Ecclesiastes 3:14 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Ecclesiastes 3:14
I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him.
to know (properly · verb, qal perfect, 1st person common singular
God
הָאֱלֹהִים֙ha.'E.lo.Him
H430
gods in the ordinary sense · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
doeth
יַעֲשֶׂ֤הya.'a.Seh
H6213
to do or make · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
ever
לְעוֹלָ֔םle.'o.Lam
H5769
properly · preposition + noun, common masculine singular absolute
nothing
אֵ֣ין'ein
H369
a non-entity · noun, common masculine singular construct
put
לְהוֹסִ֔יףle.ho.Sif
H3254
to add or augment (often adverbial · preposition + verb, hiphil infinitive construct
taken
לִגְרֹ֑עַlig.Ro.a'
H1639
to scrape off · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
God
וְהָאֱלֹהִ֣יםve.ha.'E.lo.Him
H430
gods in the ordinary sense · conjunction + definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
doeth
עָשָׂ֔ה'a.Sah
H6213
to do or make · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
fear
שֶׁיִּֽרְא֖וּshei.yir.'U
H3372
to fear · relative particle + verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
before
מִלְּפָנָֽיוmi.le.fa.Nav
H6440
the face (as the part that turns) · preposition + preposition + noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shado…
Psalms 33:11 The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.
Romans 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
Acts 5:39 But if it be of God, ye can not overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
Proverbs 30:6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
Titus 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.
Psalms 64:9 And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 3:11-15
We have seen what changes there are in the world, and must not expect to find the world more sure to us than it has been to others. Now here Solomon shows the hand of God in all those changes; it is he that has made every creature to be that to us which it is, and therefore we must have our eye always upon him.
I. We must make the best of that which is, and must believe it best for the present, and accommodate ourselves to it: He has made every thing beautiful in his time (Ecc 3:11), and therefore, while its time lasts, we must be reconciled to it: nay, we must please ourselves with the beauty of it. Note, 1. Every thing is as God has made it; it is really as he appointed it to be, not as it…
(Sa1 3:12; Sa2 23:5; Psa 89:34; Mat 24:35; Jam 1:17).
for ever--as opposed to man's perishing labors (Ecc 2:15-18).
any thing taken from it--opposed to man's "crooked and wanting" works (Ecc 1:15; Ecc 7:13). The event of man's labors depends wholly on God's immutable purpose. Man's part, therefore, is to do and enjoy every earthly thing in its proper season (Ecc 3:12-13), not setting aside God's order, but observing deep reverence towards God; for the mysteriousness and unchangeableness of God's purposes are designed to lead "man to fear before Him." Man knows not the event of each act: otherwise he would think himself independent of God.
John Gill on Ecclesiastes 3:14
I know that whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever,.... Which some, as Jarchi, understand of the works of creation, the heavens and the earth, which are however of long standing and duration; and though they shall be dissolved and perish, as to their form and quality, yet not as to the substance of them: the earth particularly is said to abide for ever, Ecclesiastes 1:4; the sun and moon, and stars, keep their course or station; and the several seasons of the year have their constant revolution, and shall as long as the earth endures; see Genesis 8:22; the several kinds of creatures God has made, in the earth, air, and sea, though the individuals die, their species remain; and man, the c…
In the spiritual and higher sense one can also say the following: The invisible things are God's creations in the real sense. They are eternal. The timely and visible things are secondary and accidental and created for the sake of the eternal ones. These visible things have come into being for the sake of humankind, which by nature is invisible regarding the soul and the inner being. The visible things cannot primarily be called God's creations. God certainly has created them, but for the purpose of other things.
God has made creation so that human beings, through an outward picture of the greatness and beauty of created things, might [understand] that God exists. He himself manages the cosmos and looks after it so that we—while the whole cosmos is orderly guided by one commander and provider and ruler and charioteer and king—get the outward picture that there is someone who rules the cosmos. When you see a ship which is piloted and holds its course, you perceive the idea of a helmsman even if he is not visible. And if you see a chariot which travels orderly, you get the idea of a charioteer. Likewise the Creator is known by his works and the order of his providence.
"I realised that whatever God does will endure forever: nothing can be added to it and nothing taken away, and God has acted so that man should fear Him. "There is nothing in the world that is new. The course of the sun and moon in turn and the dryness and verdure of the earth and trees are born and take shape with the world itself. And therefore God governed all things by a defined plan and commanded the elements to be at the disposal of man, for his use, so that when men see these things they know that there is providence and fear the appearance of God; while from the equality of the world, the natural season, order, and constancy they understand their creator. "For his invisible work in the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things which are made, even his eternal virtue and power" [Rom. 1, 20.]. If we want we can read this as if from the beginning, with the meaning of the first part already understood: "and God has acted so that man should fear Him" then this is the meaning: God made all these things, so that men fear him, and reject for another what God once created for man. But he governed perfectly, saying: "so that they should fear his appearance". [Ps. 33, 17.] The image of the Lord, indeed, is powerful over those who are wicked.
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Keil & Delitzsch on Ecclesiastes 3:14
"Thus I discerned it then, that all that God will do exists for ever; nothing is to be added to it, and nothing taken from it: God has thus directed it, that men should fear before Him." This is a conclusion derived from the facts of experience, a truth that is valid for the present and for the time to come. We may with equal correctness render by quidquid facit and quidquid faciet. But the pred. shows that the fut. expression is also thought of as fut.; for הוּ יה לע does not mean: that is for ever (Hitz.), which would be expressed by the subst. clause הוּא לעולם; but: that shall be for ever (Zck.), i.e., will always assert its validity. That which is affirmed here is true of God's directin…
Knowing that whatever God does is final is a reason to fear him—to trust and revere God and respect all that he does.
Rashi on Ecclesiastes 3:14
I know that whatever [God] does. The Holy One, Blessed Is He, in the Creation, is fit to be eternal, and it cannot be changed, either by adding or by subtracting, and when it is changed, [it is because] God commanded and caused it to be changed, in order that they should fear Him. The ocean broke through its boundary in the generation of Enosh and inundated a third of the world, and God did this so that they would fear Him. Seven days, the course of the sun was changed in the generation of the flood, to rise in the west and set in the east, in order that they fear Him. [Also,] the sun went back ten degrees in the days of Chizkiyahu; and in the days of Achaz his father, the day was shortened…
