Ecclesiastes 5:1–6:12

Don’t Daydream or Speak Carelessly When You Worship

¹Watch your step when you go to the house of God. It is better to go there and listen than to bring the sacrifices fools bring. Fools are unaware that they are doing ⸤something⸥ evil. 

²Don’t be in a hurry to talk. Don’t be eager to speak in the presence of God. Since God is in heaven and you are on earth, limit the number of your words. 

³Daydreaming comes when there are too many worries. 

Careless speaking comes when there are too many words. 

⁴When you make a promise to God, don’t be slow to keep it because God doesn’t like fools. Keep your promise. ⁵It is better not to make a promise than to make one and not keep it. ⁶Don’t let your mouth talk you into committing a sin. Don’t say in the presence of a ⸤temple⸥ messenger, “My promise was a mistake!” Why should God become angry at your excuse and destroy what you’ve accomplished? 

⁷In spite of many daydreams, pointless actions, and empty words, you should still fear God. 

Corrupt Officials Have Corrupt Officials over Them

⁸Don’t be surprised if you see poor people being oppressed, denied justice, or denied their rights in any district. One authority is watching over another, and they both have authorities watching over them. ⁹Yet, a king is an advantage for a country with cultivated fields. 

The Value of Money

¹⁰Whoever loves money will never be satisfied with money. Whoever loves wealth will never be satisfied with more income. Even this is pointless. ¹¹As the number of goods increase, so do the number of people who consume them. What do owners gain ⸤from all their goods⸥ except ⸤the opportunity⸥ to look at them? 

¹²The sleep of working people is sweet, whether they eat a little or a lot. But the full stomachs that rich people have will not allow them to sleep. 

Economic Ruin

¹³There is a painful tragedy that I have seen under the sun: Riches lead to the downfall of those who hoard them. ¹⁴These hoarded riches were then lost in bad business deals. The owners had children, but now they have nothing to give them. ¹⁵They came from their mother’s womb naked. They will leave as naked as they came. They won’t even be able to take a handful of their earnings with them from all their hard work. 

¹⁶This also is a painful tragedy: They leave exactly as they came. What advantage do they gain from working so hard for the wind? ¹⁷They spend their entire lives in darkness, in constant frustration, sickness, and resentment. 

Conclusion: God Alone Gives Contentment

¹⁸At last I have seen what is good and beautiful: It is to eat and drink and to enjoy the good in all our hard work under the sun during the brief lives God gives us. That is our lot ⸤in life⸥. ¹⁹It is a gift from God when God gives some people wealth and possessions, the power to enjoy them, ⸤the ability⸥ to accept their lot in life, and ⸤the ability⸥ to rejoice in their own hard work. ²⁰These people won’t give much thought to their brief lives because God keeps them occupied with the joy in their hearts. 

6TH CHAPTER

The Rich Person and the Stillborn Baby

¹There is a tragedy that I have seen under the sun. It is a terrible one for mortals. ²God gives one person riches, wealth, and honor so that he doesn’t lack anything he wants. Yet, God doesn’t give him the power to enjoy any of them. Instead, a stranger enjoys them. This is pointless and is a painful tragedy. 

³Suppose a rich person wasn’t satisfied with good things ⸤while he was alive⸥ and didn’t even get an honorable burial ⸤after he died⸥. Suppose he had a hundred children and lived for many years. No matter how long he would have lived, it ⸤still⸥ would have been better for him to have been born dead. ⁴A stillborn baby arrives in a pointless birth and goes out into the darkness. The darkness then hides its name. ⁵Though it has never seen the sun or known anything, the baby finds more rest than the rich person. ⁶Even if the rich person lives two thousand years without experiencing anything good—don’t we all go to the same place? 

More Pointless Challenges

⁷Everything that people work so hard for goes into their mouths, but their appetite is never satisfied. 

⁸What advantage does a wise person have over a fool? What advantage does a poor person have in knowing how to face life? 

⁹It is better to look at what is in front of you than to go looking for what you want. Even this is pointless. ⸤It’s like⸥ trying to catch the wind. 

¹⁰Whatever has happened ⸤in the past⸥ already has a name. Mortals are already known for what they are. Mortals cannot argue with the one who is stronger than they. 

¹¹The more words there are, the more pointless they become. What advantage do mortals gain from this? ¹²Who knows what may be good for mortals while they are alive, during the brief, pointless days they live? Mortals pass by like a shadow. Who will tell them about their future under the sun?