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Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

be vain of earthly honors

English answer:

an archaic way of saying,"vain about earthly honours"

Added to glossary by Ana Juliá
Mar 3, 2004 19:49
20 yrs ago
English term

be vain of earthly honors

English Art/Literary Religion
None are so apt to be vain of earthly honors as those who, like David, are unexpectedly raised to the possession of them, or who, like Solomon, surpass in majesty all their contemporaries.
Responses
4 +5 an archaic way of saying,"vain about earthly honours"
5 +2 vain: of no real value; futile -- honor: public esteem, recognition
3 +1 valued spiritual matter more than earthly honor
2 +1 to be seeking earthly honors
4 -1 Sie haben von der Umwelt keine besondere Ehre erwartet
2 +1 to be excessively proud of ones status
2 to be overly proud of their achievements

Responses

+5
12 mins
Selected

an archaic way of saying,"vain about earthly honours"

ie: being proud of, placing a high value on, putting a lot of effort into, and/or perhaps boasting about
honours that are in truth unimportant, and ultimately fruitless / have no value -
they are honoured on earth (by other people, etc), but the text would say not in the real (divine) scheme of things.
Eg: wealth, power over people, praise of courtiers, etc.
Peer comment(s):
agree Christopher Crockett : Yes, that's it. A very unusual phrase.
11 mins
It is a very unusual phrase :-) Mark Twain uses it in a piece called "Christian Science" 'Vain of trivial things all the first half of her life.....still vain of them at 70...' http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/mtwain/bl-mtwa...
agree Armorel Young : it's the only interpretation which makes sense in the context
1 hr
In all his majesty,Solomon is made to say:"Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over....
agree hookmv
2 hrs
..all my labour wherein I have laboured,and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity"Eccles2-18 What happens to kingdom afterSol's death?Worships idols in old age(vanity from biblical point of view).Even majest.&wisdom=weakness
neutral Laurel Porter (X) : Wouldn't this fit only if the sentence read "None are LESS apt to..."? I don't think Kings David & Solomon were excessively power mad, as kings go.
3 hrs
No -none are so apt to(no one is so likely to,etc).David arranges the death of his faithful commander Uriah - because of his lust for Uriah's wife, for example ~
agree Margarita
9 hrs
agree jebeen
1 day 6 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks!"
+1
5 mins

to be seeking earthly honors

this is not proper English but this is my guess
Peer comment(s):
agree trautlady
5 mins
agree Vicky Papaprodromou
14 mins
disagree Ildiko Santana : I agree. Not proper English.
2 hrs
Something went wrong...
+2
10 mins

vain: of no real value; futile -- honor: public esteem, recognition

be vain of...:
1) having no real value (i.e. idle, worthless)
2) marked by futility or ineffectualness (i.e. unsuccessful)

earthly:
1) characteristic of or belonging to this earth; relating to man's actual life on this earth
2) possible (e.g. there is no earthly reason for such behavior)

honor:
1) a good name or public esteem, reputation; a showing of usually merited respect; recognition (e.g. pay honor to our founder)
2) privilege
3) a person of superior standing -- now used especially as a title for a holder of high office
4)one whose worth brings respect or fame; credit (e.g. an honor to the profession)

HTH
Peer comment(s):
agree DGK T-I : ~
3 mins
Thanks.
neutral Armorel Young : Could you please name the source of your definitions? - it would help others to evaluate their reliability.
1 hr
American Heritage / Merriam Websters dictionaries. Sorry.
agree jebeen
1 day 5 hrs
Something went wrong...
-1
11 mins

Sie haben von der Umwelt keine besondere Ehre erwartet

das scheint einigermassen zu passen
Peer comment(s):
neutral Ana Juliá : In English, please
2 mins
disagree Ildiko Santana : You missed. By a long shot.
2 hrs
Something went wrong...
+1
11 mins

to be excessively proud of ones status

I think it is meant here, that David and Solomon let their political status get to their head.
Peer comment(s):
agree DGK T-I : ~
2 mins
agree Alexander Demyanov
33 mins
neutral Ildiko Santana : But they were wrong.
2 hrs
Who was wrong about what?
disagree jebeen : this sentence is about people of the rank of David and Solomon; not about David and Solomon.
1 day 6 hrs
David and Solomon were given as examples for types of behaviours not types of rank.
Something went wrong...
+1
1 hr

valued spiritual matter more than earthly honor

Even David, the king of kings of ancient Israel, or Solomon the wisest man mankind of the time ever saw did not value earthly honor (as much as they did spiritual matter). Earthly honors mean wealth, power, fame, etc. The author is emphasizing the value of spirituality. "Vain of" is archaic expression meaning "disregarding", "ignoring", "not ostentatious" or "not so inclined".
Peer comment(s):
agree Laurel Porter (X) : One has to keep context and reality in mind. Was Solomon a money-grubbing, power-mad autocrat? No - he disdained earthly honors. Cheers, Susan!
2 hrs
Thank you Laurel, I appreciate your input.
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2 hrs

to be overly proud of their achievements

like your's truely
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