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Selected Verse: Ecclesiates 1:9 - King James
Verse |
Translation |
Text |
Ec 1:9 |
King James |
The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
Rather, "no new thing at all"; as in Num 11:6. This is not meant in a general sense; but there is no new source of happiness (the subject in question) which can be devised; the same round of petty pleasures, cares, business, study, wars, &c., being repeated over and over again [HOLDEN]. |
Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834] |
Hath been ... is done - i. e., Hath happened in the course of nature ... is done by man. |
Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78] |
"That which hath been is that which shall be, and that which is done is that which shall be done; and there is nothing new under the sun." - The older form of the language uses only אשׁר instead of מה־שּׁ, in the sense of id quod, and in the sense of quid-quid, אשׁר כל (Ecc 6:10; Ecc 7:24); but mǎh is also used by it with the extinct force of an interrogative, in the sense of quodcunque, Job 13:13, aliquid (quidquam), Gen 39:8; Pro 9:13; and mi or mi asher, in the sense of quisquis, Exo 24:14; Exo 32:33. In שׁ הוא (cf. Gen 42:14) are combined the meanings id (est) quod and idem (est) quod; hu is often the expression of the equality of two things, Job 3:19, or of self-sameness, Psa 102:28. The double clause, quod fuit ... quod factum est, comprehends that which is done in the world of nature and of men-the natural and the historical. The bold clause, neque est quidquam novi sub sole, challenges contradiction; the author feels this, as the next verse shows. |
Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65] |
There is - There is nothing in the world but a continued and tiresome repetition of the same things. The nature and course of the beings and affairs of the world, and the tempers of men, are the same that they ever were and shall ever be; and therefore, because no man ever yet received satisfaction from worldly things, it is vain for any person hereafter to expect it. No new thing - In the nature of things, which might give us hopes of attaining that satisfaction which hitherto things have not afforded. |
Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
The thing that hath been - Every thing in the whole economy of nature has its revolutions; summer and winter, heat and cold, rain and drought, seedtime and autumn, with the whole system of corruption and generation, alternately succeed each other, so that whatever has been shall be again. There is really, physically, and philosophically, nothing absolutely new under the sun, in the course of sublunary things. The same is the case in all the revolutions of the heavens. |
6 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.
28 The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee.
19 The small and great are there; and the servant is free from his master.
14 And Joseph said unto them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies:
33 And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.
14 And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them.
13 A foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing.
8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;
13 Hold your peace, let me alone, that I may speak, and let come on me what will.
24 That which is far off, and exceeding deep, who can find it out?
10 That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it is man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.