The Evil of Oppression
The Teacher looks again at oppression and is struck by the tears of the powerless, who have no comforter while their oppressors hold authority. The horror of such injustice leads him to say that the dead are better off than the living, and better still is the one who has not yet seen the evil done under the sun.
A1gain I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter. 2So I admired the dead, who had already died, above the living, who are still alive. 3But better than both is he who has not yet existed, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.
The Teacher notices that much labor and success arise from rivalry with a neighbor, turning achievement into another form of futility. Yet idleness is no answer either, so he concludes that a small portion with tranquility is better than restless striving that grasps for more and chases the wind.
4I saw that all labor and success spring from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. 5The fool folds his hands 6Better one handful with tranquility
He then sees a solitary man with no family and no end to his labor, yet his eyes remain unsatisfied with wealth. Because he never pauses to ask for whom he is working or why he deprives himself of enjoyment, his busy life becomes another miserable expression of futility.
7Again, I saw futility under the sun. 8There is a man all alone, without even a son or brother. And though there is no end to his labor, his eyes are still not content with his wealth: “For whom do I toil and bereave my soul of enjoyment?” This too is futile — a miserable task.
Against lonely striving, the Teacher affirms that two are better than one because shared labor, help in falling, warmth in hardship, and strength in conflict all belong to companionship. The image of the threefold cord closes the section by presenting solidarity as a real, if limited, good in a fragile world.
9Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. 10For if one falls down, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to help him up! 11Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one keep warm alone? 12And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.