Ecclesiastes 2:11
BSB · Public Domain (CC0)“Yet 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.”
A short, plain-language explanation of Ecclesiastes 2:11 goes here — the kind of answer a reader (or an AI assistant) can quote in one breath. Original meaning coming soon.
“Yet 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.”
Berean Standard Bible · Public Domain (CC0)“Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.”
King James Version · Public Domain“Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun.”
American Standard Version · Public Domain“and I have looked on all my works that my hands have done, and on the labour that I have laboured to do, and lo, the whole <FI>is<Fi> vanity and vexation of spirit, and there is no advantage under the sun!”
Young's Literal Translation · Public DomainOther passages that echo Ecclesiastes 2:11 — 11 related verses from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Genesis 1:31And God looked upon all that He had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
- Exodus 39:43And Moses inspected all the work and saw that they had accomplished it just as the LORD had commanded. So Moses blessed them.
- Ecclesiastes 1:3What does a man gain from all his labor, at which he toils under the sun?
- 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.
- Ecclesiastes 1:17So I set my mind to know wisdom and madness and folly; I learned that this, too, is a pursuit of the wind.
- 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.
- Ecclesiastes 2:19And who knows whether that man will be wise or foolish? Yet he will take over all the labor at which I have worked skillfully under the sun. This too is futile.
- Ecclesiastes 2:22For what does a man get for all the toil and striving with which he labors under the sun?
- Habakkuk 2:13Is it not indeed from the LORD of Hosts that the labor of the people only feeds the fire, and the nations weary themselves in vain?
- 1 Timothy 6:6Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain.
- 1 John 2:16For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world.
Cross-reference data: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain) via OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).