Parallel Verses

New American Standard Bible

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is vanity.

King James Version

And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

Holman Bible

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will take over all my work that I labored at skillfully under the sun. This too is futile.

International Standard Version

And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Either way, he will take possession of everything that I have done on earth, especially where I have excelled. This also is pointless.

A Conservative Version

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

American Standard Version

And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have rule over all my labor wherein I have labored, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

Amplified

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is vanity (futility, self-conceit).

Bible in Basic English

And who is to say if that man will be wise or foolish? But he will have power over all my work which I have done and in which I have been wise under the sun. This again is to no purpose.

Darby Translation

And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour at which I have laboured, and wherein I have been wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

Julia Smith Translation

And who shall know whether he shall be wise or foolish? And he shall have dominion over all my labor which I labored, and was wise under the sun. Also this is vanity.

King James 2000

And who knows whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

Lexham Expanded Bible

And who knows [whether] he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will exercise control of all [the fruit of] my toil with which I toiled wisely under the sun. This also [is] vanity!

Modern King James verseion

And who knows whether he shall be wise or a fool? Yet he shall have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and acted wisely under the sun. This is also vanity.

Modern Spelling Tyndale-Coverdale

For who knoweth, whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? And yet shall he be lord of all my labours, which I with such wisdom have taken under the Sun. Is not this a vain thing?

NET Bible

Who knows if he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so wisely on earth! This also is futile!

New Heart English Bible

Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

The Emphasized Bible

and who could know whether a, wise man, he would be or a foolish, and yet he would lord it over all my toil, wherein I had toiled and wherein I had acted wisely, under the sun, - even this, was vanity.

Webster

And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

World English Bible

Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.

Youngs Literal Translation

And 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.

Interlinear

English(KJV)
Strong's
Root Form
Definition
Usage
whether he shall be a wise
חכם 
Chakam 
Usage: 137

man or a fool
סכל 
Cakal 
Usage: 7

שׁלט 
Shalat 
Usage: 8

עמל 
`amal 
Usage: 11

חכם 
Chakam 
Usage: 27

under the sun
שׁמשׁ 
Shemesh 
Usage: 134

References

Fausets

Context Readings

Is There Real Happiness In Life?

18 Thus I hated all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who will come after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is vanity. 20 Therefore I completely despaired of all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun.



Cross References

Ecclesiastes 3:22

I have seen that nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him?

1 Kings 12:14-20

and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.”

1 Kings 14:25-28

Now it happened in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, that Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 10:13-16

The king answered them harshly, and King Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the elders.

2 Chronicles 12:9-10

So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s palace. He took everything; he even took the golden shields which Solomon had made.

Ecclesiastes 9:13

Also this I came to see as wisdom under the sun, and it impressed me.

Luke 16:8

And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light.

James 1:17

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

James 3:17

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.

King James Version Public Domain

Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers.

International Standard Version Copyright © 1996-2008 by the ISV Foundation.

New American Standard Bible Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org

American Standard Version Public Domain

NET Bible copyright © 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. NetBible

Basic English, produced by Mr C. K. Ogden of the Orthological Institute - public domain