Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ecclesiastes 2:4

I made me great works; I built me houses; I planted me vineyards:

4. I made me great works ] The verse may be either a retrospect of the details of the life of the pleasure-seeker as sketched in the previous verse, or, as seems more probable, the account of a new experiment in which the man passed from purely sensual pleasures to the life of what we know as ‘culture,’ the pursuit of beauty and magnificence in Art. Here the writer throws himself into the surroundings of the historical Solomon. We may venture to refer to Tennyson’s Palace of Art as tracing the working out of a like experiment to its inevitable issue. See Appendix II.

I builded me houses ] We think of David’s house of cedar (2Ch 2:3) and the storehouses, oliveyards and vineyards (1Ch 27:25-31) which Solomon had inherited, of his own palace, and the house of the forest of Lebanon and the house for Pharaoh’s daughter, which he built (1Ki 7:1-9), of Tadmor and Hamath and Beth-horon and Baalath, the cities in far off lands which owned him as their founder (2Ch 8:3-6). It is significant, on any theory of authorship, that we find no reference to Solomon’s work in building “the house of the Lord.” That was naturally outside the range of the experiments in search of happiness and too sacred to be mentioned in connexion with them here, either by the king himself or by the writer who personates him. On the assumption of personation the writer may have drawn his pictures of kingly state from the palaces and parks of the Ptolemies, including the botanical and zoological gardens connected with the Museum at Alexandria, or from those of the Persian kings at Susa or Persepolis.

I planted me vineyards ] Of these one, that of Baal-hamon, has been immortalised by its mention in the Song of Solomon (Ecc 8:11). It was planted with the choicest vine, and the value of its produce estimated at a thousand pieces of silver. Engedi seems also to have been famous for its vineyards (Song Son 1:14).

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Compare 1Ki 7:1-12; 1Ki 9:15-19; 1Ki 10:14-27; and 2Ch 8:4.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Verse 4. I builded me houses] Palace after palace; the house of the forest of Lebanon, 1Kg 7:1, c. a house for the queen; the temple, c., 2Ch 8:1, c. 1Kg 9:10, &c., besides many other buildings of various kinds.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

I made me great works; magnificent works for my honour and delight.

I built me houses; of which see 1Ki 7:1, &c.; 1Ki 9:15, &c. I planted me vineyards: see Son 8:11.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

4. (1Ki 7:1-8;1Ki 9:1; 1Ki 9:19;1Ki 10:18, &c.).

vineyards (So8:11).

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

I made me great works,…. He did not spend his time in trifling things, as Domitian a, in catching and killing flies; but in devising, designing, directing, and superintending great works of art and skill, becoming the grandeur of his state, and the greatness of his mind: the Midrash restrains it to his great throne of ivory, overlaid with gold, 1Ki 10:18, but it is a general expression, including all the great things he did, of which the following is a particular enumeration;

I builded me houses; among which must not be reckoned the house of God, though that was built by him, and in the first place; yet this was built, not for his own pleasure and grandeur, but for the worship and glory of God: but his own house and palace is chiefly meant, which was thirteen years in building; and the house of the forest in Lebanon, which perhaps was his country seat; with all other houses and offices, for his stores, for his servants, his horsemen, and chariots; see 1Ki 7:1; and in fine spacious buildings men take a great deal of pleasure, and promise themselves much happiness in dwelling in them, and in perpetuating their names to posterity by them; see

Ps 49:11. The Targum is,

“I multiplied good works in Jerusalem; I builded me houses; the house of the sanctuary, to make atonement for Israel; the king’s house of refreshment, and the conclave and porch; and the house of judgment, of hewn stones, where the wise men sit and do judgment; I made a throne of ivory for the royal seat;”

I planted me vineyards; perhaps those at Engedi were of his planting; however, he had one at Baalhamon, and no doubt in other places, So 1:14; the Targum makes mention of one at Jabne, planted by him; these also add to the pleasure of human life; it is delightful to walk in them, to gather the fruit and drink of the wine of them; see So 7:12.

a Sueton. Vit. Domitian. c. 3. Aurel. Victor. De. Caesar. & Epitome.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

