Does the word “forever” in\u00a0Ecclesiastes 1:4\u00a0means “everlasting?”<\/p>\n\t
“One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever<\/em>” (Ecclesiastes 1:4).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The Hebrew word\u00a0‘owlam<\/em>\u00a0refers to something that is of a long, indefinite period. It is a period of time which you cannot say for certainty when it comes to an end. To see this, look a few verses later to\u00a0Ecclesiastes 1:10, “Is there anything of which it may be said, “See, this is new”? It has already been in ancient times before us.<\/em>” The same word,\u00a0‘owlam<\/em>\u00a0is translated as “ancient times.” The writer is not stating that the world has been in existence for an infinite amount of time, but that it has been around so long that it is hard to say precisely when it began.<\/p>\n
God stated in\u00a0Isaiah 42:14, “I have held My peace a long time, I have been still and restrained Myself. Now I will cry like a woman in labor, I will pant and gasp at once.<\/em>” The same word,\u00a0‘owlam<\/em>, is translated as “a long time.” In this verse, God is not saying He would never speak. In fact, He states that now He would cry out. He had held His peace for a long, indefinite time, but that time came to an end. Therefore, we see that something “forever” can come to an end.<\/p>\n
This is also seen in the sacrifices of the Old Testament, “And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the LORD made by fire, by a perpetual statute<\/em>” (Leviticus 24:9). (The word\u00a0‘owlam<\/em>, is translated as “perpetual.”) Though perpetual, those sacrifices came to an end (Hebrews 9:25-28).<\/p>\n
In the same way, the temple was built to stand forever (II Chronicles 2:4), but that temple no longer stands.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: Does the word “forever” in\u00a0Ecclesiastes 1:4\u00a0means “everlasting?” Answer: “One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever” (Ecclesiastes 1:4). The Hebrew word\u00a0‘owlam\u00a0refers to something that is of a long, indefinite period. It is a period of time which you cannot say for certainty when it comes to an end. To…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[76,190],"class_list":["post-4275","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-terminology","tag-translation"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":26662,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/where-does-the-bible-say-jesus-will-return-a-third-time\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":0},"title":"Where does the Bible say Jesus will return a third time?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 8, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I've been a fan of\u00a0Bible.ca for along time. One question that haunts me is this: With Matthew 24 fulfilled (I do believe this) where does God's word tell us Christ will come a third time? ( 1. birth - 2. A.D. 70 -3. ?) and what about passages like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-can-the-old-covenant-be-everlasting-and-yet-come-to-an-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":1},"title":"How can the Old Covenant be everlasting and yet come to an end?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 16, 2003","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Since the Old Testament in many places talks about the \"everlasting covenant\" with the Israelites, why is it no longer everlasting? Answer: The word \"everlasting\" does not necessarily mean \"infinite.\" The world is described as lasting forever, but we know from II Peter 3 that there is a terminating\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":43153,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-can-i-do-about-a-visiting-preacher-making-claims-that-ecclesiastes-is-not-inspired-and-there-are-errors-in-the-bible\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":2},"title":"What can I do about a visiting preacher making claims that Ecclesiastes is not inspired and there are errors in the Bible?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 3, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: My wife and I have attended the same church for the past 16 years. We have two elders and five deacons. Recently the son of one of our elders came, by invitation, to preach for us. This young man has graduated from a top university and has a degree\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92990,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/its-a-new-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":3},"title":"It’s a New Day","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 1, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer One sobering thought is that children are coming into this world now who will live to see the 22nd century, assuming the Lord does not come first. I had grandparents who were born in the 19th century, and this connects back even further. Not only does time\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":63794,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/will-the-earth-remain\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":4},"title":"Will the Earth Remain?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 2, 2003","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalm 37:1-22 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I believe that all here understand that the earth was never created to be a permanent home to mankind \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In contrast to Jesus\u2019 words, the earth and its heaven will cease - Mark 13:31 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0God is eternal, but the world He made\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58341,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-next-generation\/","url_meta":{"origin":4275,"position":5},"title":"The Next Generation","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steve Klein via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, December 3, 2006 As Solomon looked at life under the sun, he observed that \"One generation passes away, and another generation comes; But the earth abides forever\" (Ecclesiastes 1:4). 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