Ecc 2:9 | NETfull | STEP | So I was far wealthier than all my predecessors in Jerusalem, yet I maintained my objectivity:

Ecclesiastes 2:9

9 So ^{▼▼ The vav prefixed to וְגָדַלְתִּי (v^egadalti, vav + Qal perfect first common singular from גָּדַל, gadal, “to be great; to increase”) functions in a final summarizing sense, that is, it introduces the concluding summary of 2:4–9.} I was far wealthier ^{▼▼ Heb “I became great and I surpassed” (וְהוֹסַפְתִּי וְגָדַלְתִּי, v^egadalti v^ehosafti). This is a verbal hendiadys in which the second verb functions adverbially, modifying the first: “I became far greater.” Most translations miss the hendiadys and render the line in a woodenly literal sense (KJV, ASV, RSV, NEB, NRSV, NAB, NASB, MLB, Moffatt), while only a few recognize the presence of hendiadys here: “I became greater by far” (NIV) and “I gained more” (NJPS).} than all my predecessors in Jerusalem,
yet I maintained my objectivity: ^{▼▼ Heb “yet my wisdom stood for me,” meaning he retained his wise perspective despite his great wealth.}