Ecclesiastes 1:3

Ecclesiastes 1:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
• New International Version (NIV)What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?
• English Standard Version (ESV)What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?
• New King James Version (NKJV)What profit has a man from all his labor In which he toils under the sun?

Context of Ecclesiastes 1:3

1The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2“Futility of futilities,” says the Preacher, “Futility of futilities! All is futility.” What advantage does a person have in all his work Which he does under the sun? 4A generation goes and a generation comes, But the earth remains forever. 5Also, the sun rises and the sun sets; And hurrying to its place it rises there again.

Ecclesiastes 1:3 word by word

מַה־יִּתְר֖וֹן לָֽאָדָ֑ם בְּכָל־עֲמָל֔וֹ שֶֽׁיַּעֲמֹ֖ל תַּ֥חַת הַשָּֽׁמֶשׁ׃Read the interlinear

• Whatמָהmâh mah mâ ma meh · what?H4100
• advantageיִתְרוֹןyithrôn · advantageH3504
• does a personאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• have in allכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• his workעָמָל‛âmâl · troubleH5999
• Whichשֶׁלshel · whichH7945
• he doesעָמַל‛âmal · to toilH5998
• underתַּחַתtachath · underneath: underH8478
• the sunשֶׁ֫מֶשׁshemesh · sunH8121

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 1:3

• Ecclesiastes 2:22For what does a person get in all his labor and in his striving with which he labors under the sun?
• Ecclesiastes 3:9What benefit is there for the worker from that in which he labors?
• Ecclesiastes 5:16This also is a sickening evil: exactly as a person is born, so will he die. What then is the advantage for him who labors for the wind?
• Proverbs 23:4Do not weary yourself to gain wealth; Stop dwelling on it.
• Isaiah 55:2Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight yourself in abundance.
• Habakkuk 2:13Is it not indeed from the Lord of armies That peoples labor merely for fire, And nations become weary for nothing?
• Matthew 16:26For what good will it do a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul? Or what will a person give in exchange for his soul?
• Mark 8:36For what does it benefit a person to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?
• John 6:27Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.”
• Ecclesiastes 2:11So I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold, all was futility and striving after wind, and there was no benefit under the sun.
• Ecclesiastes 4:3But better off than both of them is the one who has never existed, who has never seen the evil activity that is done under the sun.
• Ecclesiastes 5:18Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat, to drink, and enjoy oneself in all one’s labor in which he labors under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him; for this is his reward.
• Ecclesiastes 6:12For who knows what is good for a person during his lifetime, during the few years of his futile life? He will spend them like a shadow. For who can tell a person what will happen after him under the sun?
• Ecclesiastes 7:11Wisdom along with an inheritance is good, And an advantage to those who see the sun.
• Ecclesiastes 8:15So I commended pleasure, for there is nothing good for a person under the sun except to eat, drink, and be joyful, and this will stand by him in his labor throughout the days of his life which God has given him under the sun.
• Ecclesiastes 9:3This is an evil in everything that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for everyone. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of mankind are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterward they go to the dead.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 1:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3What profit hath a man - What is the sum of the real good he has gained by all his toils in life? They, in themselves, have neither made him contented nor happy.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3What profit … - The question often repeated is the great practical inquiry of the book; it receives its final answer in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14. When this question was asked, the Lord had not yet spoken Matthew 11:28. The word “profit” (or pre-eminence) is opposed to “vanity.” Hath a man - Rather, hath man.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The Hebrew phrase under the sun appears twenty-nine times in Ecclesiastes. The New Living Translation sometimes translates it as "here on earth" (Proverbs 2:18) or "in this world" (Proverbs 2:20). It suggests a view of life focused on earthly matters rather than God's perspective.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. What profit ... labour--that is, "What profit" as to the chief good (Mt 16:26). Labor is profitable in its proper place (Ge 2:15; 3:19; Pr 14:23). under the sun--that is, in this life, as opposed to the future world. The phrase often recurs, but only in Ecclesiastes.Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 1:3

• Covetousness
• Industry

In the dictionaries

• Sun
• Vanity
• Canon of the Old Testament
• Ecclesiastes, the Preacher
• Labor
• Pain
• Synagogue, the Great

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