Ecclesiastes 3:10

Ecclesiastes 3:10 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it.
• New International Version (NIV)I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.
• English Standard Version (ESV)I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.
• New King James Version (NKJV)I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied.

Context of Ecclesiastes 3:10

8a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. 9What do working people gain from their hard labor? I have seen mortals weighed down with a burden that God has placed on them. 11It is beautiful how God has done everything at the right time. He has put a sense of eternity in people’s minds. Yet, mortals still can’t grasp what God is doing from the beginning to the end ⌞of time⌟. 12I realize that there’s nothing better for them to do than to be cheerful and enjoy what is good in their lives.

Ecclesiastes 3:10 word by word

רָאִ֣יתִי אֶת־הָֽעִנְיָ֗ן אֲשֶׁ֨ר נָתַ֧ן אֱלֹהִ֛ים לִבְנֵ֥י הָאָדָ֖ם לַעֲנ֥וֹת בּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• I have seenרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• the travailעִנְיָן‛inyân · taskH6045
• which Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• hath givenנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• to the sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of menאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• to be exercisedעָנָה‛ânâh · be occupiedH6031

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 3:10

• Ecclesiastes 1:3What do people gain from all their hard work under the sun?
• Ecclesiastes 2:11But when I turned to look at all that I had accomplished and all the hard work I had put into it, I saw that it was all pointless. ⌞It was like⌟ trying to catch the wind. I gained nothing ⌞from any of my accomplishments⌟ under the sun.
• Ecclesiastes 5:16This also is a painful tragedy: They leave exactly as they came. What advantage do they gain from working so hard for the wind?
• Proverbs 14:23In hard work there is always something gained, but idle talk leads only to poverty.
• Matthew 16:26What good will it do for people to win the whole world and lose their lives? Or what will a person give in exchange for life?

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 3:10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10I have seen the travail - Man is a sinner; and, because he is such, he suffers.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10the burden that God has laid upon the sons of men: God made our work harder after humans rebelled against Him (Genesis 3:17–19). This burden is not too heavy for us to enjoy our work and its rewards (Ecclesiastes 3:11213).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. (See on Ec 1:13).Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Dance
• Judge
• Exercise
• Providence
• Synagogue, the Great

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 3

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings