To: "Biblical Hebrew" <b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Subject: A question about Qoheleth
Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 22:13:02 -0700
I have a question about Qoheleth that perhaps some would like to comment on.
In Ecclesiastes 3:11 the word ha'olam is translated "eternity" in many
translations. NIV -- "He has also set eternity in the hearts of men." But
this idea seems to contradict the usual assumption that Qoheleth was a
cynic. Other suggestions have been made such as world, desire, darkness, or
even emended to labor. Isn't eternity the only sensible meaning for 'olam
in this context?