Ecclesiastes 6:1-6

2. It is possible to possess riches which cannot be enjoyed. Ecclesiastes 6:1-6

TEXT 6:1-6

1

There is an evil which I have seen under the sun and it is prevalent among men

2

a man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor so that his soul lacks nothing of all that he desires, but God has not empowered him to eat from them, for a foreigner enjoys them. This is vanity and a sore affliction.

3

If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, however they may be, but his soul is not satisfied with good things, and he does not even have a proper burial, then I say, Better the miscarriage than he,

4

for it comes in futility and goes into obscurity; and its name is covered in obscurity.

5

It never sees the sun and it never knows anything; it is better off than he.

6

Even if the other man lives a thousand years twice and does not enjoy good thingsdo not all go to one place?

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 6:1-6

146.

What is better than the rich man of this passage?

147.

Give the five reasons listed in the passage why the miscarriage is better than the rich man.

148.

Who gives men riches even when they are not enjoyed?

149.

What is the prevalent evil among men?

150.

What does the rich man lack of that which he desires?

151.

Who enjoys the fruit of the rich man's labor?

152.

The rich man's labor is considered vain because he is not satisfied with what? (Cf. Ecclesiastes 6:3)

153.

Would begetting of children be considered a great blessing?

154.

The rich man would not enjoy his riches even if he lived how many years? (Cf. Ecclesiastes 6:6)

155.

What is the one place where all men go?

PARAPHRASE 6:1-6

I observed one other misfortune that lies heavily upon men who live and labor under the sun, and I concluded that not only is the burden heavy, but it is also prevalent among men. That burden is this: A man has everything his heart desires and yet he does not enjoy it. God grants him riches, possessions and honor in his community. As a matter of fact, he has every materialistic benefit needed to satisfy his soul. Although God permits him to possess all and experience social prominence, God does not allow him to enjoy it. One who is a stranger receives it and enjoys it instead. This is indeed a heavy burden to bear. More than this, it is a misfortune marked with hollowness!
What can you say concerning a man who has everything except happiness? Even if he lives a good long time, is honored in his community, and is the father of a hundred children, and, yet, doesn-'t enjoy what he has, or doesn-'t even receive a proper burial when he dies, he would be better off not to have been born. It is my conclusion that a stillborn child is better off than he! I know that sounds extreme, but here are my reasons for such a conclusion: The stillborn has no name; it is marked with total futility; it leaves in darkness just as it arrived in darkness; and although it never saw the sun and never knew anything, it rests in greater peace than he.
The important thing is to discover joy and find contentment. What good is there if one lives for two thousand years if he cannot share in either of these? Do we not all finally come to the grave anyway?

COMMENT 6:1-6

This entire chapter continues the theme of the futility of riches. The poor would discover some comfort in the fact that since he is poor he is not sharing in the evil which lies heavy on so many others. However, the message is directed toward the one who is able to gather and collect and yet fail to enjoy. The Preacher now turns to another side of the deceitfulness of riches and would have his reader note carefully that it is not possible to find satisfaction through possessions, where God does not permit, even when those possessions include everything the heart could desire!

Ecclesiastes 6:1 Wealth is relative. To the poor, a rich man is one who possesses more than he does. Thus, it is possible that a lesson is held in these verses for every man. Solomon does say that the incident which he has in mind is common or prevalent among men. In other words, one can see it everywhere. He also identifies it as an evil and influenced by vanity as it takes place once again under the sun. It is not to be thought of, therefore, as an incidental ill or burden but one that is heavy upon many men. When one looks to possessions for comfort and security and thus places his confidence in that which he owns, he is a prime candidate for the message the Preacher now proclaims.

Ecclesiastes 6:2 God is involved in this example in two ways: first, He permits the man to acquire all that his heart desires; secondly, He does not permit the man to enjoy what he has acquired. The first part of this verse is more easily understood. One can readily see that it is because of God's providential activities working through His laws of nature that we have material success upon this earth. Jesus spoke to this point when he said that God causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:45). It is evident that although men do not acknowledge that their success in gathering and collecting materialistic things comes as a direct result of God's blessing, it nevertheless does. The mercy of God is demonstrated in the apparent success of the wicked. Such success should be a means of bringing the wicked to the acknowledgment that his wealth is a result of God's goodness and thus come to repentance and humility before Him. However, men often gather and collect and fail to acknowledge God in their endeavors. It is this kind of man who also fails to enjoy what he possesses. The Preacher states that God does not empower him to eat from them. The phrase to eat from them is a metaphor for to enjoy them. Just what does enjoy mean in this instance? Or more to the point, how can one fail to enjoy such possessions when he has everything his heart desires? This part is not so easily explained.

What the one who accumulated the riches failed to do, the stranger who inherits them does. It is said of the stranger or foreigner, and this should be understood as one who is not of the same family or rightful live to inherit the wealth, that he does enjoy them. That is, he eats from them with great satisfaction. To say that God does not empower the rich man to enjoy what he has accumulated is stating that the rich man cannot divorce himself from the power of his wealth. He is still greedy of gain; he is hoarding his riches to his own hurt; he is not content and perhaps he fails in health as a result of his avaricious spirit and thus cannot use what he has gathered together. Whatever the cause of such failure to enjoy, it is spoken of that God does not permit it simply because God's laws will not permit such to find joy. God has ordained that personal fulfillment and joy are to be found only within the confines which he has established. One who chooses to live outside such an area may be able, because of God's mercy, to gather and collect great amounts of wealth, but he will not genuinely enjoy it!

