for it comes in vanity, and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness.
Parallel Translations
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for it comes in vanity, and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness.
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For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness.
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for it cometh in vanity, and departeth in darkness, and the name thereof is covered with darkness;
Cross-references (1)
Passages linked to Ecclesiastes 6:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 109:13 Let his posterity be cut off. In the generation following let their name be blotted out.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Meaning, the untimely fruit whose life did neither profit…
Meaning, the untimely fruit whose life did neither profit or hurt any.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Ecc 6:4 For he cometh in with vanity, and…
Ecc 6:4 For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness.
Ver. 4. For he cometh in with vanity, &c.] As nothing, being senseless of good or evil. "And departeth in darkness," and is buried in hugger mugger. And his "name shall be covered," &c., that is, there is no more talk of this abortive.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain For; or rather, although, as this particle is frequently…
For; or rather, although, as this particle is frequently rendered. For this verse seems to contain not so much a reason of what he last said, that an untimely birth is better than he, as an answer to an exception which might be made against it. Although all that is here said be true of the abortive, yet it is better than he. He; either,
1. The covetous man. Or rather,
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2. The abortive; of whom alone, and not of the former, that passage is true, he hath not seen the sun, Ecc 6:5. Cometh in; into the world, this word being oft put for a man’s being born, as Job 1:21; Ecc 5:15. With vanity; or, in vain, to no purpose; without any comfort or benefit by it, which also is in a great measure the case of the covetous wretch.
Departeth in darkness; dieth obscurely, without any observation or regard of men.
Shall be covered with darkness; shall be speedily and utterly forgotten; whereas the name of such wicked men shall rot, and be remembered to their shame.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For he cometh in with vanity,.... The Targum adds,…
For he cometh in with vanity,.... The Targum adds, "into this world." Some understand this of the abortive, and render it, "though he cometh in with vanity" (x), yet is to be preferred to the covetous man: others interpret it of the covetous man himself; and scrape of both: or, however, they may be compared together in these instances; the abortive comes into the world in vain, for nothing, and answers no purpose, as can well be observed; and the same may be said of a covetous rich man; he walks in a vain show, and is altogether vanity, in his coming in, in his life, and going out;
and departeth in darkness; or, "into darkness" (y); goes out of the world without any notice taken of him; and goes down to the dark grave, where he lies in obscurity;
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and his name shall be covered with darkness; the abortive has no name, and is never spoken of; and so the name and memory of such a man as is here described rot and perish: and in this respect the abortive has the preference to him; for though he is covered with darkness, yet no ill is ever spoken of him; whereas the name of the wicked covetous man is cursed.
(x) "quamvis venit", Drusius. (y) "in tenebrositatem", Montanus; "in tenebras", Tigurine version, Mercerus, so Broughton.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain He - The abortive; of whom alone, that passage…
He - The abortive; of whom alone, that passage is true, hath not seen the sun, ver. 5. Cometh - Into the world. In vain - To no purpose; without any comfort or benefit by it. Departeth - Without any observation or regard of men. His name - Shall be speedily and utterly forgotten.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain He ... his - Rather, it ... its. The…
He ... his - Rather, it ... its. The untimely birth is spoken of.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain He. The infant, though some explain it of the…
He. The infant, though some explain it of the miser. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain he--rather "it," "the untimely birth." So "its," not "his…
he--rather "it," "the untimely birth." So "its," not "his name."
with vanity--to no purpose; a type of the driftless existence of him who makes riches the chief good.
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darkness--of the abortive; a type of the unhonored death and dark future beyond the grave of the avaricious.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. He cometh in with vanity — The abortion…
4. He cometh in with vanity — The abortion is further described. The “vanity” in which he comes is the disappointment of parental hope. The darkness in which he goes, is the quietness with which the little remains are put away. The darkness upon his name is the blank upon the family record, and the concealment of his existence in the utmost privacy of grief and mortification.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. he cometh in with vanity] The pronoun in…
4. he cometh in with vanity] The pronoun in the English Version refers the clause to the man who has heaped up riches, and had a long life with no real enjoyment. Probably, however, the words describe, in harmony with the thought of the preceding verse, the portion of the still-born child. It comes and goes, and is forgotten, and never sees the sun, and tastes not the misery of life. The last clause of Ecc_6:5, there is rest to this rather than to that (“rest” idealised, as in Job_3:13, as in itself all but the supreme good that man can strive after), seems to make this construction certain. Possibly, however, the description of Ecc_6:4 is made to apply in part to both terms of the comparison, so that it may be seen, on which side, both having so much in common, the balance of advantage lies. On “seeing the sun” as an equivalent for living, see chs. Ecc_7:11, Ecc_11:7; Job_3:16; Psa_49:20.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) He.—Rather, it—viz., the untimely birth.
(4) He.—Rather, it—viz., the untimely birth.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain For he cometh in with vanity; rather, for it…
For he cometh in with vanity; rather, for it came into nothingness. The reference is to the fetus, or still-born child, not to the rich man, as is implied by the Authorized Version. This, when it appeared, had no independent life or being, was a mere nothing. And departeth in darkness; and goeth into the darkness. It is taken away and put out of sight. And his (its) name shall be covered with darkness. It is a nameless thing, unrecorded, unremembered.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.