Ecclesiastes 2:1

Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

I said in my heart, `Pray, come, I try thee with mirth, and look thou on gladness;' and lo, even it `is' vanity.

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Luke 12:19 : 19 and I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast many good things laid up for many years, be resting, eat, drink, be merry.
  • Eccl 8:15 : 15 And I have praised mirth because there is no good to man under the sun except to eat and to drink, and to rejoice, and it remaineth with him of his labour the days of his life that God hath given to him under the sun.
  • Eccl 11:9 : 9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy childhood, And let thy heart gladden thee in days of thy youth, And walk in the ways of thy heart, And in the sight of thine eyes, And know thou that for all these, Doth God bring thee into judgment.
  • Isa 5:5 : 5 And now, pray, let me cause you to know, That which I am doing to my vineyard, To turn aside its hedge, And it hath been for consumption, To break down its wall, And it hath been for a treading-place.
  • Isa 50:5 : 5 The Lord Jehovah opened for me the ear, And I rebelled not -- backward I moved not.
  • Isa 50:11 : 11 Lo, all ye kindling a fire, girding on sparks, Walk ye in the light of your fire, And in the sparks ye have caused to burn, From my hand hath this been to you, In grief ye lie down!
  • Luke 16:19 : 19 `And -- a certain man was rich, and was clothed in purple and fine linen, making merry sumptuously every day,
  • Luke 16:23 : 23 and in the hades having lifted up his eyes, being in torments, he doth see Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom,
  • Titus 3:3 : 3 for we were once -- also we -- thoughtless, disobedient, led astray, serving desires and pleasures manifold, in malice and envy living, odious -- hating one another;
  • Jas 4:13 : 13 Go, now, ye who are saying, `To-day and to-morrow we will go on to such a city, and will pass there one year, and traffic, and make gain;'
  • Jas 5:1 : 1 Go, now, ye rich! weep, howling over your miseries that are coming upon `you';
  • Jas 5:5 : 5 ye did live in luxury upon the earth, and were wanton; ye did nourish your hearts, as in a day of slaughter;
  • Rev 18:7-8 : 7 `As much as she did glorify herself and did revel, so much torment and sorrow give to her, because in her heart she saith, I sit a queen, and a widow I am not, and sorrow I shall not see; 8 because of this, in one day, shall come her plagues, death, and sorrow, and famine; and in fire she shall be utterly burned, because strong `is' the Lord God who is judging her;
  • Gen 11:3-4 : 3 and they say each one to his neighbour, `Give help, let us make bricks, and burn `them' thoroughly:' and the brick is to them for stone, and the bitumen hath been to them for mortar. 4 And they say, `Give help, let us build for ourselves a city and tower, and its head in the heavens, and make for ourselves a name, lest we be scattered over the face of all the earth.'
  • Gen 11:7 : 7 Give help, let us go down, and mingle there their pronunciation, so that a man doth not understand the pronunciation of his companion.'
  • 2 Kgs 5:5 : 5 And the king of Aram saith, `Go thou, enter, and I send a letter unto the king of Israel;' and he goeth and taketh in his hand ten talents of silver, and six thousand `pieces' of gold, and ten changes of garments.
  • Ps 10:6 : 6 He hath said in his heart, `I am not moved,' To generation and generation not in evil.
  • Ps 14:1 : 1 To the Overseer. -- By David. A fool hath said in his heart, `God is not;' They have done corruptly, They have done abominable actions, There is not a doer of good.
  • Ps 27:8 : 8 To Thee said my heart `They sought my face, Thy face, O Jehovah, I seek.'
  • Ps 30:6-7 : 6 And I -- I have said in mine ease, `I am not moved -- to the age. 7 O Jehovah, in Thy good pleasure, Thou hast caused strength to remain for my mountain,' Thou hast hidden Thy face -- I have been troubled.
  • Eccl 1:16-17 : 16 I -- I spake with my heart, saying, `I, lo, I have magnified and added wisdom above every one who hath been before me at Jerusalem, and my heart hath seen abundantly wisdom and knowledge. 17 And I give my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I have known that even this `is' vexation of spirit;
  • Eccl 2:15 : 15 and I said in my heart, `As it happeneth with the fool, it happeneth also with me, and why am I then more wise?' And I spake in my heart, that also this `is' vanity:
  • Eccl 3:17-18 : 17 I said in my heart, `The righteous and the wicked doth God judge, for a time `is' to every matter and for every work there.' 18 I said in my heart concerning the matter of the sons of man that God might cleanse them, so as to see that they themselves `are' beasts.
  • Eccl 7:4 : 4 The heart of the wise `is' in a house of mourning, And the heart of fools in a house of mirth.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