“I undertook great works, built me houses, planted me vineyards. I made me gardens and parks, and planted therein all kinds of fruit-trees. I made me water-pools to water therewith a forest bringing forth trees.” The expression, “I made great my works,” is like Ecc 1:16; the verb contains the adj. as its obj. The love of wisdom, a sense of the beautiful in nature and art, a striving after splendour and dignity, are fundamental traits in Solomon’s character. His reign was a period of undisturbed and assured peace. The nations far and near stood in manifold friendly relations with him. Solomon was “the man of rest,” 1Ch 22:9; his whole appearance was as it were the embodied glory itself that had blossomed from out of the evils and wars of the reign of David. The Israelitish commonwealth hovered on a pinnacle of worldly glory till then unattained, but with the danger of falling and being lost in the world. The whole tendency of the time followed, as it were, a secular course, and it was Solomon first of all whom the danger of the love of the world, and of worldly conformity to which he was exposed, brought to ruin, and who, like so many of the O.T. worthies, began in the spirit and ended in the flesh. Regarding his buildings, – the house of the forest of Lebanon, the pillared hall (porch), the hall of judgment, the palace intended for himself and the daughter of Pharaoh, – vid. the description in 1Ki 7:1-12, gathered from the annals of the kingdom; 1Ki 9:15-22 = 2Ch 8:3-6, gives an account of Solomon’s separate buildings (to which also the city of Millo belongs), and of the cities which he built; the temple, store-cities, treasure-cities, etc., are naturally not in view in the passage before us, where it is not so much useful buildings, as rather buildings for pleasure (1Ki 9:19), that are referred to. Vineyards, according to 1Ch 27:27, belonged to David’s royal domain; a vineyard in Baal-hamon which Solomon possessed, but appears at a later period to have given up, is mentioned at the close of the Song. That he was fond of gardening, appears from manifold expressions in the Song; delight in the life and movements of the natural world, and particularly in plants, is a prominent feature in Solomon’s character, in which he agrees with Shulamith. The Song; Son 6:2, represents him in the garden at the palace. We have spoken under the Song; Son 6:11., of the gardens and parks at Etam, on the south-west of Bethlehem. Regarding the originally Persian word pardes (plur. pardesim , Mishnic pardesoth ), vid., under Son 4:13; regarding the primary meaning of berechah (plur. const. berechoth , in contradistinction to birchoth , blessings), the necessary information is found under Son 7:5. These Solomonic pools are at the present day to be seen near old Etam, and the clause here denoting a purpose, “to water from them a forest which sprouted trees, i.e., brought forth sprouting trees,” is suitable to these; for verbs of flowing and swarming, also verbs of growing, thought of transitively, may be connected with obj. – accus., Ewald, 281 b; cf. under Isa 5:6. Thus, as he gave himself to the building of houses, the care of gardens, and the erection of pools, so also to the cultivation of forests, with the raising of new trees.

Another means, wisely considered as productive of happiness, was a large household and great flocks of cattle, which he procured for himself.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

SEARCH FOR SATISFACTION IN GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Verses 4-9 reveal Solomon’s futile effort to find satisfaction in great accomplishments. In these six verses he used the word “I” eleven times, to emphasize what “he” had accomplished:

1) made great works; 2) builded houses, 1Ki 7:1-12; 1 Kings 3) planted vineyards, Son 8:11; Song of Solomon 4) made gardens and orchards, Son 4:16; Song of Solomon 5) planted fruit trees, Vs 5; 6) constructed great water-works of pools and aqueducts to provide water for human use and irrigation, Neh 2:14; Neh 3:15-16; Nehemiah 7) acquired men and women servants, Vs 6; Ezr 2:58; Ezra 8) acquired great possessions of cattle, 1Ki 4:22-23; 1Ki 4:26; 1 Kings 9) acquired silver, gold and treasures of kings, Vs 8; 1Ki 10:27;

10) acquired men and women singers, Vs 8; 11) was great and increased more than all that were before him in Jerusalem, 1Ch 29:25. See also 1Ki 9:1-12.

Verses 10-11 emphasize that no desire of Solomon was restrained in his effort to find satisfaction in great works; but when all was done he could only say, all was vanity and vexation of spirit.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

(4) Houses.1Ki. 5:11; 2Ch. 8:4.

