ECCLESIASTES 6  n There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: 2a man  o to whom  p God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he  q lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God  r does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; [1] it is a grievous evil. 3[†]If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that  s the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life’s  t good things, and he also has no  u burial, I say that  v a stillborn child is better off than he. 4For it comes in vanity and goes in darkness, and in darkness its name is covered. 5Moreover, it has not  w seen the sun or known anything, yet it finds  x rest rather than he. 6Even though he should live a thousand years twice over, yet enjoy [2] no good—do not all go to the one place?

7 y All the toil of man is for his mouth, yet his appetite is not satisfied. [3] 8For what advantage has the wise man  z over the fool? And what does the poor man have who knows how to conduct himself before the living? 9Better  a is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite: this also is  b vanity and a striving after wind.

10[†]Whatever has come to be has  c already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to  d dispute with one stronger than he. 11The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? 12[†]For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his  e vain [4] life, which he passes like  f a shadow? For who can tell man what will be  g after him under the sun?