Quotation for Ecclesiastes 2:12
וּפָנִ֤יתִֽי אֲנִי֙ לִרְא֣וֹת חָכְמָ֔ה וְהוֹלֵל֖וֹת וְסִכְל֑וּת כִּ֣י ׀ מֶ֣ה הָאָדָ֗ם שֶׁיָּבוֹא֙ אַחֲרֵ֣י הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ אֵ֥ת אֲשֶׁר־כְּבָ֖ר עָשֽׂוּהוּ׃
And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness and folly; for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done.
Footnotes to Kohelet by Bruce Heitler
Compare with verse 1.17. This line could mean, "What can someone do since he is not the king?" Alternatively, the phrase could mean, "What can a person do who supplants the king?" In either case, the essential consideration is the limitation on one's ability. Either one cannot carry out the policy of the king, or one cannot do anything else but what the king would have done. Neither knowledge nor wild behavior can overcome this limitation. Ultimately, everything is subject to certain limitations.
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