Ecclesiastes 9:10

American Standard Version (1901)

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do [it] with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

כֹּ֠ל אֲשֶׁ֨ר תִּמְצָ֧א יָֽדְךָ֛ לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת בְּכֹחֲךָ֖ עֲשֵׂ֑ה כִּי֩ אֵ֨ין מַעֲשֶׂ֤ה וְחֶשְׁבּוֹן֙ וְדַ֣עַת וְחָכְמָ֔ה בִּשְׁא֕וֹל אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתָּ֖ה הֹלֵ֥ךְ שָֽׁמָּה׃

Transliteration

All that timṣāʾ yādĕkā to-laʿăśôt in-kōḥăkā ʿăśēh; for not maʿăśeh and-ḥešbôn and-daʿat and-ḥokmâ in-šĕʾôl that you hōlēk there.

Grammar Details

• *timṣāʾ*: verb, qal imperfect, 2nd person masculine singular - you find
• *yādĕkā*: noun, feminine singular with 2nd person masculine singular suffix - your hand
• *laʿăśôt*: verb, qal infinitive construct with preposition - to do
• *kōḥăkā*: noun, masculine singular with 2nd person masculine singular suffix - your strength
• *ʿăśēh*: verb, qal imperative, masculine singular - do
• *maʿăśeh*: noun, masculine singular - work/deed
• *ḥešbôn*: noun, masculine singular - reckoning/account
• *daʿat*: noun, feminine singular - knowledge
• *ḥokmâ*: noun, feminine singular - wisdom
• *šĕʾôl*: noun, feminine singular - Sheol/grave
• *hōlēk*: verb, qal participle, masculine singular - going

Word Meanings

• *timṣāʾ yādĕkā*: your hand finds/you are able/you have opportunity
• *laʿăśôt*: to do/to perform/to accomplish
• *kōḥăkā*: your strength/your power/your ability
• *ʿăśēh*: do/perform/accomplish
• *maʿăśeh*: work/deed/activity/action
• *ḥešbôn*: reckoning/account/reasoning/planning
• *daʿat*: knowledge/understanding/perception
• *ḥokmâ*: wisdom/skill/intelligence
• *šĕʾôl*: Sheol/grave/realm of the dead
• *hōlēk šāmmâ*: going there/headed there

