¹⁸So I hated all my toil with which I have toiled under the sun, for I must leave it behind to someone who will be after me. ¹⁹And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will exercise control of all the fruit of my toil with which I toiled wisely under the sun. This also is vanity!

²⁰So I began to despair^v of all the toil with which I toiled under the sun. ²¹For there is a person who toils with wisdom and knowledge and skill, but he must leave his reward to someone who has not toiled for it. This also is vanity and a great calamity. ²²For what does a person receive for all his toil and in the longing of his heart with which he toils under the sun? ²³All his days are painful, his labor brings grief, and his heart cannot rest at night. This also is vanity!

It is Best to Simply Enjoy the Passing Pleasures of Life as Reward for Pleasing God

²⁴There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and find delight^w in his toil. For I also realized that this is from the hand of God! ²⁵For who can eat, and who can enjoy life apart from him?^x ²⁶For to the person who is good in his eyes, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and heaping up only to give it to him who is pleasing in the eyes of God. This also is vanity and chasing wind!

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Footnotes

vLiterally “I myself turned to cause my heart to despair”
wLiterally “to see good”
xThe MT reads “more than me,” which is supported by Aramaic Targum and Latin Vulgate, but several medieval Hebrew manuscripts read “from him”