In this concluding statement we discover Qoheleth’s deep sense of frustration with the situation he has observed. Although such a wide gap exists between wise people and fools during life (verses 13-14), when death comes there seems to be no distinction at all. Even after they die, neither one leaves behind any memorial. They die without a trace.

So I hated life is an idiomatic saying expressing the deep pain and frustration a person felt when confronted by a situation that could not be changed for the better. Similar thoughts are found in Jer 20.14-18. Qoheleth hated life, that is to say, he hated everything evil or painful that happened here on earth. He certainly did not wish to die, though he felt frustrated by life’s many problems. Life means every aspect of human life.

Because what is done under the sun was grievous to me: Qoheleth tells us precisely what caused him pain; it was the human tragedies he witnessed about him. Grievous is how Revised Standard Version renders the adjective at other times translated “evil.” Here it has no moral tone, so “grievous” or “distressing” is its meaning. Good News Translation has “it brought me trouble,” and this is a good model to follow.

The phrase what is done is also a very general one. Its subject can be either God or people, or both. For this reason a general translation is called for: “everything that happens” shows its meaning clearly.

In translation we may say “Everything that I saw happening on earth caused me so much pain that I almost came to hate life itself.” By using a phrase like “came almost to hate,” we are showing that Qoheleth did not actually despair of living, but that he was using an idiomatic expression. It also allows us to keep reasonably close to the original.

For all is vanity and a striving after wind: Qoheleth uses this concluding formula once again. See comments on 1.14 for translation.

We might think at this point that Qoheleth is about to give up completely on life. If he were truly a pessimist, as so many in the past have argued, we would expect him to now put down his pen and retire from life. However, he does not do that. In fact he has still further depths to reach before he recovers. He demonstrates that he has not despaired of finding meaning in life when he records positive words of encouragement in verses 24-26.

Translators can consider the following models:

• Everything that happens to us on this earth is distressing. I have come almost to hate life because it is impossible to understand; it’s like trying to direct the wind.

• Everything I saw happening in the world I found painful. I despaired of human life. It is a problem with no solution, impossible to understand.

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 .