What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
2 responses to “Ecclesiastes 2:22-26 (NIV)”
It seems that Solomon the wisest of all men was saying that a like not pleasing to God is meaningless in any accomplishment that a man could make.
Yes, I believe Solomon – the Sage – is warning us of just that fact. Accomplishments without God (whether by not acknowledging Him [when He exists] or by placing ourselves as god) are meaningless. The true test of whether our accomplishments will stand the “test” is identified in 1 Cor. 3? Well said Sister.