Ecclesiastes 5:8

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

The benefit of the land is for everyone; even a king depends on the field being cultivated.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וְיִתְר֥וֹן אֶ֖רֶץ בַּכֹּ֣ל *היא **ה֑וּא מֶ֥לֶךְ לְשָׂדֶ֖ה נֶעֱבָֽד׃

Transliteration

And yiṯrôn ʾereṣ in bakkōl hûʾ, meleḵ to śāḏeh neʿĕḇāḏ

Grammar Details

• *yiṯrôn*: noun, masculine singular construct - advantage/profit of
• *ʾereṣ*: noun, feminine singular - land/earth/ground
• *bakkōl*: preposition + definite article + noun, masculine singular - in the all/everything
• *hûʾ*: 3rd person masculine singular pronoun - he/it
• *meleḵ*: noun, masculine singular - king
• *śāḏeh*: noun, masculine singular - field
• *neʿĕḇāḏ*: niphal participle, masculine singular - being served/cultivated/worked

Word Meanings

• *yiṯrôn*: profit/advantage/excess/excellency
• *ʾereṣ*: land/earth/ground/territory/country
• *neʿĕḇāḏ*: being served/worked/cultivated/tilled
• *hûʾ*: he/it (text shows alternate reading between masculine and feminine forms)

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  If you see the oppression of the poor and the violent perversion of judgment and justice in a province, do not marvel at the matter; for He who is higher than the highest regards, and there are higher than they.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  If thou seest{H7200} the oppression{H6233} of the poor,{H7326} and the violent{H1499} taking away of justice{H6664} and righteousness{H4941} in a province,{H4082} marvel{H8539} not at the matter:{H2656} for one higher{H1364} than the high{H1364} regardeth;{H8104} and there are higher{H1364} than they.{H5921}

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  If thou seest{H7200}{(H8799)} the oppression{H6233} of the poor{H7326}{(H8802)}, and violent{H1499} perverting of judgment{H4941} and justice{H6664} in a province{H4082}, marvel{H8539}{(H8799)} not at the matter{H2656}: for he that is higher{H1364} than the highest{H1364} regardeth{H8104}{(H8802)}; and there be higher{H1364} than they{H5921}.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  Yf thou seyst the poore to be oppressed and wrongeously dealt withall, so yt equite & the right of the lawe is wraisted in the londe: maruell not thou at soch iudgmet, for one greate ma kepeth touch with another, and the mightie helpe the selues together.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  (5:7) If in a countrey thou seest the oppression of the poore, and the defrauding of iudgement and iustice, be not astonied at the matter: for hee that is higher then the highest, regardeth, and there be higher then they.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  If thou seest the poore to be oppressed, and wrongfully dealt withall, so that equitie and right of the lawe is wrested in the lande, maruayle not thou at such a thyng: for he that is higher then the hyghest regardeth, and there be hygher then they.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for [he that is] higher than the highest regardeth; and [there be] higher than they.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don't marvel at the matter: for one official is eyed by a higher one; and there are officials over them.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  If oppression of the poor, and violent taking away of judgment and righteousness thou seest in a province, do not marvel at the matter, for a higher than the high is observing, and high ones `are' over them.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a province, marvel not at the matter: for one higher than the high regardeth; and there are higher than they.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a province, marvel not at the matter: for one higher than the high regardeth; and there are higher than they.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  It is good generally for a country where the land is worked to have a king.

• World English Bible (2000)

  If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don't marvel at the matter: for one official is eyed by a higher one; and there are officials over them.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  Government Corruption If you see the extortion of the poor, or the perversion of justice and fairness in the government, do not be astonished by the matter. For the high official is watched by a higher official, and there are higher ones over them!

