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Ecclesiastes 6:9

Better what the eye can see than the wandering of desire. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this also is vanity and a striving after wind.

KJV

Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

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Commentary

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Original language & word study

10 tagged words
OriginalTransliterationMeaningWord study
ט֛וֹבTov[is] goodH2896 →
מַרְאֵ֥הmar.'Eh[the] sight ofH4758 →
עֵינַ֖יִם'ei.Na.yimeyesH5869 →
מֵֽהֲלָךְ־me.ha.lokh-more than goingH1980 →
נָ֑פֶשׁNa.feshdesireH5315 →
גַּם־gam-alsoH1571 →
זֶ֥הzehthisH2088 →
הֶ֖בֶלHe.vel[is] futilityH1892 →
וּרְע֥וּתu.re.'Utand striving ofH7469 →
רֽוּחַ׃Ru.achwindH7307 →

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.

Ecclesiastes 1:14I have seen all the things that are done under the sun, and have found them all to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.Psalms 101:3I will set no worthless thing before my eyes. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.Job 31:7If my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has followed my eyes, or if impurity has stuck to my hands,Ecclesiastes 5:18Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of life that God has given him—for this is his lot.Ecclesiastes 4:4I saw that all labor and success spring from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.Ecclesiastes 1:2“Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher, “futility of futilities! Everything is futile!”Ecclesiastes 3:12–13I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and do good while they live,Ecclesiastes 11:9Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.Ecclesiastes 2:11Yet when I considered all the works that my hands had accomplished and what I had toiled to achieve, I found everything to be futile, a pursuit of the wind; there was nothing to be gained under the sun.Ecclesiastes 5:11When good things increase, so do those who consume them; what then is the profit to the owner, except to behold them with his eyes?Ecclesiastes 2:22–24For what does a man get for all the toil and striving with which he labors under the sun?1 Kings 21:4So Ahab went to his palace, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had told him, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” He lay down on his bed, turned his face away, and refused to eat.Ecclesiastes 2:17So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind.1 Kings 9:1Now when Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all that he had desired to do,1 Kings 9:19as well as all the store cities that Solomon had for his chariots and horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion.Isaiah 57:17I was enraged by his sinful greed, so I struck him and hid My face in anger; yet he kept turning back to the desires of his heart.Proverbs 17:24Wisdom is the focus of the discerning, but the eyes of a fool wander to the ends of the earth.Jeremiah 2:20“For long ago you broke your yoke and tore off your chains, saying, ‘I will not serve!’ Indeed, on every high hill and under every green tree you lay down as a prostitute.

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
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