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Ecclesiastes 2:1

I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy what is good!” But it proved to be futile.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

I said in my heart, Come now, I will prove thee with mirth; therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also was vanity.

KJV

I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity.

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Commentary

3 voices

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Original language & word study

13 tagged words
OriginalTransliterationMeaningWord study
אָמַ֤רְתִּֽי'a.Mar.tiI saidH559 →
אֲנִי֙'a.NiIH589 →
בְּלִבִּ֔יbe.li.Biin heart myH3820 →
לְכָה־le.khah-come !H1980 →
נָּ֛אna'pleaseH4994 →
אֲנַסְּכָ֛ה'a.na.se.Khahlet me put to [the] test youH5254 →
בְשִׂמְחָ֖הve.sim.Chahwith pleasureH8057 →
וּרְאֵ֣הu.re.'Ehand lookH7200 →
בְט֑וֹבve.Tovon goodH2896 →
וְהִנֵּ֥הve.hi.Nehand there!H2009 →
גַם־gam-alsoH1571 →
ה֖וּאhu'itH1931 →
הָֽבֶל׃Ha.vel[was] futilityH1892 →

The walk

Related verses

18 strongest cross-references

The gold bar shows how strongly the cross-reference sources tie the two verses together: a long bar means many compiled references make the connection, a short one means few.

Luke 12:19Then I will say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry!”’Ecclesiastes 8:15So I commended the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be merry. For this joy will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.James 5:5You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter.James 5:1Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.Psalms 27:8My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek.Genesis 11:3And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.Titus 3:3For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.Genesis 11:7Come, let Us go down and confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.”Psalms 30:6–7In prosperity I said, “I will never be shaken.”Genesis 11:3–4And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.Isaiah 50:11Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who array yourselves with firebrands, walk in the light of your fire and of the firebrands you have lit! This is what you will receive from My hand: You will lie down in a place of torment.James 4:13Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make a profit.”Ecclesiastes 3:17–18I said in my heart, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every deed.”Ecclesiastes 2:15So I said to myself, “The fate of the fool will also befall me. What then have I gained by being wise?” And I said to myself that this too is futile.Ecclesiastes 7:4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.Isaiah 50:5The Lord GOD has opened My ears, and I have not been rebellious, nor have I turned back.Ecclesiastes 1:16–17I said to myself, “Behold, I have grown and increased in wisdom beyond all those before me who were over Jerusalem, and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.”Luke 16:19Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor.

Featured studies on this passage

King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré

On Ecclesiastes 2:1

Ecclesiastes: the Study Guide

Tested mirth and wine, still guiding himself with wisdom, to see “what it was good for the sons of men that they should do under heaven.” The verdict came back hevel.

Open the study →

Still-Life with a Skull (Vanitas) — Philippe de Champaigne

On Ecclesiastes 2:1

Vanity Under the Sun — Ecclesiastes

Mirth and wine, tested deliberately, guided still by wisdom : “I said of laughter, It is mad: and of mirth, What doeth it?”

Open the study →

About Ecclesiastes

King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Ecclesiastes: the study guide →Read chapter 2 →The featured study →
Continue: Ecclesiastes 2 →