Rashi, on Eccl 3:15

“That which hath been made, the same continueth: the things that shall be, have already been: and God restoreth that which is past.”

“That which was is already That which was before us, was already done, and we saw it or heard it from others who saw it, and we can attest to it, for we saw that the Holy One, blessed be He, seeks the pursued. Jacob was pursued, [and] Esau was a pursuer, (Mal. 1:2f): “And I loved Jacob. And I hated Esau.” The Egyptians pursued Israel. The Egyptians drowned in the sea, and Israel went forth with a high hand. and that which is destined to be at the end is a model of what already was. As it was in the beginning, so will it be at the end. The Holy One, blessed be He, does not change His standards in the world. and God seeks the pursued to punish the pursuer. Therefore, what is the profit of one who does evil in what he toils? He is destined to he called to account.”

Hebrew and Aramaic words are the commentator’s citations of the sacred text; the English translation that follows each is the translator’s.

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.