  • Eccl 2:2-4
    3 verses
    87%

    2Of laughter I said, `Foolish!' and of mirth, `What `is' this it is doing?'

    3I have sought in my heart to draw out with wine my appetite, (and my heart leading in wisdom), and to take hold on folly till that I see where `is' this -- the good to the sons of man of that which they do under the heavens, the number of the days of their lives.

    4I made great my works, I builded for me houses, I planted for me vineyards.

  • Eccl 2:15
    83%

    15and I said in my heart, `As it happeneth with the fool, it happeneth also with me, and why am I then more wise?' And I spake in my heart, that also this `is' vanity:

  • Eccl 1:16-17
    2 verses
    81%

    16I -- I spake with my heart, saying, `I, lo, I have magnified and added wisdom above every one who hath been before me at Jerusalem, and my heart hath seen abundantly wisdom and knowledge.

    17And I give my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I have known that even this `is' vexation of spirit;

  • Eccl 2:8-13
    6 verses
    81%

    8I gathered for me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces. I prepared for me men-singers and women-singers, and the luxuries of the sons of man -- a wife and wives.

    9And I became great, and increased above every one who had been before me in Jerusalem; also, my wisdom stood with me.

    10And all that mine eyes asked I kept not back from them; I withheld not my heart from any joy, for my heart rejoiced because of all my labour, and this hath been my portion, from all my labour,

    11and 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 `is' vanity and vexation of spirit, and there is no advantage under the sun!

    12And I turned to see wisdom, and madness, and folly, but what `is' the man who cometh after the king? that which `is' already -- they have done it!

    13And I saw that there is an advantage to wisdom above folly, like the advantage of the light above the darkness.

  • Eccl 1:1-3
    3 verses
    80%

    1Words of a preacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:

    2Vanity of vanities, said the Preacher, Vanity of vanities: the whole `is' vanity.

    3What advantage `is' to man by all his labour that he laboureth at under the sun?

  • Eccl 8:14-16
    3 verses
    80%

    14There is a vanity that hath been done upon the earth, that there are righteous ones unto whom it is coming according to the work of the wicked, and there are wicked ones unto whom it is coming according to the work of the righteous. I have said that this also `is' vanity.

    15And I have praised mirth because there is no good to man under the sun except to eat and to drink, and to rejoice, and it remaineth with him of his labour the days of his life that God hath given to him under the sun.

    16When I gave my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that hath been done on the earth, (for there is also a spectator in whose eyes sleep is not by day and by night),

  • Eccl 2:19-26
    8 verses
    79%

    19And who knoweth whether he is wise or foolish? yet he doth rule over all my labour that I have laboured at, and that I have done wisely under the sun! this also `is' vanity.

    20And I turned round to cause my heart to despair concerning all the labour that I laboured at under the sun.

    21For there is a man whose labour `is' in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity, and to a man who hath not laboured therein he giveth it -- his portion! Even this `is' vanity and a great evil.

    22For what hath been to a man by all his labour, and by the thought of his heart that he laboured at under the sun?

    23For all his days are sorrows, and his travail sadness; even at night his heart hath not lain down; this also `is' vanity.

