ECCLESIASTES 2:24

KING JAMES VERSION (KJV)

TRANSLATION, MEANING, CONTEXT

To get what Ecclesiastes 2:24 means based on its source text, scroll down or follow these links for the original scriptural meaning , biblical context and relative popularity.

There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.”

High popularity: 320 searches a month
Popularity relative to other verses in Ecclesiastes chapter 2 using average monthly Google searches.

Ecclesiastes 2:24 Translation & Meaning

What does this verse really mean? Use this table to get a word-for-word translation of the original Hebrew Scripture. This shows the English words related to the source biblical texts along with brief definitions. Follow the buttons in the right-hand column for detailed definitions and verses that use the same root words. Use this reference information to gain deeper insight into the Bible and enrich your understanding. Information based on Strong's Exhaustive Concordance[1].

KJV Verse Original Hebrew Meaning/ Definition
This is a simplified translation of the original Hebrew word. Follow the buttons on the right to get more detail.
More 
Use the buttons below to get details on the Hebrew word and view related Bible verses that use the same root word.
There is (No Hebrew definition. English implied.)
nothing אֵֽין A nonentity; generally used as a negative particle nothing
better ט֤וֹב Good (as an adjective) in the widest sense; used likewise as a noun, both in the masculine and the feminine, the singular and the plural (good, a good or good thing, a good man or woman; the good, goods or good things, good men or women), also as an adverb (well) better
for a man, בָּאָדָם֙ Ruddy i.e., a human being (an individual or the species, mankind, etc.) man
than (No Hebrew definition. English implied.)
that he should eat שֶׁיֹּאכַ֣ל To eat (literally or figuratively) should eat
and drink, וְשָׁתָ֔ה To imbibe (literally or figuratively) drink
and he should make his soul נַפְשׁ֛וֹ Properly, a breathing creature, i.e., animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental) should make soul
that (No Hebrew definition. English implied.)
enjoy וְהֶרְאָ֧ה To go (causatively, bring) out, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively, direct and proxim enjoy
good ט֖וֹב Good (as an adjective) in the widest sense; used likewise as a noun, both in the masculine and the feminine, the singular and the plural (good, a good or good thing, a good man or woman; the good, goods or good things, good men or women), also as an adverb (well) good
in his labour. בַּעֲמָל֑וֹ Toil, i.e., wearing effort; hence, worry, whether of body or mind labour
This זֹה֙ This or that This
also גַּם Properly, assemblage; used only adverbially also, even, yea, though; often repeated as correl. both...and also
I אָ֔נִי I I
saw, רָאִ֣יתִי To see, literally or figuratively (in numerous applications, direct and implied, transitive, intransitive and causative) saw
that כִּ֛י (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by other particles annexed that
it הִֽיא׃ He (she or it); only expressed when emphatic or without a verb; also (intensively) self, or (especially with the article) the same; sometimes (as demonstrative) this or that; occasionally (instead of copula) as or are it
was (No Hebrew definition. English implied.)
from the hand מִיַּ֥ד A hand (the open one [indicating power, means, direction, etc.], in distinction from H3709, the closed one); used (as noun, adverb, etc.) in a great variety of applications, both literally and figuratively, both proximate and remote [as follows] hand
of God. הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים Gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative God

Verse Context

See Ecclesiastes 2:24 with its adjacent verses in bold below. Follow either of the two large buttons below to see these verses in their broader context of the King James Bible or a Bible concordance.

Very High
Verse Search Popularity Levels What do people search for?

Use the scale on the left to tell how often the verses below are googled compared to each other.

High
Medium
Low
Very Low
  • 22  For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun?

  • 23  For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity.

  • 24  There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.

  • 25  For who can eat, or who else can hasten hereunto, more than I?

  • 26  For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.




Sources:

The King James Bible (1611) and Strong's Concordance (1890) with Hebrew and Greek dictionaries are sourced from the BibleForgeDB database (https://github.com/bibleforge) within the BibleForge project (http://bibleforge.com). Popularity rankings are based on search volume data from the Google AdWords Keyword Planner tool.


Share This Page:


Popular Bible Topics What does the Bible say about...?

Most Searched Bible Verses
Translations, Meanings, Complete Red Letter Bible
Words of God in dark red
Words of Jesus in light red