Ecclesiastes Chapter 3 verse 18 Holy Bible
I said in my heart, `It is' because of the sons of men, that God may prove them, and that they may see that they themselves are `but as' beasts.
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I said in my heart, It is because of the sons of men, so that God may put them to the test and that they may see themselves as beasts.
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I said in my heart, It is thus with the children of men, that God may prove them, and that they should see that they themselves are but beasts.
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I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.
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I said in my heart, "As for the sons of men, God tests them, so that they may see that they themselves are like animals.
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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.
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Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 18. - The comfort derived from the thought of the future judgment is clouded by the reflection that man is as powerless as the beast to control his destiny. Concerning the estate of the sons of men; rather, it happens on account of the sons of men. God allows events to take place, disorders to continue, etc., for the ultimate profit of men, though the idea that follows is humiliating and dispiriting. The LXX. has περὶ λαλιᾶς, "concerning the speech of the sons of men." So the Syriac. The word dibrah may indeed bear that meaning, as it is also used for "word" or "matter;" but we cannot conceive that the clause refers solely to words, and the expression in the text signifies merely "for the sake, on account of," as in Ecclesiastes 8:2. That God might manifest them; rather, that God might test them; Ut probaret eos Dens (Vulgate). God allows these things, endures them patiently, and does not at once redress them, for two reasons. The first of these is that they may serve for the probation of men, giving them opportunity of making good or bad use of them. We see the effect of this forbearance on the wicked in Ecclesiastes 8:11; it hardens them in impenitence; while it nourishes the faith of the righteous, and helps them to persevere (see Daniel 11:35 and Revelation 22:11). And that they might see that they themselves are beasts. The pronoun is repeated emphatically, "that they themselves are [like] beasts, they in themselves." This is the second reason. Thus they learn their own powerlessness, if they regard merely their own animal life; apart from their relation to God and hope of the future, they are no better than the lower creatures. Septuagint. "And to show (τοῦ δεῖξαι) that they are beasts." So the Vulgate and Syriac. The Masoretic reading adopted in the Anglican Version seems best.
