Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes 3:18
18I said to myself, “As for the sons of men, God tests them so that they may see for themselves that they are but beasts.”
Word by word
Each English word or phrase beside the Hebrew it translates, in the order of the English. Choose a number to open that word’s study.
| English | Hebrew | Sounds like | Grammar | Word study |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | אֲנִי֙ | ’ă·nî | Pronoun - first person common singular | H589 I |
| said | אָמַ֤רְתִּֽי | ’ā·mar·tî | Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular | H559 utter, say |
| to myself | בְּלִבִּ֔י | bə·lib·bî | Preposition-b; Noun - masculine singular construct; first person common singular | H3820 inner man, mind, will, heart |
| As for | עַל־ | ‘al- | Preposition | H5921 height |
| the sons | בְּנֵ֣י | bə·nê | Noun - masculine plural construct | H1121 son |
| of men | הָאָדָ֔ם | hā·’ā·ḏām | Article; Noun - masculine singular | H120 man, mankind |
| God | הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים | hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm | Article; Noun - masculine plural | H430 God |
| tests them | לְבָרָ֖ם | lə·ḇā·rām | Preposition-l; Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct; third person masculine plural | H1305 purify, select |
| so that they may see | וְלִרְא֕וֹת | wə·lir·’ō·wṯ | Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l; Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | H7200 see |
| for themselves | שְׁהֶם־ | šə·hem- | Pronoun - relative; Pronoun - third person masculine plural | H1992 they, them |
| that they | הֵ֖מָּה | hêm·māh | Pronoun - third person masculine plural | H1992 they, them |
| are but beasts | בְּהֵמָ֥ה | bə·hê·māh | Noun - feminine singular | H929 beast, animal, cattle |
Cross-references
Other passages that speak to the same thing. Point at one to read it.
Psalm 73:22 · Psalm 49:12 · Hebrews 9:27 · 2 Peter 2:12 · Genesis 3:17–19 · 1 Peter 1:24 · Romans 9:23 · Psalm 73:18–19 · Psalm 90:5–12 · Psalm 49:14 · Job 40:8 · Romans 3:4
Cross-references from OpenBible.info, used under CC BY 4.0. The best-supported references for each verse are shown.
Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible.