Ecclesiastes 4:4-6
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
4 Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from one person’s envy of another. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind.(A)
5 Fools fold their hands
and consume their own flesh.(B)
6 Better is a handful with quiet
than two handfuls with toil
and a chasing after wind.(C)
Ecclesiastes 4:4-6
Lexham English Bible
People Need Balance in Their Approach to Labor
4 I also realized that all of the toil and all of the skillful work that is done—it is envy between one man and another.[a] This also is vanity and chasing wind!
5 The fool refuses to work with his hands,
so he has nothing to eat except his own skin![b]
6 Better is one handful with peace
than two fists full with toil and chasing wind.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 4:4 Literally “his friend”
- Ecclesiastes 4:5 Literally “The fool folds his hands and eats his flesh”
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software