In chapter 1, Solomon concluded that everything is meaningless and fleeting because humanity rebelled against God and now lives in a cursed world where nothing we attempt to build our lives on will ultimately satisfy. If this cursed world is all there is, then there is no profit to all of our activity because nothing changes under the sun. Solomon told us we are trapped in a monotonous prison where nothing changes, and then we die. That led to Solomon giving
Ecclesiastes 2:1–11