New American Standard Bible 1995

Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

12I, the 1Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13And I 2set my 3mind to seek and 4explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. It is 5a grievous 6task which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with. 14I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is 7 8vanity and striving after wind. 15What is 9crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.

16I 10said to myself, “Behold, I have magnified and increased 11wisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my 12mind has observed 13a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.” 17And I 14set my 15mind to know wisdom and to 16know madness and folly; I realized that this also is 17striving after wind. 18Because 18in much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain.

Read all of Ecclesiastes 1

Notes

1. Ecclesiastes 1:12 Eccl 1:1; 7:27; 12:8-10 ↩
2. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Eccl 1:17 ↩
3. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Lit heart ↩
4. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Eccl 3:10, 11; 7:25; 8:17 ↩
5. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Lit an evil ↩
6. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Eccl 2:23, 26; 3:10; 4:8 ↩
7. Ecclesiastes 1:14 Or futility ↩
8. Ecclesiastes 1:14 Eccl 2:11, 17; 4:4; 6:9 ↩
9. Ecclesiastes 1:15 Eccl 7:13 ↩
10. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Lit spoke with my heart, saying ↩
11. Ecclesiastes 1:16 1 Kin 3:12; 4:30; 10:23; Eccl 2:9 ↩
12. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Lit heart ↩
13. Ecclesiastes 1:16 Lit an abundance ↩
14. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Eccl 1:13; 7:25 ↩
15. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Lit heart ↩
16. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Eccl 2:12; 7:25 ↩
17. Ecclesiastes 1:17 Eccl 1:14; 2:11, 17; 4:4, 6, 16; 6:9 ↩
18. Ecclesiastes 1:18 Eccl 2:23; 12:12 ↩

Notes

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 1