Referenced Verses

• Ps 12:5 : 5 Those who say, 'By our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own—who is lord over us?'
• Eccl 3:16 : 16 And I saw under the sun, in the place of judgment, wickedness was there, and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there as well.
• Eccl 4:1 : 1 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that is done under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter. Power was on the side of their oppressors, and they had no comforter.
• Ps 82:1 : 1 God stands in the divine assembly; He judges among the gods.
• Ps 83:18 : 18 Let them be ashamed and dismayed forever; let them be disgraced and perish.
• Ps 95:3 : 3 For the LORD is a great God and a great King above all gods.
• Ps 140:11-12 : 11 May burning coals fall upon them; may they be thrown into the fire, into deep pits, never to rise again. 12 May slanderers not be established in the land; may evil hunt down violent men to their destruction.
• Prov 8:17 : 17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me.
• 1 Kgs 21:19-20 : 19 Speak to him and say, “Thus says the LORD: Have you murdered and also taken possession?” Then say to him, “Thus says the LORD: In the place where the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, the dogs will also lick up your blood—yes, yours.”' 20 Ahab said to Elijah, 'So, have you found me, my enemy?' 'I have found you,' he answered, 'because you have devoted yourself to doing evil in the eyes of the LORD.'
• 1 Chr 21:15-16 : 15 God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. But as the angel was about to destroy, the LORD saw, relented of the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, "Enough! Withdraw your hand now." The angel of the LORD was then standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 16 David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.
• Job 20:19-29 : 19 For he has crushed and abandoned the poor; he has seized a house he did not build. 20 Because he knew no peace in his heart, he will not retain any of his treasures. 21 Nothing is left for him to consume; therefore, his prosperity will not last. 22 In the fullness of his plenty, he will be distressed; the hand of all who toil will come upon him. 23 When he is about to fill his stomach, God will unleash his burning anger against him and rain it upon him while he eats. 24 Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze arrow will pierce him. 25 It is drawn out and comes forth from his body; the glittering point comes out of his gallbladder; terrors come over him. 26 Total darkness is hidden for his treasures; a fire not kindled by man will consume him and devour what remains in his tent. 27 The heavens will expose his guilt, and the earth will rise up against him. 28 The produce of his house will be carried away, flowing away on the day of God's wrath. 29 This is the portion of a wicked man from God, the inheritance decreed for him by the Almighty.
• Job 27:8-9 : 8 For what hope has the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life? 9 Will God listen to his cry when distress comes upon him? 10 Does he delight in the Almighty and call upon God at all times? 11 I will teach you about God's power; I will not conceal what is with the Almighty. 12 Look, all of you have seen this yourselves; why then do you speak nonsense? 13 This is the portion allocated by God to a wicked man, the inheritance ruthless men will receive from the Almighty: 14 If his children multiply, it is for the sword, and his offspring will not have enough bread. 15 His survivors will be buried in death, and his widows will not weep for them. 16 Though he heaps up silver like dust and piles up clothes like clay, 17 he may prepare it, but the righteous will wear it, and the innocent will divide his silver. 18 He builds his house like a moth’s cocoon, like a hut made by a watchman. 19 The rich man lies down, but he will not be gathered; he opens his eyes, and he is no more. 20 Terrors overtake him like a flood; in the night a storm sweeps him away. 21 The east wind lifts him up, and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place. 22 It hurls itself against him without mercy; he flees desperately from its power. 23 It claps its hands at him and hisses at him as he is driven away from his place.
• Ps 10:17-18 : 17 Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts and listen with Your ear. 18 To vindicate the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man, who is of the earth, will no longer terrorize.
• Ps 55:9 : 9 I would hurry to a place of refuge, away from the stormy wind and tempest.
• Ps 58:10-11 : 10 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns—whether green or burning—he will sweep them away. 11 The righteous will rejoice when they see vengeance; they will bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
• Isa 3:15 : 15 'Why do you crush My people and grind the faces of the poor?' declares the Lord, the LORD of Hosts.
• Isa 5:7 : 7 For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are the planting of His delight. He expected justice but saw bloodshed; He expected righteousness but heard cries of distress.
• Isa 10:5-7 : 5 Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger, in whose hands is the staff of My indignation! 6 I send him against a godless nation; I dispatch him against a people at My wrath, to seize plunder, to take spoil, and to trample them down like mud in the streets. 7 But this is not what he intends, nor does he plan it in his heart. Instead, his purpose is to destroy and to cut off many nations.
