I made myself gardens and parks: the verb made, which begins the verse, links us back immediately with “my deeds” of verse 4. In some languages a general word like “make” would be inappropriate in this context. In this case a word used for making gardens should be used, like “planted.” When Qoheleth talks about the gardens he established, he is thinking clearly of an orchard. In many languages the word “garden” requires some modifying word to indicate what type of garden it was, so the word “orchard” or “garden of fruit trees” overcomes that problem.

The parks that he established are less easy to describe, because the term used is one borrowed into Hebrew from Persian. Literally the word suggests “paradise” and recalls the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2. It appears to mean an area in which trees and other plants were grown. As both “garden” and “park” describe similar objects, translators may find it necessary to use one general term to refer to both.

All kinds of fruit trees in Hebrew is a singular noun with a plural meaning. In communities where a generic term for fruit trees does not exist, a descriptive phrase like “trees that give food,” “food-bearing plants,” or “trees giving different kinds of fruit” may be used. The translator should avoid referring to trees by name, as they may not have grown in that region.

For translation:

• I made gardens and parks for my own enjoyment, planting all kinds of fruit trees in them.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Zogbo, Lynell. A Handbook on the Book of Ecclesiates. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .