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NASB | Ecclesiastes 1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Ecclesiastes 1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. |
Bible Question: Who was Ecclesiastes in the Bible ? What it a man or a woman ? |
Bible Answer: The word 'Qohelet' looks like it has a female ending. However a female would not have written Eccl 7:26 so the ending is probably irregular: Eccl 7:26 And I discovered more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are chains. One who is pleasing to God will escape from her, but the sinner will be captured by her. The title line, Eccl 1:1, and the Epilogue, Eccl 12:9-14, are implied to be written by someone other than the main author. The phrase 'says Qohelet' in Eccl 1:2, 7:27, and 12:8 would also be likely interjections by someone else. This only leaves the title 'Qohelet' to occur in Eccl 1:12. It does sound like Eccl 1:12 to Eccl 2:9 refer to Solomon. However in Eccl 1:16 there is a problem. Eccl 1:16 I said to myself, "Behold, I have magnified and increased wisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge." Would Solomon say this if David was the only Hebrew to reign in Jerusalem before him? There were others who reigned there before him but they were all Gentiles. Keep an open mind about authorship. Listen for clues about the type of person who wrote it. For example Eccl 1:8 sounds like it might have been written by a scribe. (Substitute 'words' for 'things' since they are the same word in Hebrew.) Eccl 1:8 All things are wearisome; Man is not able to tell it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, Nor is the ear filled with hearing. However just because it sounds like a scribe it can't rule out a king or any other Hebrew for certain because they were all to make their own copy of the Torah. |