When riches capture the heart and control the will of an individual, it is indeed an evil. Such evil is common among men. In addition, Solomon speaks of it as vanity and a sore affliction. That which one believed would fulfill his life and bring lasting satisfaction has created an emptiness instead and is making a hollow mockery of life itself. Not only is this true of possessions, it is also true of prominent positions (Cf. Ecclesiastes 4:13). Honor suggests that the man has a place of respect in his community. The idea that he lacks nothing speaks entirely to the elements of this world which are marked with futility. In contrast James speaks of one who is perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (James 1:4). There is a marked difference. The man in Ecclesiastes has every possible physical need met and all that his heart desires; yet he is not enjoying life. The man in James may not have any physical blessings and yet lacks nothing. The difference? The Christian man of whom James speaks is content because he possesses wisdom from above and potentially all the blessings in Christ are his (Colossians 2:3). Contentment in Christ is not a result of riches, prestige, health or long life. Rather, it is a result of spiritual maturity. Therefore, the poor man is to glory in his high position (in Christ) and the rich man rejoice in that he has been brought to see that his riches will not bring him enjoyment and he has been humbled and divorced from the control his possessions held over his life. Study James 1:1-11.

Ecclesiastes 6:3 Our attention has been drawn to riches, possessions and prominence in the community. Perhaps, one may reason, a large family and long life will surely bring personal joy. But, no, the Preacher reasons that though one fathers a hundred children and lives for two thousand years (Ecclesiastes 6:6) this will not change the picture. It would certainly add to his list of blessings which God permits him to have, but the additional blessings are not of such a nature that they in themselves will produce the joy.

The failure to have a proper burial was a disgrace (Isaiah 14:19-20). The tragedy of the rich man is compounded as he has everything his heart desires except the means of enjoyment, and now at the end of his useless and hollow life he has no burial. To leave a body upon the ground to be devoured by animals or fowls of the air was reserved for the enemies of Israel or the despicable members of their society. (Cf. 1 Samuel 17:46; Jeremiah 22:18-19) It is not noted as to the reason why the rich man does not have a burial, but circumstances of life led to this unfortunate conclusion. To face such a reality is indeed a heavy burden especially in light of the unlimited wealth the rich man possessed, to say nothing of the fact that he was honored in his community.

Once again the qualifying mark of such a man is the fact that his soul was not satisfied with good things. He has placed his values on things of this earth rather than being content with each day's activities. The sorrow and bitterness of such a wasted life is intensified in the following analogy. He compares such a wasted life with a stillborn baby and concludes that miscarriage is better!

Ecclesiastes 6:4-5 The baby born prematurely or born dead is said to be better off than the rich man. This is a strange conclusion because the child has no name, is not honored in the community, knows nothing, and never experiences one day of life. It is nameless, unrecorded, unburied and unremembered! Yet, such an untimely birth is more to be desired than the long life of the rich man under consideration. The key appears in the marginal reading of verse five in the NASV. Here it reads, more rest has this one than that. The idea of rest is the reason why the one is desired above the other. It has previously been noted that when a rich man places his ultimate values on riches that he is restless at night and is unduly concerned for his riches during his waking hours. In other words, he has been robbed of rest. The stillborn does not experience the perpetual restlessness of the rich. Certainly one must agree that the description of the stillborn is depressing and undesirable. Yet, whatever the plight of the untimely birth, it is better than the misery of a covetous man! Rest may suggest freedom from suffering. The entire picture leads one to the conclusion that such rich men in any society are to be objects of pity rather than envy.

Ecclesiastes 6:6 There are three significant points in this verse: (1) Regardless of how long one may live, even if it is twice as long as the longest life recorded, it would not change the circumstances nor would one come to different conclusions, (2) the reason being that the man who is under consideration did not enjoy good things. This is the equivalent of verses two and three which teach that God did not permit him to enjoy life. (3) Both the stillborn and the rich man will return to dust and, in the grave as it were, there will be no remembrance of previous things. It is on the basis of these arguments that the conclusion is drawn that an untimely birth is better than living in the midst of plenty and yet failing to divorce oneself from an avaricious spirit.

FACT QUESTIONS 6:1-6

271.

What theme is continued here?

272.

How could the poor find some comfort in this passage?

273.

Why does one fail to enjoy riches even when he has all his heart desires? Discuss.

274.

Explain what is meant by the statement, wealth is relative.

275.

Who is a prime candidate for the Preacher's message?

276.

In what two ways is God involved in this example? (Cf. Ecclesiastes 6:2)

277.

How does God permit evil men to acquire wealth?

278.

What should such blessings from God lead even evil men to do?

279.

What is meant by the metaphor to eat from them?

280.

Who is a foreigner?

281.

What does the foreigner do?

282.

List the possible causes why the rich man fails to enjoy his riches.

283.

What is suggested by honor?

284.

In what sense can one lack nothing and still be miserable?

285.

What does James mean when he speaks of one who lacks nothing?

286.

What two additional blessings come from God? (Cf. Ecclesiastes 6:3)

287.

Who usually failed to receive burial?

288.

List the characteristics of the stillborn.

289.

What is the key that makes the untimely birth better than the long life of the rich man?

290.

List the three significant points in verse six which serve as his final arguments for his conclusion.