• Isa 10:12 : 12 When the Lord has finished all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, He will punish the pride of the king of Assyria's heart and the glory of his haughty eyes.
• Isa 37:36 : 36 Then the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning, there were all the dead bodies.
• Isa 46:10-11 : 10 I declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will accomplish all that I desire.' 11 I call a bird of prey from the east, a man to fulfill My purpose from a distant land. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, and I will make it happen.
• Isa 57:15 : 15 For this is what the high and exalted One says—he who lives forever, whose name is holy: 'I dwell in a high and holy place, but also with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.'
• Isa 59:13-16 : 13 We have rebelled and denied the LORD; we have turned away from following our God. We speak of oppression and revolt, conceiving lies and uttering them from the heart. 14 Justice is driven back, and righteousness stands far off, for truth has stumbled in the streets, and honesty cannot enter. 15 Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The LORD saw this and was displeased, for there was no justice. 16 He saw that there was no one; He was appalled that there was no intercessor. So His own arm brought salvation, and His righteousness sustained Him.
• Jer 22:17-19 : 17 But your eyes and heart are set only on your dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood, and on oppression and violence. 18 Therefore this is what the LORD says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah: They will not mourn for him, saying, 'Alas, my brother!' or 'Alas, my sister!' They will not mourn for him, saying, 'Alas, my lord!' or 'Alas, his majesty!' 19 He will have the burial of a donkey—dragged away and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.
• Ezek 22:6-9 : 6 See, the princes of Israel, each one by his own might, have been in you to shed blood. 7 Within you, they have treated father and mother with contempt; they have oppressed the foreigner in your midst; they have wronged the orphan and the widow. 8 You have despised my holy things and profaned my Sabbaths. 9 The men in you who slander for the purpose of shedding blood eat at the high places; they commit lewdness in your midst. 10 In you, they have dishonored their fathers' nakedness; they have violated women during their impurity. 11 One man commits an abomination with his neighbor’s wife, another defiles his daughter-in-law with wickedness, and another violates his sister, his father’s daughter. 12 In you, they accept bribes to shed blood; they take interest and increase unlawfully. You have gained profit in extorting your neighbors, and you have forgotten me, declares the Sovereign LORD. 13 See, I will strike my hands together in anger at the dishonest gain you have made and the bloodshed that has been done in your midst. 14 Will your heart stand firm? Will your hands be strong when I deal with you? I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it.
• Amos 5:12 : 12 For I know your many transgressions and your mighty sins: oppressing the righteous, taking bribes, and turning aside the needy at the gate.
• Amos 6:2-6 : 2 Go to Calneh and look, then go from there to great Hamath, and go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are they better than these kingdoms? Is their territory greater than yours? 3 You push away the day of disaster and bring near a reign of violence. 4 You lie on beds inlaid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs from the flock and fattened calves from the stall. 5 You strum away on your harps like David and fashion instruments for music. 6 You drink wine by the bowlful and anoint yourselves with the finest oils, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.
• Amos 6:12 : 12 Do horses run on rocky cliffs? Does one plow there with oxen? Yet you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness.
• Amos 8:4-7 : 4 Hear this, you who trample on the needy and seek to destroy the poor of the land, 5 saying, 'When will the new moon be over, so we may sell grain, and the Sabbath end, so we may market wheat, making the ephah small and the shekel large, and falsifying the scales with deceit? 6 Buying the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, even selling the sweepings of the wheat.' 7 The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob: 'Surely I will never forget all their deeds.'
• Mic 2:1-3 : 1 Woe to those who devise wickedness and plan evil on their beds! At dawn, they carry it out because they have the power to do it. 2 They covet fields and seize them; they take houses and rob them. They oppress a man and his house, a person and their inheritance. 3 Therefore, this is what the LORD says: 'I am planning disaster against this family, from which you cannot free your necks, nor will you walk proudly, for it will be a time of calamity.'
• Mic 2:9 : 9 You drive the women of my people out of their pleasant homes. You take away my splendor from their children forever.
