee into judgment.
- Isaiah 50:5The Lord Jehovah hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious; I turned not away back.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 2:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1I will prove thee with mirth - This is well expressed by the author so often referred to. Having tried speculative knowledge in vain, passion and appetite whisper: - "From the rugged thorny road Of wisdom, which so ill repays thy toil, Turn back, and enter pleasure's flowery paths. Go, take thy fill of joy, to passion give The reins; nor let one serious thought restrain What youth and affluence prompt."Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Solomon‘s trial of God‘s second gift, namely, riches, and the enjoyment which riches supply; this brought him to the sane result (compare Ecclesiastes 1:12). Comparing Solomon‘s action with Luke 12:16-21, it must be remembered that Solomon‘s object was the acquisition of wisdom, not self-indulgence, and that he did not fail to look forward to the certainty of death overtaking him.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The vanity and vexation of mirth, sensual pleasure, riches, and pomp. (Eccl. 2:1-11) Human wisdom insufficient. (Eccl. 2:12-17) This world to be used according to the will of God. (Eccl. 2:18-26) Verses 1-11 Solomon soon found mirth and pleasure to be vanity. What does noisy, flashy mirth towards making a man happy? The manifold devices of men's hearts, to get satisfaction from the world, and their changing from one thing to another, are like the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-11The Teacher says seeking pleasure for its own sake is empty. Even great achievements are like smoke.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-26Ec 2:1-26. He next tries pleasure and luxury, retaining however, his worldly "wisdom" (Ec 3:9), but all proves "vanity" in respect to the chief good. 1. I said ... heart--(Lu 12:19). thee--my heart, I will test whether thou canst find that solid good in pleasure which was not in "worldly wisdom." But this also proves to be "vanity" (Is 50:11).Read the comment
Topics related to Ecclesiastes 2:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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