Ecclesiastes 5:12 BSB

Ecclesiastes 5:12

The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much; but the fulness of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

KJV

The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

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Commentary

3 voices

Ambrose of Milan

Interrogation of Job and David (397)

Ecclesiastes sees that riches are kept for ill by one who possesses them, for their loss causes a very great anxiety and disquiet. Indeed they are lost, for they are left here and can be of no advantage to one who is dead.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

John Gill

1697–1771

Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)

The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much,.... Or "of a servant" (i), who enjoys sleep equally as a king; a tiller of the ground, as Jarchi; who also interprets it of one that serves the Lord, as likewise the Targum; a beloved one of his, to whom he gives sleep, Psa 127:

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Proofs of God's judgments even in this world (Pr 11:31). The rich oppressor's wealth provokes enemies, robbers, &c. Then, after having kept it for an expected son, he loses it beforehand by misfortune ("by evil travail"), and the son is born to be heir of poverty.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

14 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
מְתוּקָה֙	me.tu.Kah	[is] sweet	H4966 →
שְׁנַ֣ת	she.Nat	[the] sleep of	H8142 →
הָעֹבֵ֔ד	ha.'o.Ved	the laborer	H5647 →
אִם־	'im-	whether	H518 →
מְעַ֥ט	me.'At	a little	H4592 →
וְאִם־	ve.'im-	and or	H518 →
הַרְבֵּ֖ה	har.Beh	[surely] much	H7235 →
יֹאכֵ֑ל	yo.Khel	he will eat	H398 →
וְהַשָּׂבָע֙	ve.ha.sa.Va'	and the plenty	H7647 →
לֶֽעָשִׁ֔יר	le.'a.Shir	of the rich [person]	H6223 →
אֵינֶ֛נּוּ	'ei.Ne.nu	not it	H369 →
מַנִּ֥יחַֽ	ma.Ni.ach	[is] permitting	H5117 →
ל֖וֹ	lo	<to> <the> him
לִישֽׁוֹן׃	li.Shon	to sleep	H3462 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Psalms 4:8
I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
leads to
- Psalms 3:5
  I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.
  Reached by 3 independent paths from here.
- Proverbs 3:24
  When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you rest, your sleep will be sweet.
- Job 11:18–19
  You will be secure, because there is hope, and you will look around and lie down in safety.
- Psalms 16:8–9
  I have set the LORD always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:10
  He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.
Through
Psalms 127:2
In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat— for He gives sleep to His beloved.
leads to
- Psalms 4:8
  I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Job 11:18
  You will be secure, because there is hope, and you will look around and lie down in safety.
Through
Proverbs 3:24
When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you rest, your sleep will be sweet.
leads to
- Proverbs 6:22
  When you walk, they will guide you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you.

Featured studies on this passage

Walks through Ecclesiastes 5

Vanity Under the Sun — Ecclesiastes

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About Ecclesiastes

King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Ecclesiastes: the study guide →Read chapter 5 →The featured study →

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01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Ecclesiastes

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Ecclesiastes