Ecclesiastes 8:15 BSB

Ecclesiastes 8:15

So 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.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be joyful: for that shall abide with him in his labor all the days of his life which God hath given him under the sun.

KJV

Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.

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Commentary

2 voices

Albert Barnes

1798–1870

Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)

Mirth - Better, Gladness, or “joy” (as in Ecc 2:10). The Hebrew word is applied not only to the pleasures arising from the physical senses, but also frequently to religious joy. The sentiment of this verse is a frequent conclusion of the writer’s personal experience (compare marginal references), and is unfairly charged with Epicureanism. The Preacher is careful to set forth pleasure as a gift from God, to be earned by labor, and received with thankfulness to the Giver, and to be accounted for to Him. His estimate of the pleasures of the senses is recorded in Ecc 7:2-6.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

This present life must be reckoned by days; this life is given us, and the days of it are allotted to us, by the counsel of God, and therefore while it does last we must accommodate ourselves to the will of God and study to answer the ends of life.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

26 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וְשִׁבַּ֤חְתִּֽי	ve.shi.Bach.ti	and I commend	H7623 →
אֲנִי֙	'a.Ni	I	H589 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
הַשִּׂמְחָ֔ה	ha.sim.Chah	<the> gladness	H8057 →
אֲשֶׁ֨ר	'a.Sher	that	H834 →
אֵֽין־	'ein-	not	H369 →
ט֤וֹב	Tov	good	H2896 →
לָֽאָדָם֙	la.'a.Dam	[belongs] to <the> humankind	H120 →
תַּ֣חַת	Ta.chat	under	H8478 →
הַשֶּׁ֔מֶשׁ	ha.She.mesh	the sun	H8121 →
כִּ֛י	ki	that	H3588 →
אִם־	'im-	except	H518 →
לֶאֱכ֥וֹל	le.'e.Khol	to eat	H398 →
וְלִשְׁתּ֖וֹת	ve.lish.Tot	and to drink	H8354 →
וְלִשְׂמ֑וֹחַ	ve.lis.Mo.ach	and to be happy	H8055 →
וְה֞וּא	ve.Hu'	and that	H1931 →
יִלְוֶ֣נּוּ	yil.Ve.nu	it will accompany him	H3867 →
בַעֲמָל֗וֹ	va.'a.ma.Lo	in toil his	H5999 →
יְמֵ֥י	ye.Mei	[the] days of	H3117 →
חַיָּ֛יו	chai.Yav	life his	H2416 →
אֲשֶׁר־	'a.Sher-	which	H834 →
נָֽתַן־	na.tan-	he has given	H5414 →
ל֥וֹ	lo	to <the> him
הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים	ha.'E.lo.Him	<the> God	H430 →
תַּ֥חַת	Ta.chat	under	H8478 →
הַשָּֽׁמֶשׁ׃	ha.Sha.mesh	the sun	H8121 →

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
Ecclesiastes 2:24
Nothing is better for a man than to eat and drink and enjoy his work. I have also seen that this is from the hand of God.
leads to
- Ecclesiastes 3:22
  I have seen that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will come after him?
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- 1 Timothy 6:17
  Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us…
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
Through
Ecclesiastes 5:18
Here 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…
leads to
- Ecclesiastes 3:12–13
  I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and do good while they live,
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Ecclesiastes 2:24
  Nothing is better for a man than to eat and drink and enjoy his work. I have also seen that this is from the hand of God.
Through
1 Timothy 6:17
Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us…
leads to
- Proverbs 11:28
  He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like foliage.
- Acts 14:17
  Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.”
- Matthew 19:23
  Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
- 1 Timothy 4:10
  To this end we labor and strive, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of everyone, and especially of those who believe.

About Ecclesiastes

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

Ecclesiastes: the study guide →Read chapter 8 →The featured study →

Continue: Ecclesiastes 8 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

06About Ecclesiastes

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

About Ecclesiastes