Ecclesiastes 2:17-26

International Standard Version

¹⁷ So I hated life, because whatever is done on earth causes me trouble—it’s all pointless, like chasing after the wind.

The Pointlessness of Labor

¹⁸ Then I despised everything I had worked for on earth, that is, the things that I will leave to the person who will succeed me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Either way, he will take possession of everything that I have done on earth, especially where I have excelled. This also is pointless. ²⁰ So I came to be in despair about everything I had accomplished on earth. ²¹ For sometimes people who strive to obtain wisdom, knowledge, and equity leave everything as an inheritance to a person who never worked for it. This, too, is pointless and greatly troublesome.

²² For what does a person gain from everything that he accomplishes and from his inner life struggles that he undergoes while working on earth? ²³ Indeed, all of his days are filled with sorrow, and his struggles bring grief. In fact, his mind remains restless throughout the night. This is pointless, too!

The Central Point of Life

²⁴ The only worthwhile thing for a human being is to eat, drink, and enjoy life’s goodness that he finds in what he accomplishes. This, I observed, is also from the hand of God himself, ²⁵ for who can eat or enjoy life apart from him? ²⁶ After all, to the person who is good in God’s sight, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner he gives the troublesome task of acquiring and accumulating in order to leave it to someone who is good in the sight of God. This also is pointless and chasing after the wind.