Shiddah (or shiddot in plural) appears in Ecclesiastes 2:8 in a list of accumulated pleasures — 'the delights of the children of men.' It likely refers to female entertainers, concubines, or treasured possessions. The exact meaning is debated by scholars: some read it as 'chests/coffers' (treasure), others as 'concubines' or 'musical instruments.' The context of Qohelet's vanity exploration gives it weight as representing the pursuit of pleasure.
Qohelet lists shiddah among all the pleasures he accumulated — houses, vineyards, gardens, gold, silver, singers, and these. His conclusion: 'Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind' (Ecc 2:11). The theological point is not a condemnation of pleasure per se but of pleasure as ultimate purpose. Solomon had access to every earthly delight and found all insufficient apart from God. This is a powerful apologetic for the emptiness of hedonism.