(2.) Then I praised, I did (it was a personal matter, a mere opinion of Koheleth’s), with respect to the dead (with the emphatic את) which at present (כבר see [chapter i. 10], references, which occurs in the same technical sense as before, ‘this present time or state’) are dead (hence the whole is equivalent to ‘which have finished their lives, and now are in the state of the departed’), above the living which they are living as yet (עֲדֶנָה occurs here only, and only differs in pointing from עֶדְנָה, which occurs Genesis xviii. 12 only, ‘pleasure.’ It will be seen that this unusual word leads to a strange equivoke, which yet helps the sense.)
3 Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.
and better off than both those who have not yet been: who have not yet had [the pleasure!] to see that work so evil which will be done to them in this hot work-day world.
(3.) And good above both (equals our ‘better off than either’) which as yet (עֲדֶן here only, differing again from עֵדֶן, ‘delight,’ ‘Eden,’ only in the pointing) have not been which (this being repeated, is equivalent to ‘even those who’) do not see the workings so evil which are worked (niphal, ‘suffered’) under the sun. It is remarkable that in both cases the sentence may be rendered, without any violence to its grammar, with each of these unusual words, translated ‘pleasantness’ and ‘pleasure’ respectively, as they ought to be thus, ‘Then I praised the dead which are now in the state of the dead, above the living, in so far as they are living pleasantly (Hebrew idiom, pleasantness), and better off than both to whom the pleasure is not, who is not seeing that evil work which is done under the sun.’ No one can, of course, for a moment doubt that the true meaning is given by the former rendering, while this latter is only an equivoke, but it is an equivoke which helps the sense, and gives a peculiar sarcastic tone to the whole. I have endeavoured to represent this in the paraphrase by an equivoke between the words ‘pleasant’ and ‘present,’ which I am almost inclined to withdraw, so feebly does it render the grave biting sarcasm of the original.
Koheleth now touches on another instance of unsatisfactoriness which besets successful toil.
4 ¶ Again, I considered all travail, and [¹]every right work, that [²]for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.
[¹] Hebrew all rightness of work.