Vineyards.1Ch. 27:27; Son. 8:11.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

4. I made me great works Hebrew, I enlarged my works. Solomon used the resources of the kingdom in magnificent enterprises. His own palace stood on a neighbouring hilltop to the temple. He built, also, for his Egyptian wife, a palace, called 1Ki 7:2, “The house of the forest of Lebanon.” His vineyard at Baal-hamon is mentioned in Son 8:11. He probably had others, also, as for instance at Engedi: Sol. Son 1:14.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

The Preacher Pursues Great Works and Wealth to Gratify His Body In Ecc 2:4-6 the Preacher endeavors to work hard in order to find satisfaction with great accomplishments of building projects. He gathers much wealth in his attempt to find his purpose in life, but finally concludes that this too is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Ecc 2:4  I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards:

Ecc 2:4 “I made me great works” – Comments – King Solomon build more buildings and expanded the kingdom of Israel more than any other king in Israel’s history. So much so, that he put a tremendous burden upon the people (1Ki 12:4).

1Ki 12:4, “ Thy father made our yoke grievous : now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.”

Ecc 2:8  I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.

Ecc 2:8 “as musical instruments, and that of all sorts” Comments – The phrase “as musical instruments, and that of all sorts” ( ) uses the Hebrew word ( ) (H7705) twice. This Hebrew word only occurs two times in the Old Testament, with both uses found in this one verse. Roland Murphy says the LXX and Syriac translate the phrase as “a cupbearer and female cupbearers.” [ Brenton reads, “a butler and female cupbearers.”] Murphy says the Vulgate reads, “cups and waterpots.” [24] However, Modern scholarship favors the idea of Solomon’s wives in translating the Hebrew word ( ). Gesenius says ( ) (H7705) means, “mistress, lady, hence, wife,” and is the feminine of the Hebrew word ( ), meaning “lord, master.” Gesenius translates this phrase in Ecc 2:8 as “a wife and wives.” Strong says it means, “a wife (as mistress of the house),” and is derived from ( ) (H7703), which means, “to be burly, powerful, to ravage.” The TWOT suggests the translation, “harem,” and associates this Hebrew word with ( ), which means, “breast, bosom.”

[24] Roland E. Murphy, Ecclesiastes, in Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 23A (Dallas, Texas: Word, Incorporated, 2002), in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004), 17.

ASV, “musical instruments, and that of all sorts”

JPS, “women very many”

LITV, “a concubine, and concubines”

NIV, “a harem”

RSV, “and many concubines”

YLT “a wife and wives”

JFB suggests the phrase ( ) means “a wife,” referring to a queen, and “wives,” referring to the rest of the king’s harem. [25]

[25] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Ecclesiastes, in A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, in e-Sword, v. 7.7.7 [CD-ROM] (Franklin, Tennessee: e-Sword, 2000-2005), comments on Ecclesiastes 2:8.

Ecc 2:9  So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me.

Ecc 2:10  And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.

Ecc 2:10 Comments – In Ecc 1:12 thru Ecc 2:9 the Preacher told us that he had tried wisdom and education (Ecc 1:12-18), mirth (Ecc 2:1-2), wine (Ecc 2:3), buildings and gardens (Ecc 2:4-6), servants (Ecc 2:7), and wealth (Ecc 2:7-9). Ecc 2:10 states that anything else that man could enjoy, the Preacher sought and experienced in his life.

Ecc 2:11  Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.

Ecc 2:11 Comments – After a lifetime of work, the Preacher sees that he has not made this world any better than when he had begun his great works.

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

Ecc 2:4 I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards:

Ver. 4. I made me great works. ] I took not pleasure in trifles, as Domitian did, in catching and killing flies with his penknife; or as Artaxerxes did, in making hafts for knives; or as Solyman the great Turk did, in making notches of horn for bows; but I built stately houses, planted pleasant vineyards, &c. A godly man may be busied in mean, low things; but he is not satisfied in them as adequate objects: he trades for better commodities, and cannot rest without them.

I builded me houses. ] Curious and spacious, such as is the Turk’s seraglio or palace, said to be more than two miles in compass. William Rufus built Westminster hall, and when it was done, found much fault with it for being built too little, saying, It was fitter for a chamber than for a hall for a king of England, and took a plot of land for one far more spacious to be added unto it. a

I planted me vineyards. ] That no pleasant thing might be wanting to me. To plant a vineyard is a matter of much cost and care; but it soon quits cost by bearing (1.) Plenty of fruit in clusters and bunches, many grapes together; (2.) By bearing pleasant fruit, no fruit being more delectable to the taste than is the grape, nor more comfortable to the heart than is the wine made of the grape. Jdg 9:13 Solomon had one gallant vineyard at Baalhamon that yielded him great profit. Son 8:1

a Daniel’s History.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)