Ecclesiastes 6
1 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:
2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease.
3 If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he.
4 For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness.
5 Moreover he hath not seen the sun, nor known any thing: this hath more rest than the other.
6 Yea, though he live a thousand years twice told, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?
7 All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
8 For what hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living?
9 Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit.
10 That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it is man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.
11 Seeing there be many things that increase vanity, what is man the better?
12 For who knoweth what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?
World Behind This Chapter
Explore the people, places, language, history, and material world connected to Ecclesiastes 6.
Why construct an extreme case of wealth and two thousand years of life?
The chapter exaggerates abundance, descendants, and longevity to isolate a wisdom problem: possession without the ability to enjoy it. The thought experiment tests assumptions rather than reporting a person’s biography.
What does “all the labor of man is for his mouth” evoke?
Food and appetite are deliberately basic. The line reduces complex labor and accumulation to bodily consumption, then asks why desire continues beyond what the body can use.
What does the repeated “who knows?” accomplish?
Questions about what is good and what follows a person after death mark boundaries of knowledge. They are a recurring literary tool in Ecclesiastes, not merely requests awaiting easy answers.
Research PathsCurated links for exploring this chapter 3
History & Daily Life1
- Wealth and Inequality in the Ancient WorldThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Illustrated museum essay on elite banquets, luxurious tableware, decorated dining spaces, conspicuous consumption, and the public display of status. Although Roman and later than Ecclesiastes, it provides a vivid comparison for chapter 6’s person who possesses wealth, honor, and abundance but lacks the ability to enjoy them.
Language & Literature2
- Ecclesiastes 6 in Hebrew and EnglishMechon Mamre
Presents the Hebrew text beside an English translation. Useful for tracing the chapter’s repeated vocabulary of wealth, honor, appetite, satisfaction, birth, burial, long life, darkness, desire, gain, and the unknowability of what follows a person’s brief life.
- Why Ecclesiastes Distinguishes Possession from EnjoymentTranslation Insights and Perspectives
Examines the chapter’s paradox of a wealthy person who receives possessions, honor, children, and long life yet cannot enjoy them. The notes clarify Qoheleth’s distinction between acquiring resources and possessing the capacity or opportunity to experience them as good.
Public Discussion
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