Ecclesiastes 2:8

and I accumulated for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I gathered to myself male and female singers, and the delights of the sons of men—many concubines.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The speaker recounts his personal accumulation of wealth and pleasures during his reign in Jerusalem, immediately following his description of acquiring livestock and servants.

The words — כָּנַסְתִּי (ka.nas.ti) literally means "I gathered," while סְגֻלַּת (se.gu.lat) denotes "treasure of," both emphasizing deliberate and exhaustive acquisition.

The thread — Solomon’s import of gold from Ophir and receipt of royal tribute parallels this deliberate accumulation of provincial and foreign wealth (1 Kings 9:28; 1 Kings 10:10).

Why it lands — The text records the speaker’s exhaustive pursuit of material and sensual resources, leaving the reader to evaluate whether such accumulation yields lasting substance.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

כָּנַ֤סְתִּיka.Nas.tiI gatheredלִי֙l/ifor <the>/ myselfגַּם־gam-also כֶּ֣סֶףKe.sefsilver וְזָהָ֔בve./za.Havand/ gold וּסְגֻלַּ֥תu./se.gu.Latand/ treasure of מְלָכִ֖יםme.la.Khimkings וְהַמְּדִינ֑וֹתve./ha./me.di.Notand/ <the>/ provinces עָשִׂ֨יתִי'a.Si.tiI acquiredלִ֜יl/ifor <the>/ myselfשָׁרִ֣יםsha.Rimmale singers וְשָׁר֗וֹתve./sha.Rotand/ female singers וְתַעֲנוּגֹ֛תve./ta.'a.nu.Gotand/ [the] delights of בְּנֵ֥יbe.Nei[the] children of הָאָדָ֖םha./'a.Dam<the>/ humankind שִׁדָּ֥הshi.Dahbreast וְשִׁדּֽוֹת׃ve./shi.Dotand/ breasts

King James Version

I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.

Cross-references

1 Kings 10:10 Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again were spices in such abundance brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
2 Samuel 19:35 I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king?
1 Kings 9:28 They sailed to Ophir and imported gold from there—420 talents—and delivered it to Solomon.
1 Kings 10:14 The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents,
1 Kings 9:14 And Hiram had sent the king 120 talents of gold.
1 Kings 10:21 All King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, because it was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon.
1 Kings 14:21 Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon reigned in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes of Israel in which to put His Name. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.
1 Kings 14:27 Then King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place and committed them to the care of the captains of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace.
1 Chronicles 25:1 Additionally, David and the commanders of the army set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun to prophesy with the accompaniment of lyres, harps, and cymbals. The following is the list of the men who performed this service:
1 Chronicles 25:6 All these were under the direction of their fathers for the music of the house of the LORD with cymbals, harps, and lyres, for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the direction of the king.