• Mic 3:1-4 : 1 Then I said: "Hear now, leaders of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel: Is it not your responsibility to know justice? 2 You who hate good and love evil; you tear the skin from my people and the flesh from their bones. 3 You eat the flesh of my people, strip off their skin, break their bones, and chop them up like meat for the pot, like flesh in a cauldron. 4 Then they will cry out to the LORD, but He will not answer them. He will hide His face from them at that time because of the evil they have done.
• Mic 3:9-9 : 9 Hear this, leaders of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, you who despise justice and twist all that is right: 10 You build Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity. 11 Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets practice divination for silver. Yet they lean on the LORD, saying, 'Is not the LORD among us? No disaster will come upon us.' 12 Therefore because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the temple will become a high place overgrown with thickets.
• Mic 6:10-13 : 10 Are there still treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and dishonest measures that are detestable? 11 Shall I acquit a person with crooked scales and a bag of deceptive weights? 12 Her rich men are full of violence; her inhabitants speak lies, and their tongues are deceitful in their mouths. 13 Therefore, I have begun to strike you and make you desolate because of your sins.
• Hab 1:2-3 : 2 How long, LORD, must I call for help and You do not listen? I cry out to You, 'Violence!' but You do not save. 3 Why do You make me see wrongdoing and observe trouble? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.
• Hab 1:12-13 : 12 Are You not from eternity, LORD my God, my Holy One? We will not die. LORD, You have appointed them for judgment; You, O Rock, have established them to rebuke. 13 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the treacherous? Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
• Zech 7:9-9 : 9 Thus says the LORD of Hosts: 'Administer true justice. Show kindness and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.' 11 But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder. They stopped their ears so they would not hear. 12 They made their hearts as hard as flint, refusing to hear the law and the words that the LORD of Hosts had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. Therefore, great wrath came from the LORD of Hosts. 13 'Just as I called, and they did not listen, so when they call, I will not listen,' says the LORD of Hosts.
• Zech 8:6 : 6 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: If this seems incredible to the remnant of this people in those days, will it also seem incredible to me? declares the LORD of Hosts.
• Mal 3:5 : 5 I will come near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, adulterers, and those who swear falsely; against those who defraud workers of their wages, oppress widows and orphans, and deprive foreigners of justice. They do not fear me, says the Lord of Hosts.
• Matt 13:41-42 : 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom all things that cause sin and all who practice lawlessness. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
• Luke 1:32 : 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
• Luke 1:35 : 35 The angel replied to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.'
• Luke 1:76 : 76 And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways,
• Acts 4:27-28 : 27 'Indeed, in this city, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.' 28 'They did what your hand and will had predestined to take place.'
• Acts 12:7-9 : 7 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell. Striking Peter on the side to wake him, the angel said, 'Get up quickly.' Immediately, the chains fell off Peter's hands. 8 The angel said to him, 'Get dressed and put on your sandals.' Peter did so. Then the angel said, 'Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.' 9 Peter followed him out, but he did not realize that what was happening through the angel was real; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate leading to the city, which opened for them by itself. They went out and walked one street, and immediately the angel left him.
• Acts 12:23 : 23 Immediately, an angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give glory to God. He was eaten by worms and died.
• Rom 11:33 : 33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments and His ways beyond tracing out!
• Jas 2:13 : 13 For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
• Jas 5:2-7 : 2 Your wealth has rotted, and your clothes have become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will serve as a testimony against you and will consume your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. 4 Look, the wages that you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts. 5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and indulged yourselves. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person, who does not resist you. 7 Therefore, be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient for it until it receives the early and late rains.
• 1 Pet 4:12 : 12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
• 1 John 3:13 : 13 Do not be surprised, brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
• Rev 17:6-7 : 6 I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her, I was utterly amazed. 7 Then the angel said to me, 'Why are you amazed? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast with the seven heads and ten horns that carries her.'