The Futility of Wealth
The Teacher says not to be surprised by oppression and injustice in the province, since exploitative hierarchies reach upward through many layers of authority. He then notes that money never satisfies its lover, that increasing goods only increases those who consume them, and that while the laborer sleeps sweetly, the abundance of the rich often robs him of rest.
I8f you see the oppression of the poor and the denial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be astonished at the matter; for one official is watched by a superior, and others higher still are over them. 9The produce of the earth is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields. 10He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile. 11When good things increase, so do those who consume them; what then is the profit to the owner, except to behold them with his eyes? 12The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep.
The Teacher has seen wealth hoarded to its owner's harm and wealth lost so completely that nothing remains for a son to inherit. Since a person arrives naked and leaves naked, taking nothing in his hands, toiling for what cannot be kept becomes a grievous affliction marked by darkness, sorrow, sickness, and anger.
13There is a grievous evil I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner, 14or wealth lost in a failed venture, so when that man has a son there is nothing to pass on. 15As a man came from his mother’s womb, so he will depart again, naked as he arrived. He takes nothing for his labor to carry in his hands. 16This too is a grievous affliction: Exactly as a man is born, so he will depart. What does he gain as he toils for the wind? 17Moreover, all his days he eats in darkness, with much sorrow, sickness, and anger.
In contrast, the Teacher declares it good and fitting to eat, drink, and find satisfaction in one's labor during the few days God gives. Riches, wealth, the ability to enjoy them, acceptance of one's lot, and joy in work are all God's gifts, and when he grants that joy a person is carried through life without obsessive brooding over its brevity.
18Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of life that God has given him — for this is his lot. 19Furthermore, God has given riches and wealth to every man, and He has enabled him to enjoy them, to accept his lot, and to rejoice in his labor. This is a gift from God. 20For a man seldom considers the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with the joy of his heart.