God’s Word Translation
Ecclesiastes 5:17
17They spend their entire lives in darkness, in constant frustration, sickness, and resentment.
Ecclesiastes 5:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness.
- New International Version (NIV)All their days they eat in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Moreover, all his days he eats in darkness in much vexation and sickness and anger.
- New King James Version (NKJV)All his days he also eats in darkness, And he has much sorrow and sickness and anger.
Context of Ecclesiastes 5:17
15They came from their mother’s womb naked. They will leave as naked as they came. They won’t even be able to take a handful of their earnings with them from all their hard work. 16This also is a painful tragedy: They leave exactly as they came. What advantage do they gain from working so hard for the wind? They spend their entire lives in darkness, in constant frustration, sickness, and resentment. 18At last I have seen what is good and beautiful: It is to eat and drink and to enjoy the good in all our hard work under the sun during the brief lives God gives us. That is our lot ⌞in life⌟. 19It is a gift from God when God gives some people wealth and possessions, the power to enjoy them, ⌞the ability⌟ to accept their lot in life, and ⌞the ability⌟ to rejoice in their own hard work.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 5Ecclesiastes 5:17 word by word
גַּ֥ם כָּל־יָמָ֖יו בַּחֹ֣שֶׁךְ יֹאכֵ֑ל וְכָעַ֥ס הַרְבֵּ֖ה וְחָלְי֥וֹ וָקָֽצֶף׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 5:17
- Genesis 3:17Then he said to the man, “You listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree, although I commanded you, ‘You must never eat its fruit.’ The ground is cursed because of you. Through hard work you will eat ⌞food that comes⌟ from it every day of your life.
- 1 Kings 17:12She said, “I solemnly swear, as the Lord your God lives, I didn’t bake any bread. I have one handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I’m gathering wood. I’m going to prepare something for myself and my son so that we can eat it and then die.”
- Job 21:25Another person, never having tasted happiness, dies with a bitter soul.
- Psalms 78:33He brought their days to an end like a whisper in the wind. He brought their years to an end in terror.
- Psalms 102:9I eat ashes like bread and my tears are mixed with my drink
- Psalms 127:2It is useless to work hard for the food you eat by getting up early and going to bed late. The Lord gives ⌞food⌟ to those he loves while they sleep.
- Ezekiel 4:16He also said to me, “Son of man, I am going to cut off the bread supply in Jerusalem. People will anxiously eat rationed bread and fearfully drink rationed water.
- 2 Kings 1:2During the rebellion King Ahaziah fell through a window lattice in his upstairs room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers ⌞to Ekron⌟. He had told them, “Go ask Baalzebub, the god of Ekron, if I will recover from this injury.”
- 2 Kings 5:27Naaman’s skin disease will cling to you and your descendants permanently!” When he left Elisha, Gehazi had a disease that made his skin as flaky as snow.
- 2 Chronicles 16:10Asa was furious at the seer. He was so angry with Hanani that he put Hanani in prison. Asa also oppressed some of the people at that time in his reign.
- 2 Chronicles 24:24The Aramean army had come with a small number of men, but the Lord handed Joash’s large army over to them because Joash’s soldiers had abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors. So the Arameans carried out ⌞the Lord’s⌟ judgment on Joash.
- Psalms 90:7Indeed, your anger consumes us. Your rage terrifies us.
- Proverbs 1:27when panic strikes you like a violent storm, when calamity strikes you like a wind storm, when trouble and anguish come to you.
- Acts 12:23Immediately, an angel from the Lord killed Herod for not giving glory to God. Herod was eaten by maggots, and he died.
- 1 Corinthians 11:30This is the reason why many of you are weak and sick and quite a number ⌞of you⌟ have died.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 5:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17All his days also he eateth in darkness - Even his enjoyments are embittered by uncertainty. He fears for his goods; the possibility of being deprived of them fills his heart with anguish. But instead of יאכל yochel, "he shall eat," ילך yelech, "he shall walk," is the reading of several MSS. He walks in darkness - he has no evidence of salvation. There is no ray of light from God to penetrate the gloom; and all beyond life is darkness impenetrable! And…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17Hath much sorrow - Rather, is very sad and hath pain and vexation.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-17Verses 9-17 The goodness of Providence is more equally distributed than appears to a careless observer. The king needs the common things of life, and the poor share them; they relish their morsel better than he does his luxuries. There are bodily desires which silver itself will not satisfy, much less will worldly abundance satisfy spiritual desires. The more men have, the better house they must keep, the more servants they must employ, the more guests…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-17Working just to gain possessions is like chasing the wind; it causes frustration, discouragement, and anger.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. eateth--appropriately put for "liveth" in general, as connected with Ec 5:11, 12, 18. darkness--opposed to "light (joy) of countenance" (Ec 8:1; Pr 16:15). wrath--fretfulness, literally, "His sorrow is much, and his infirmity (of body) and wrath."Read the comment
Topics related to Ecclesiastes 5:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 5
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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