The contrast between life and death continues in verse 4. This verse also provides the focus for verse 5. Linking these verses is the particle ki, occurring twice here and once in verse 5.

But he who is joined with all the living has hope: the opening But indicates that the saying contrasts with what has just been said. This is further supported by the contrasting phrases “to the dead” in verse 3 and “to all the living” in verse 4. He who is joined uses the interrogative pronoun “who?” with the sense “whoever” or “everyone.” The verb is joined creates a slight problem for the interpreter. The passive verb form (from the Hebrew root for “choose”) is not found in all manuscripts, and this has led to the suggestion that the verb be changed to “be associated with.” Whichever version of the text we adopt, there are some problems because joined with all the living (Revised Standard Version), “counted among the living” (New American Bible), and similar renderings are all very awkward expressions. The phrase simply means “those who are still living,” or “the living” (Good News Translation). The expression draws a contrast between “to the dead” (verse 3) and “to all the living” here in verse 4. On the living see comments in 4.15.

Hope translates a rare Hebrew form found only here and in 2 Kgs 18.19; Isa 36.4. It is drawn from the root meaning “trust, confidence.” Qoheleth associates it with the future fate that people face. His meaning here seems to be full of irony. He indicates that all living creatures have hope, that they can be confident about a future. But that future is the shared fate, death. What a hope that is!

We can translate this difficult clause as:

• But the living have hope.

• But those still alive have a future.

Two more radical translations, which bring out more clearly the element of irony here are:

• But the living can be confident about their future—their future is death!

• But there’s nothing for the living to look forward to except death!

In 4.2 Qoheleth suggested that the dead are more fortunate than the living because the dead have already left this pain-filled world. When he says here the living have hope, the irony is even more powerful because that “hope” turns out to be death itself, which is no hope at all.

The second clause beginning with ki “for” provides the basis for the argument just put forward. Qoheleth argues that a living dog is better than a dead lion. A conjunction like “for” or “since” may be appropriate here. A transition with more irony is “Yes, even….” Since this clause is a proverb that was probably well-known, we can add “Yes, as they say, ….”

The dog in Qoheleth’s culture was looked down on; the term could also be applied to an evil person (Deut 23.18-19). On the other hand the lion is a figure both for royalty and for a noble person (Hos 13.7). The adjectives that describe these animals, a living dog and a dead lion, seem on the surface to reverse those values. When we realize that Qoheleth is using this saying to support his argument about the human “hope,” death, we see how this saying is bound up with the irony of the previous statement: all living beings are like a contemptible dog—they are alive but they are all waiting to die.

Most languages will have words for dog and lion, so word choice will not be a problem. However, the translator should make sure that what these words mean when they are used figuratively is equivalent to the meanings in Hebrew culture. If they are not, the verse will have to be adapted in some way. Adjectives can be added to show the point: “A living dog—as contemptible as it is—is better off than a dead lion, however majestic.” In some cases it may be necessary to omit the imagery and give a nonfigurative rendering such as “It is better to be miserable and alive than noble and dead.” The irony in this saying may also be expressed as “How much more wonderful it is to be miserable but alive than to be noble but dead!”

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 .