    24There is nothing good in a man who eateth, and hath drunk, and hath shewn his soul good in his labour. This also I have seen that it `is' from the hand of God.

    25For who eateth and who hasteth out more than I?

    26For to a man who `is' good before Him, He hath given wisdom, and knowledge, and joy; and to a sinner He hath given travail, to gather and to heap up, to give to the good before God. Even this `is' vanity and vexation of spirit.

  • Eccl 1:13-14
    2 verses
    79%

    13And I have given my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that hath been done under the heavens. It `is' a sad travail God hath given to the sons of man to be humbled by it.

    14I have seen all the works that have been done under the sun, and lo, the whole `is' vanity and vexation of spirit!

  • Eccl 3:12
    78%

    12I have known that there is no good for them except to rejoice and to do good during their life,

  • Eccl 7:25
    77%

    25I have turned round, also my heart, to know and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and reason, and to know the wrong of folly, and of foolishness the madness.

  • Eccl 3:22
    77%

    22And I have seen that there is nothing better than that man rejoice in his works, for it `is' his portion; for who doth bring him in to look on that which is after him?

  • Eccl 2:17
    77%

    17And I have hated life, for sad to me `is' the work that hath been done under the sun, for the whole `is' vanity and vexation of spirit.

  • Eccl 12:8
    77%

    8Vanity of vanities, said the preacher, the whole `is' vanity.

  • Eccl 11:8-10
    3 verses
    76%

    8But, if man liveth many years, In all of them let him rejoice, And remember the days of darkness, For they are many! all that is coming `is' vanity.

    9Rejoice, O young man, in thy childhood, And let thy heart gladden thee in days of thy youth, And walk in the ways of thy heart, And in the sight of thine eyes, And know thou that for all these, Doth God bring thee into judgment.

    10And turn aside anger from thy heart, And cause evil to pass from thy flesh, For the childhood and the age `are' vanity!

  • Eccl 4:7
    76%

    7And I have turned, and I see a vain thing under the sun:

  • Eccl 3:18
    76%

    18I said in my heart concerning the matter of the sons of man that God might cleanse them, so as to see that they themselves `are' beasts.

  • Eccl 9:9
    75%

    9See life with the wife whom thou hast loved, all the days of the life of thy vanity, that He hath given to thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity, for it `is' thy portion in life, even of thy labour that thou art labouring at under the sun.

  • Eccl 6:9
    74%

    9Better `is' the sight of the eyes than the going of the soul. This also `is' vanity and vexation of spirit.

  • Eccl 6:11
    74%

    11For there are many things multiplying vanity; what advantage `is' to man?

  • Prov 14:13
    73%

    13Even in laughter is the heart pained, And the latter end of joy `is' affliction.

  • Eccl 7:6
    73%

    6For as the noise of thorns under the pot, So `is' the laughter of a fool, even this `is' vanity.

  • Eccl 7:4
    73%

    4The heart of the wise `is' in a house of mourning, And the heart of fools in a house of mirth.

  • Eccl 4:4
    73%

    4And I have seen all the labour, and all the benefit of the work, because for it a man is the envy of his neighbour. Even this `is' vanity and vexation of spirit.

  • Eccl 8:10
    73%

    10And so I have seen the wicked buried, and they went in, even from the Holy Place they go, and they are forgotten in the city whether they had so done. This also `is' vanity.

  • Eccl 4:16
    72%

    16there is no end to all the people, to all who were before them; also, the latter rejoice not in him. Surely this also is vanity and vexation of spirit.

  • Eccl 5:18
    72%

    18Lo, that which I have seen: `It is' good, because beautiful, to eat, and to drink, and to see good in all one's labour that he laboureth at under the sun, the number of the days of his life that God hath given to him, for it `is' his portion.

  • Eccl 3:10
    72%

    10I have seen the travail that God hath given to the sons of man to be humbled by it.

  • Eccl 9:7
    72%

    7Go, eat with joy thy bread, and drink with a glad heart thy wine, for already hath God been pleased with thy works.