Ecclesiastes 6

The Futility of Life

1There is an 1evil which I have seen under the sun and it is prevalent 2among men-- 2a man to whom God has 3given riches and wealth and honor so that his soul 4lacks nothing of all that he desires; yet God has not empowered him to eat from them, for a foreigner 5enjoys them. This is 6vanity and a severe affliction. 3If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, however many 7they be, but his soul is not satisfied with good things and he does not even have a proper 8burial, then I say, “Better 9the miscarriage than he, 4for it comes in futility and goes into obscurity; and its name is covered in obscurity. 5It never sees the sun and it never knows anything; 10it is better off than he. 6Even if the other man lives a thousand years twice and does not 11enjoy good things--12do not all go to one place?”

713All a man’s labor is for his mouth and yet the 14appetite is not 15satisfied. 8For 16what advantage does the wise man have over the fool? What advantage does the poor man have, knowing how to walk before the living? 9What the eyes 17see is better than what the soul 18desires. This too is 19futility and a striving after wind.

10Whatever 20exists has already been named, and it is known what man is; for he 21cannot dispute with him who is stronger than he is. 11For there are many words which increase futility. What then is the advantage to a man? 12For who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime, during the few 22years of his futile life? He will 23spend them like a shadow. For who can tell a man 24what will be after him under the sun?