Then Adonai Elohim said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. Let Me make a well-matched helper for him.”
Ecclesiastes 4:8 - Tree of Life Version There is one who has no one else, neither son nor brother, yet there is no end to all his toil. His eyes are not content with riches. “So, for whom am I toiling, and depriving myself of prosperity?” This too is meaningless— a grievous task! Tuilleadh leaganachaKing James Version (Oxford) 1769 There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail. Amplified Bible - Classic Edition Here is one alone–no one with him; he neither has child nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his labor, neither is his eye satisfied with riches, neither does he ask, For whom do I labor and deprive myself of good? This is also vanity (emptiness, falsity, and futility); yes, it is a painful effort and an unhappy business. [Prov. 27:20; I John 2:16.] American Standard Version (1901) There is one that is alone, and he hath not a second; yea, he hath neither son nor brother; yet is there no end of all his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches. For whom then, saith he, do I labor, and deprive my soul of good? This also is vanity, yea, it is a sore travail. Common English Bible There are people who are utterly alone, with no companions, not even a child or a sibling. Yet they work hard without end, never satisfied with their wealth. So for whom am I working so hard and depriving myself of enjoyment? This too is pointless and a terrible obsession. Catholic Public Domain Version He is one, and he does not have a second: no son, no brother. And yet he does not cease to labor, nor are his eyes satisfied with wealth, nor does he reflect, saying: "For whom do I labor and cheat my soul of good things?" In this, too, is emptiness and a most burdensome affliction. Douay-Rheims version of The Bible - 1752 version There is but one, and he hath not a second, no child, no brother, and yet he ceaseth not to labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches, neither doth he reflect, saying: For whom do I labour, and defraud my soul of good things? in this also is vanity, and a grievous vexation. |
Then Adonai Elohim said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. Let Me make a well-matched helper for him.”
Behold, You made my days mere hand-breadths, and my lifetime as nothing before You. Surely all humanity is but vapor. Selah
Everyone goes about as a mere phantom. Surely they are making an uproar in vain, heaping up stuff— yet not knowing who will gather it.
Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and neither are the eyes of man.
I applied my heart to seek and examine by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a burdensome task God has given the sons of men to keep them occupied.
All things are wearisome. No one can express them. The eye is never satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
For sometimes a man, who has labored with wisdom, knowledge and skill, must hand over as an inheritance to someone who did not work for it. This also is futile and a great misfortune.
For all his days, his work is pain and grief. Even at night his mind does not rest. This also is futility.
When goods increase, so do those who consume them. So what advantage are they to the owner except he sees it with his eyes?
A lover of money never has enough money, and a lover of wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is futile.
Woe to those who join house to house and merge field to field, until there is no room, and you will live alone in the midst of the land!
Why do you spend money for what is not bread? Your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.
Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
But God said to him, ‘You fool! Tonight your soul is being demanded back from you! And what you have prepared, whose will that be?’
For everything in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and the boasting of life—is not from the Father but from the world.