Ecclesiastes 1:13

Ecclesiastes 1:13 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.
• New International Version (NIV)I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind!
• English Standard Version (ESV)And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised.

Context of Ecclesiastes 1:13

11There is no remembrance of earlier things; And also of the later things which will occur, There will be for them no remembrance Among those who will come later still. 12I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. It is a grievous task 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 vanity and striving after wind. 15What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.

Ecclesiastes 1:13 word by word

וְנָתַ֣תִּי אֶת־לִבִּ֗י לִדְר֤וֹשׁ וְלָתוּר֙ בַּֽחָכְמָ֔ה עַ֛ל כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֥ר נַעֲשָׂ֖ה תַּ֣חַת הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם ה֣וּא׀ עִנְיַ֣ן רָ֗ע נָתַ֧ן אֱלֹהִ֛ים לִבְנֵ֥י הָאָדָ֖ם לַעֲנ֥וֹת בּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

• setנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
• mindלֵבlêb · heartH3820
• to seekדָּרַשׁdârash · to seekH1875
• exploreתּוּרtûr · to spyH8446
• by wisdomחׇכְמָהchokmâh · wisdomH2451
• concerningעַל‛al · uponH5921
• allכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• that has been doneעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• underתַּחַתtachath · underneath: underH8478
• heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
• a grievousרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: harmfulH7451
• taskעִנְיָן‛inyân · taskH6045
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• to the sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of menאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• to be afflictedעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 1:13

• Ecclesiastes 1:17And I set my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly; I realized that this also is striving after wind.
• Ecclesiastes 7:25I directed my mind to know, to investigate and to seek wisdom and an explanation, and to know the evil of folly and the foolishness of madness.
• Ecclesiastes 8:9All this I have seen and applied my mind to every deed that has been done under the sun wherein a man has exercised authority over another man to his hurt.
• Psalms 111:2Great are the works of the Lord; They are studied by all who delight in them.
• Proverbs 2:2Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding;
• Proverbs 4:7The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding.
• Proverbs 18:1He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom.
• Proverbs 23:26Give me your heart, my son, And let your eyes delight in my ways.
• 1 Timothy 4:15Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all.
• Ecclesiastes 3:10I have seen the task which God has given the sons of men with which to occupy themselves.
• Ecclesiastes 4:4I have seen that every labor and every skill which is done is the result of rivalry between a man and his neighbor. This too is vanity and striving after wind.
• Ecclesiastes 12:12But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.
• Genesis 3:19By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.”

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 1:13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 13And I gave my heart to seek and search - While Solomon was faithful to his God he diligently cultivated his mind. His giving himself to the study of natural history, philosophy, poetry, etc., are sufficient proofs of it. He had not intuitive knowledge from God; but he had a capacity to obtain every kind of knowledge useful to man. This sore travail - This is the way in which knowledge is to be acquired; and in order to investigate the operations of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13Wisdom - As including both the powers of observation and judgment, and the knowledge acquired thereby (1 Kings 3:28; 1 Kings 4:29; 1 Kings 10:8, … ). It increases by exercise. Here is noted its application to people and their actions. Travail - In the sense of toil; the word is here applied to all human occupations. God - God is named as אלהים 'elohı̂ym thirty-nine times in this book; a name common to the true God and to false gods, and used by believers…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-18Verses 12-18 Solomon tried all things, and found them vanity. He found his searches after knowledge weariness, not only to the flesh, but to the mind. The more he saw of the works done under the sun, the more he saw their vanity; and the sight often vexed his spirit. He could neither gain that satisfaction to himself, nor do that good to others, which he expected. Even the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom discovered man's wickedness and misery; so that the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13What a miserable task God has laid: The harsh truths of human experience remind us of the Fall in Eden (Genesis 3). Ecclesiastes does not avoid sad topics like death, oppression, and loneliness. Instead, it faces them directly and includes them in realistic conclusions.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. this sore travail--namely, that of "searching out all things done under heaven." Not human wisdom in general, which comes afterwards (Ec 2:12, &c.), but laborious enquiries into, and speculations about, the works of men; for example, political science. As man is doomed to get his bread, so his knowledge, by the sweat of his brow (Ge 3:19) [Gill]. exercised--that is, disciplined; literally, "that they may thereby chastise, or humble themselves."Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 1:13

• Instruction
• Investigation
• Science

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Sun
• Vanity
• Ecclesiastes, the Preacher
• Exercise
• Search
• Synagogue, the Great
• teacher, Teacher

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