Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. New Living Translation I also tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards. English Standard Version I made great works. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. Berean Standard Bible I expanded my pursuits. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. King James Bible I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards: New King James Version I made my works great, I built myself houses, and planted myself vineyards. New American Standard Bible I enlarged my works: I built houses for myself, I planted vineyards for myself; NASB 1995 I enlarged my works: I built houses for myself, I planted vineyards for myself; NASB 1977 I enlarged my works: I built houses for myself, I planted vineyards for myself; Legacy Standard Bible I made my works great: I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself; Amplified Bible I made great works: I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself; Christian Standard Bible I increased my achievements. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. Holman Christian Standard Bible I increased my achievements. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. American Standard Version I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; Contemporary English Version I did some great things. I built houses and planted vineyards. English Revised Version I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; GOD'S WORD® Translation I accomplished some great things: I built houses for myself. I planted vineyards for myself. Good News Translation I accomplished great things. I built myself houses and planted vineyards. International Standard Version With respect to my extravagant works, I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself. Majority Standard Bible I expanded my pursuits. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. NET Bible I increased my possessions: I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself. New Heart English Bible I made myself great works. I built myself houses. I planted myself vineyards. Webster's Bible Translation I made me great works; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards: World English Bible I made myself great works. I built myself houses. I planted myself vineyards. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionI made great my works, I built for myself houses, I planted for myself vineyards. Young's Literal Translation I made great my works, I builded for me houses, I planted for me vineyards. Smith's Literal Translation I magnified my work; I builded to me houses; I planted to me vineyards: Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleI made me great works, I built me houses, and planted vineyards, Catholic Public Domain Version I magnified my works. I built houses for myself, and I planted vineyards. New American Bible I undertook great works; I built myself houses and planted vineyards; New Revised Standard Version I made great works; I built houses and planted vineyards for myself; Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleI multiplied my servants; I built myself houses; I planted vineyards for myself: Peshitta Holy Bible Translated I multiplied Servants for myself, I built houses for myself , I planted for myself vineyards OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; Brenton Septuagint Translation I enlarged my work; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Futility of Pleasure…3I sought to cheer my body with wine and to embrace folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom—until I could see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives. 4I expanded my pursuits. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. 5I made gardens and parks for myself, where I planted all kinds of fruit trees.… Cross References 1 Kings 7:1-12 Solomon, however, took thirteen years to complete the construction of his entire palace. / He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon a hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high, with four rows of cedar pillars supporting the cedar beams. / The house was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the pillars—forty-five beams, fifteen per row. ... 1 Kings 9:15-19 This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon imposed to build the house of the LORD, his own palace, the supporting terraces, and the wall of Jerusalem, as well as Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer. / Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and given it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. / So Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon, ... 2 Chronicles 8:1-6 Now at the end of the twenty years during which Solomon had built the house of the LORD and his own palace, / Solomon rebuilt the cities Hiram had given him and settled Israelites there. / Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it. ... Nehemiah 2:8 And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house I will occupy.” And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests. Psalm 127:1 A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain. Isaiah 5:8-10 Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land. / I heard the LORD of Hosts declare: “Surely many houses will become desolate, great mansions left unoccupied. / For ten acres of vineyard will yield but a bath of wine, and a homer of seed only an ephah of grain.” Jeremiah 22:14 who says, ‘I will build myself a great palace, with spacious upper rooms.’ So he cuts windows in it, panels it with cedar, and paints it with vermilion. Haggai 1:4-9 “Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?” / Now this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Consider carefully your ways. / You have planted much but harvested little. You eat but never have enough. You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes but never get warm. You earn wages to put into a bag pierced through.” ... Luke 12:16-21 Then He told them a parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced an abundance. / So he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have nowhere to store my crops?’ / Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and will build bigger ones, and there I will store up all my grain and my goods. ... Matthew 6:19-21 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. / But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. / For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 16:26 What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? Mark 8:36 What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Luke 9:25 What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, yet lose or forfeit his very self? Luke 16:19-31 Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor. / And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores / and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. ... 1 Timothy 6:9-10 Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. / For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. Treasury of Scripture I made me great works; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards: made Genesis 11:4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 2 Samuel 18:18 Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself a pillar, which is in the king's dale: for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance: and he called the pillar after his own name: and it is called unto this day, Absalom's place. Daniel 4:30 The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? I builded Deuteronomy 8:12-14 Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; … 1 Kings 7:1,2,8-12 But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house… 1 Kings 9:1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, i planted 1 Chronicles 27:27 And over the vineyards was Shimei the Ramathite: over the increase of the vineyards for the wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite: 2 Chronicles 26:10 Also he built towers in the desert, and digged many wells: for he had much cattle, both in the low country, and in the plains: husbandmen also, and vine dressers in the mountains, and in Carmel: for he loved husbandry. Song of Solomon 1:14 My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of Engedi. Jump to Previous Builded Building Built Enlarged Great Houses Planted Planting Projects Undertook Vine-Gardens Vineyards WorksJump to Next Builded Building Built Enlarged Great Houses Planted Planting Projects Undertook Vine-Gardens Vineyards WorksEcclesiastes 2 1. the vanity of human courses is the work of pleasure12. Though the wise be better than the fool, yet both have one event 18. The vanity of human labor, in leaving it they know not to whom 24. Nothing better than joy in our labor but that is God's gift I enlarged my works The phrase "I enlarged my works" reflects the Hebrew root "gadal," which means to grow, become great, or magnify. In the context of Ecclesiastes, this phrase signifies Solomon's pursuit of greatness through his own efforts and achievements. Historically, Solomon was known for his grand projects, including the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. This pursuit of enlarging one's works can be seen as a metaphor for human ambition and the desire to leave a lasting legacy. From a conservative Christian perspective, this can serve as a reminder of the futility of seeking fulfillment solely through earthly accomplishments, as true satisfaction is found in God. I built houses for myself and planted vineyards Vineyards.--1Chronicles 27:27; Song of Solomon 8:11. Verse 4. - This commences a new experience in the pursuit of his object. Leaving this life of self-indulgence, he takes to art and culture, the details being drawn from the accounts of the historical Solomon. I made me great works; literally, I made great my works; Septuagint, Ἐμεγάλυνα ποίημά per; Vulgate, Magnificavi opera mea. Among these works the temple, with all its wonderful structural preparations, is not specially mentioned, perhaps because no one could think of Solomon without connecting his name with this magnificent building, and it was superfluous to call attention to it; or else because the religious aspect of his operations is not here in question, but only his taste and pursuit of beauty. But the omission tells strongly against the Solomonic authorship of the book. I builded me houses. Solomon had a passion for erecting magnificent buildings. We have various accounts of his works of this nature in 1 Kings 7. and 9; 2 Chronicles 8. There was the huge palace for himself, which occupied thirteen years in building; there was the "house of the forest of Lebanon," a splendid hall constructed with pillars of cedar; the porch of pillars; the hall of judgment; the harem for the daughter of Pharaoh. Then there were fortresses, store-cities, chariot-towns, national works of great importance; cities in distant lands which he founded, such as Tadmor in the wilderness. I planted me vineyards. David had vineyards and olive yards (1 Chronicles 27:27, 28), which passed into the possession of his son; and we read in Song of Solomon 8:11 of a vineyard that Solomon had in Baal-hamon, which some identify with Belamon (Judith 8:3), a place near Shunem, in the Plain of Esdraelon.Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew I enlargedהִגְדַּ֖לְתִּי (hiḡ·dal·tî) Verb - Hifil - Perfect - first person common singular Strong's 1431: To grow up, become great my works. מַעֲשָׂ֑י (ma·‘ă·śāy) Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property I built בָּנִ֤יתִי (bā·nî·ṯî) Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular Strong's 1129: To build myself לִי֙ (lî) Preposition | first person common singular Strong's Hebrew houses בָּתִּ֔ים (bāt·tîm) Noun - masculine plural Strong's 1004: A house and planted נָטַ֥עְתִּי (nā·ṭa‘·tî) Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular Strong's 5193: To strike in, fix, to plant myself לִ֖י (lî) Preposition | first person common singular Strong's Hebrew vineyards. כְּרָמִֽים׃ (kə·rā·mîm) Noun - masculine plural Strong's 3754: A garden, vineyard Links Ecclesiastes 2:4 NIVEcclesiastes 2:4 NLT Ecclesiastes 2:4 ESV Ecclesiastes 2:4 NASB Ecclesiastes 2:4 KJV Ecclesiastes 2:4 BibleApps.com Ecclesiastes 2:4 Biblia Paralela Ecclesiastes 2:4 Chinese Bible Ecclesiastes 2:4 French Bible Ecclesiastes 2:4 Catholic Bible OT Poetry: Ecclesiastes 2:4 I made myself great works (Ecclesiast. Ec Ecc Eccles.) |
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