The Meaning of Ecclesiastes 1:17 Explained

Ecclesiastes 1:17

KJV: And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.

YLT: And I give my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I have known that even this is vexation of spirit;

Darby: And I applied my heart to the knowledge of wisdom, and to the knowledge of madness and folly: I perceived that this also is a striving after the wind.

ASV: And I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also was a striving after wind.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And I gave  my heart  to know  wisdom,  and to know  madness  and folly:  I perceived  that this  also is vexation  of spirit. 

What does Ecclesiastes 1:17 Mean?

Context Summary

Ecclesiastes 1:1-18 - The Testimony Of An Unsatisfied Soul
All is vanity! This cry finds an echo in human hearts of every age and clime. Clod meant man to be happy. "These things," said our Lord, "I have spoken to you, that your joy may be full." "The fruit of the Spirit is joy." Yet the air is laden with complaint and bitterness. Men are asking constantly, "Is life worth living?" The present age is full of unrest and weariness, of war and strife, of unsatisfied yearnings and desires. The mistake is that men seek to solve the mystery of life and to find their happiness apart from God, who has made us for Himself.
This book was written and incorporated in the Bible to show that man's quest for happiness is vain, so long as it is apart from God. Solomon had unbounded opportunities for pursuing his quest. Youth, wealth, wisdom, royalty, human love were his, but when all were mixed in the golden cup of his life, he turned from the draught unsatisfied and sad. Listen to the sigh of the sated voluptuary: Vanity of vanities! Let us turn from these bitter experiences to 1 John 2:15-17. [source]

Chapter Summary: Ecclesiastes 1

1  the preacher shows that all human courses are vain
4  because the creatures are restless in their courses
9  they bring forth nothing new, and all old things are forgotten
12  and because he has found it so in the studies of wisdom

What do the individual words in Ecclesiastes 1:17 mean?

And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly I perceived that also this is grasping for the wind
וָאֶתְּנָ֤ה לִבִּי֙ לָדַ֣עַת חָכְמָ֔ה וְדַ֥עַת הוֹלֵל֖וֹת וְשִׂכְל֑וּת יָדַ֕עְתִּי שֶׁגַּם־ זֶ֥ה ה֖וּא רַעְי֥וֹן רֽוּחַ

וָאֶתְּנָ֤ה  And  I  set 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, first person common singular, third person feminine singular
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
לִבִּי֙  my  heart 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: לֵב 
Sense: inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.
לָדַ֣עַת  to  know 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
חָכְמָ֔ה  wisdom 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: חָכְמָה  
Sense: wisdom.
וְדַ֥עַת  and  to  know 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
הוֹלֵל֖וֹת  madness 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: הֹולֵלֹות  
Sense: madness.
וְשִׂכְל֑וּת  and  folly 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: סִכְלוּת 
Sense: folly, foolishness.
יָדַ֕עְתִּי  I  perceived 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
שֶׁגַּם־  that  also 
Parse: Pronoun, relative, Conjunction
Root: גַּם  
Sense: also, even, indeed, moreover, yea.
זֶ֥ה  this 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
רַעְי֥וֹן  grasping  for 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: רַעְיׄון  
Sense: longing, striving.
רֽוּחַ  the  wind 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: רוּחַ  
Sense: wind, breath, mind, spirit.