Referenced Verses

• Col 3:23 : 23 whatsoever ye do, work heartily, as unto the Lord, and not unto men;
• Rom 12:11 : 11 in diligence not slothful; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
• Eph 5:16 : 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
• Ps 6:5 : 5 For in death there is no remembrance of thee: In Sheol who shall give thee thanks?
• Ps 71:15-18 : 15 My mouth shall tell of thy righteousness, [And] of thy salvation all the day; For I know not the numbers [thereof] . 16 I will come with the mighty acts of the Lord Jehovah: I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only. 17 O God, thou hast taught me from my youth; And hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works. 18 Yea, even when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not, Until I have declared thy strength unto [the next] generation, Thy might to every one that is to come.
• Ps 88:10-12 : 10 Wilt thou show wonders to the dead? Shall they that are deceased arise and praise thee? {{Selah 11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or thy faithfulness in Destruction? 12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? And thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
• Eccl 9:5-6 : 5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. 6 As well their love, as their hatred and their envy, is perished long ago; neither have they any more a portion for ever in anything that is done under the sun.
• Eccl 11:3 : 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth; and if a tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there shall it be.
• Eccl 11:6 : 6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
• Isa 38:18-19 : 18 For Sheol cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate thee: They that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. 19 The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: The father to the children shall make known thy truth.
• Jer 29:13 : 13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
• Matt 6:33 : 33 But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
• John 4:34 : 34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to accomplish his work.
• John 9:4 : 4 We must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
• Acts 20:25-31 : 25 And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, shall see my face no more. 26 Wherefore I testify unto you this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. 27 For I shrank not from declaring unto you the whole counsel of God. 28 Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit hath made you bishops, to feed the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departing grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Wherefore watch ye, remembering that by the space of three years I ceased not to admonish every one night and day with tears.
• Num 13:30 : 30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
• 1 Chr 22:19 : 19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek after Jehovah your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of Jehovah God, to bring the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of Jehovah.
• 1 Chr 28:20 : 20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed; for Jehovah God, even my God, is with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until all the work for the service of the house of Jehovah be finished.
• 1 Chr 29:2-3 : 2 Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for the [things of] gold, and the silver for the [things of] silver, and the brass for the [things of] brass, the iron for the [things of] iron, and wood for the [things of] wood; onyx stones, and [stones] to be set, stones for inlaid work, and of divers colors, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance. [ 3 Moreover also, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, seeing that I have a treasure of mine own of gold and silver, I give it unto the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house,
• 2 Chr 31:20-21 : 20 And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah; and he wrought that which was good and right and faithful before Jehovah his God. 21 And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.
• Ezra 6:14-15 : 14 And the elders of the Jews builded and prospered, through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the decree of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 15 And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.
• Neh 2:12-3:16 : 12 And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God put into my heart to do for Jerusalem; neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon. 13 And I went out by night by the valley gate, even toward the jackal's well, and to the dung gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire. 14 Then I went on to the fountain gate and to the king's pool: but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass. 15 Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall; and I turned back, and entered by the valley gate, and so returned. 16 And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work. 17 Then said I unto them, Ye see the evil case that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach. 18 And I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me, as also of the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for the good [work] . 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? will ye rebel against the king? 20 Then answered I them, and said unto them, The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem. 1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it; even unto the tower of Hammeah they sanctified it, unto the tower of Hananel. 2 And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And next to them builded Zaccur the son of Imri. 3 And the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build; they laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the bolts thereof, and the bars thereof. 4 And next unto them repaired Meremoth the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz. And next unto them repaired Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel. And next unto them repaired Zadok the son of Baana. 5 And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their lord. 6 And the old gate repaired Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah; they laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, and the bolts thereof, and the bars thereof. 7 And next unto them repaired Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon, and of Mizpah, [that appertained] to the throne of the governor beyond the River. 8 Next unto him repaired Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, goldsmiths. And next unto him repaired Hananiah one of the perfumers, and they fortified Jerusalem even unto the broad wall. 9 And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the son of Hur, the ruler of half the district of Jerusalem. 10 And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the son of Harumaph, over against his house. And next unto him repaired Hattush the son of Hashabneiah. 11 Malchijah the son of Harim, and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab, repaired another portion, and the tower of the furnaces. 12 And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Hallohesh, the ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, he and his daughters. 13 The valley gate repaired Hanun, and the inhabitants of Zanoah; they built it, and set up the doors thereof, the bolts thereof, and the bars thereof, and a thousand cubits of the wall unto the dung gate. 14 And the dung gate repaired Malchijah the son of Rechab, the ruler of the district of Beth-haccherem; he built it, and set up the doors thereof, the bolts thereof, and the bars thereof. 15 And the fountain gate repaired Shallun the son of Col-hozeh, the ruler of the district of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the bolts thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Shelah by the king's garden, even unto the stairs that go down from the city of David. 16 After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, unto the place over against the sepulchres of David, and unto the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty men.
• Neh 4:2 : 2 And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What are these feeble Jews doing? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, seeing they are burned?
• Neh 4:6 : 6 So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto half [the height] thereof: for the people had a mind to work.
• Neh 4:9-9 : 9 But we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. 10 And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall. 11 And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come into the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. 12 And it came to pass that, when the Jews that dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times from all places, Ye must return unto us. 13 Therefore set I in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in the open places, I set [there] the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
• Neh 4:17-23 : 17 They all builded the wall and they that bare burdens laded themselves; every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other held his weapon; 18 and the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me. 19 And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another: 20 in what place soever ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us; our God will fight for us. 21 So we wrought in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared. 22 Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and may labor in the day. 23 So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard that followed me, none of us put off our clothes, every one [went with] his weapon [to] the water.
• Neh 13:8-9 : 8 And it grieved me sore: therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber. 9 Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers: and thither brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the meal-offerings and the frankincense. 10 And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them; so that the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field. 11 Then contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place. 12 Then brought all Judah the tithe of the grain and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries. 13 And I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah; for they were counted faithful, and their business was to distribute unto their brethren. 14 Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for the observances thereof. 15 In those days saw I in Judah some men treading wine-presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses [therewith] ; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified [against them] in the day wherein they sold victuals. 16 There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, who brought in fish, and all manner of wares, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. 17 Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? 18 Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. 19 And it came to pass that, when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut, and commanded that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I over the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. 20 So the merchants and sellers of all kind of wares lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. 21 Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath. 22 And I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember unto me, O my God, this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy lovingkindness. 23 In those days also saw I the Jews that had married women of Ashdod, of Ammon, [and] of Moab: 24 and their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews' language, but according to the language of each people. 25 And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, [saying], Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons, or for yourselves. 26 Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, and he was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did foreign women cause to sin. 27 Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to trespass against our God in marrying foreign women? 28 And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite: therefore I chased him from me. 29 Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood, and the covenant of the priesthood, and of the Levites. 30 Thus cleansed I them from all foreigners, and appointed charges for the priests and for the Levites, every one in his work; 31 and for the wood-offering, at times appointed, and for the first-fruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.
• Job 14:7-9 : 7 For there is hope of a tree, If it be cut down, that it will sprout again, And that the tender branch thereof will not cease. 8 Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, And the stock thereof die in the ground; 9 Yet through the scent of water it will bud, And put forth boughs like a plant. 10 But man dieth, and is laid low: Yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? 11 [ As] the waters fail from the sea, And the river wasteth and drieth up; 12 So man lieth down and riseth not: Till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, Nor be roused out of their sleep.
• 2 Pet 1:12-15 : 12 Wherefore I shall be ready always to put you in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and are established in the truth which is with [you] . 13 And I think it right, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; 14 knowing that the putting off of my tabernacle cometh swiftly, even as our Lord Jesus Christ signified unto me. 15 Yea, I will give diligence that at every time ye may be able after my decease to call these things to remembrance.
• Rom 15:18-20 : 18 For I will not dare to speak of any things save those which Christ wrought through me, for the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Holy Spirit; so that from Jerusalem, and round about even unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ; 20 yea, making it my aim so to preach the gospel, not where Christ was [already] named, that I might not build upon another man's foundation;
• 1 Cor 9:24 : 24 Know ye not that they that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run; that ye may attain.
• 1 Cor 9:26 : 26 I therefore so run, as not uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the air:
• 1 Cor 15:10 : 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not found vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
• 1 Cor 16:10 : 10 Now if Timothy come, see that he be with you without fear; for he worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do: