Ecclesiastes6:1

1

This word means “great” in number or degree, therefore it is hard to know how to translate it in this verse because either one works and the context does not guide us clearly in one direction or the other. That is why we see some translations render it “common among men,” and some render it “weighs heavily upon men.” The preposition that accompanies it is not much help as it can mean “upon” or “among,” or a number of other things. For that reason I have chosen to translate it in way that shows its impact without narrowing it down to one method of impact or the other. It is possible that both number and degree were in view, so I am keeping both of those options open by calling it a “big one” in the translation column and a “big deal” in the paraphrase column.