God’s Word Translation
Ecclesiastes 1:10
10Can you say that anything is new? It has already been here long before us.
Ecclesiastes 1:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.
- New International Version (NIV)Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Is there a thing of which it is said, "See, this is new"? It has been already in the ages before us.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Is there anything of which it may be said, “See, this is new”? It has already been in ancient times before us.
Context of Ecclesiastes 1:10
8All of these sayings are worn-out phrases. They are more than anyone can express, comprehend, or understand. 9Whatever has happened before will happen ⌞again⌟. Whatever has been done before will be done ⌞again⌟. There is nothing new under the sun. Can you say that anything is new? It has already been here long before us. 11Nothing from the past is remembered. Even in the future, nothing will be remembered by those who come after us. 12I, the spokesman, have been king of Israel in Jerusalem.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 1Ecclesiastes 1:10 word by word
יֵ֥שׁ דָּבָ֛ר שֶׁיֹּאמַ֥ר רְאֵה־זֶ֖ה חָדָ֣שׁ ה֑וּא כְּבָר֙ הָיָ֣ה לְעֹֽלָמִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר הָיָ֖ה מִלְּפָנֵֽנוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Is thereיֵשׁyêsh · thereH3426
- thingדָּבָרdâbâr · word: thingH1697
- whereof it may be saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: behold!H7200
- newחָדָשׁchâdâsh · newH2319
- it hath been alreadyכְּבָרkebâr · alreadyH3528
- of old timeעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: antiquityH5769
- which was beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 1:10
- Matthew 5:12Rejoice and be glad because you have a great reward in heaven! The prophets who lived before you were persecuted in these ways.
- Matthew 23:30Then you say, ‘If we had lived at the time of our ancestors, we would not have helped to murder the prophets.’
- Luke 17:26“When the Son of Man comes again, the situation will be like the time of Noah.
- Acts 7:51“How stubborn can you be? How can you be so heartless and disobedient? You’re just like your ancestors. They always opposed the Holy Spirit, and so do you!
- 1 Thessalonians 2:14You, brothers and sisters, were like the churches of God in Judea that are united with Christ Jesus. You suffered the same persecutions from the people of your own country as those churches did from the Jews
- 2 Timothy 3:8As Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men oppose the truth. Their minds are corrupt, and the faith they teach is counterfeit.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 1:10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10Is there any thing, etc. - The original is beautiful. "Is there any thing which will say, See this! it is new?" Men may say this of their discoveries, etc.; but universal nature says, It is not new. It has been, and it will be.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-11Verses 9-11 Men's hearts and their corruptions are the same now as in former times; their desires, and pursuits, and complaints, still the same. This should take us from expecting happiness in the creature, and quicken us to seek eternal blessings. How many things and persons in Solomon's day were thought very great, yet there is no remembrance of them now!Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-11The Teacher starts by noting that every natural and historical activity has a repetitive cycle of coming and going, existing and not existing. This can cause some to feel that everything is meaningless. The Teacher quickly shifts from one topic to another and ends this section with the topic he began with, using a literary style that reflects the cycles he describes in nature and human history.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. old time--Hebrew, "ages." which was--The Hebrew plural cannot be joined to the verb singular. Therefore translate: "It hath been in the ages before; certainly it hath been before us" [Holden]. Or, as Maurer: "That which has been (done) before us (in our presence, 1Ch 16:33), has been (done) already in the old times."Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 1
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries