Ecclesiastes 10:19

Ecclesiastes 10:19 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.
• New International Version (NIV)A feast is made for laughter, wine makes life merry, and money is the answer for everything.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Bread is made for laughter, and wine gladdens life, and money answers everything.
• New Living Translation (NLT)A party gives laughter, wine gives happiness, and money gives everything!

Context of Ecclesiastes 10:19

17Blessed are you, O land, when your king is the son of nobles, And your princes feast at the proper time— For strength and not for drunkenness! 18Because of laziness the building decays, And through idleness of hands the house leaks. A feast is made for laughter, And wine makes merry; But money answers everything. 20Do not curse the king, even in your thought; Do not curse the rich, even in your bedroom; For a bird of the air may carry your voice, And a bird in flight may tell the matter.

Ecclesiastes 10:19 word by word

לִשְׂחוֹק֙ עֹשִׂ֣ים לֶ֔חֶם וְיַ֖יִן יְשַׂמַּ֣ח חַיִּ֑ים וְהַכֶּ֖סֶף יַעֲנֶ֥ה אֶת־הַכֹּֽל׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• A feastלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
• is madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• for laughterשְׂחֹקώechôq ώechôq · laughterH7814
• and wineיַ֫יִןyayin · wineH3196
• maketh merryחַיִּיםchay · lifeH2416
• maketh merryשָׂמַחώâmach · to rejoiceH8055
• but moneyכֶּ֫סֶףkeseph · silver: moneyH3701
• answerethעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030

Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 10:19

• Ecclesiastes 2:1I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with mirth; therefore enjoy pleasure”; but surely, this also was vanity.
• Ecclesiastes 7:2Better to go to the house of mourning Than to go to the house of feasting, For that is the end of all men; And the living will take it to heart.
• Genesis 43:34Then he took servings to them from before him, but Benjamin’s serving was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.
• Daniel 5:1Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in the presence of the thousand.
• 1 Peter 4:3For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries.
• Ecclesiastes 9:7Go, eat your bread with joy, And drink your wine with a merry heart; For God has already accepted your works.
• Psalms 104:15And wine that makes glad the heart of man, Oil to make his face shine, And bread which strengthens man’s heart.
• Isaiah 24:11There is a cry for wine in the streets, All joy is darkened, The mirth of the land is gone.
• 1 Samuel 25:36Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; therefore she told him nothing, little or much, until morning light.
• 2 Samuel 13:28Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, “Watch now, when Amnon’s heart is merry with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon!’ then kill him. Do not be afraid. Have I not commanded you? Be courageous and valiant.”
• Luke 12:19And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’
• Ephesians 5:18And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
• Ecclesiastes 7:11Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun.
• 1 Chronicles 21:24Then King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing.”
• 1 Chronicles 29:2Now for the house of my God I have prepared with all my might: gold for things to be made of gold, silver for things of silver, bronze for things of bronze, iron for things of iron, wood for things of wood, onyx stones, stones to be set, glistening stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and marble slabs in abundance.
• 2 Chronicles 24:11So it was, at that time, when the chest was brought to the king’s official by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that there was much money, that the king’s scribe and the high priest’s officer came and emptied the chest, and took it and returned it to its place. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance.

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 10:19

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19A feast is made for laughter - The object of it is to produce merriment, to banish care and concern of every kind. But who are they who make and frequent such places? Epicures and drunkards generally; such as those of whom Horace speaks: Nos numerus sumus, et fruges consumere nati. Epist. lib. i., ep. 2, ver. 27. "Those whose names stand as indications of men, the useless many; and who appear to be born only to consume the produce of the soil." But money…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16-20Verses 16-20 Foolish rulers, by their weakness, self-indulgence and sloth, bring decay upon the state: nobleness and temperance insure prosperity: yet the subject must not rebel in word or thought against his king. Ecclesiastes 10:16 A child - Rather, young. The word is applied to Rehoboam 2 Chronicles 13:7 at the time of his accession to the throne, when he was 41 years old. Eat in the morning - A sign of intemperance (compare Isaiah 5:11). Ecclesiastes…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-20Verses 16-20 The happiness of a land depends on the character of its rulers. The people cannot be happy when their princes are childish, and lovers of pleasure. Slothfulness is of ill consequence both to private and public affairs. Money, of itself, will neither feed nor clothe, though it answers the occasions of this present life, as what is to be had, may generally be had for money. But the soul, as it is not redeemed, so it is not maintained with…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19money is the answer for everything: It helps you get what you want or need in this world (see Ecclesiastes 7:11–12).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. Referring to Ec 10:18. Instead of repairing the breaches in the commonwealth (equivalent to "building"), the princes "make a feast for laughter (Ec 10:16), and wine maketh their life glad (Psa 104:15), and (but) money supplieth (answereth their wishes by supplying) all things," that is, they take bribes to support their extravagance; and hence arise the wrongs that are perpetrated (Ec 10:5, 6; 3:16; Is 1:23; 5:23). Maurer takes "all things" of the…Read the comment

Topics related to Ecclesiastes 10:19

• Money
• Riches
• Worldliness

In the dictionaries

• Direct
• Idleness
• Prince
• Synagogue, the Great
• Wine; Wine Press
• Banquets

Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 10

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings