This saying has all the features of a quotation, which Qoheleth uses to support the imperatives of verses 1-2. Verse 2 asserts that our words should be few. There is an element of contrast between the wise person and the fool who talks too much. A parallel structure is another feature of this verse: dream and fool’s voice balance each other, as do the adverbial phrases using much and many.

For a dream comes with much business: it is hard to see how this clause relates to the rest of the passage and its theme of worship (verses 1-7). If, however, Qoheleth is quoting a well-known proverb, it is probable that this line is part of that proverb. It’s function is to set the pattern for his own message in the second line. A similar example occurs in 10.1, where the first line introduces Qoheleth’s own thought in the second line.

A dream may come in the form of a vision while a person is asleep, or it may be a daytime activity as our thoughts wander. It can also signal our hopes or longings for the future. Which of these does Qoheleth have in mind? If the first line is a proverb providing the model for the second line, then dream has a negative sense. Good News Translation is then correct to say “bad dreams.”

Business: see comments at 3.9. It has the sense here of work with effort rather than a commercial sense. A word like “worry” seems an appropriate way to think of it. New Revised Standard Version suggests “many cares.”

And a fool’s voice with many words: the phrase a fool’s voice has a broader sense than the mere sound of his voice. It includes all that he says. Many words will refer to the great amount of talking that a fool often does, as well as the sense that it is not worth listening to. By adding the adjective “empty” we can convey Qoheleth’s idea adequately: “what a fool says is all empty chatter.” New English Bible is correctly neutral with its rendering “the fool talks and it is so much chatter.”

Translators should make sure that these two lines demonstrate this verse’s parallel thought and structure. “Much” and “many” are common to both lines. For example:

• As dreams go hand-in-hand with many cares,
So does foolish talk with many words.

• You worry too much, you dream bad dreams.
You speak too much, you speak foolishness.

• With many cares, you have nightmares.
With many words, you speak foolishness.

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 .