Under the Sun, Only Faith Stands

I said to myself, “Come, I will treat you to merriment. Taste mirth!” That too, I found, was futile. Of revelry I said, “It’s mad!”Of merriment, “What good is that?” I ventured to tempt my flesh with wine, and to grasp folly, while letting my mind direct with wisdom, to the end that I might learn which of the two was better for mortals to practice in their few days of life under heaven. I multiplied my possessions. I built myself houses and I planted vineyards. I laid out gardens and groves, in which I planted every kind of fruit tree. I constructed pools of water, enough to irrigate a forest shooting up with trees. I bought male and female slaves, and I acquired stewards. I also acquired more cattle, both herds and flocks, than all who were before me in Jerusalem. I further amassed silver and gold and treasures of kings and provinces; and I got myself male and female singers, as well as the luxuries of commoners—coffers occurs only here in the Bible; in the Mishnah it designates a kind of chest. and coffers of them. Thus, I gained more wealth than anyone before me in Jerusalem. In addition, my wisdom remained with me: I withheld from my eyes nothing they asked for, and denied myself no enjoyment; rather, I got enjoyment out of all my wealth. And that was all I got out of my wealth. Then my thoughts turned to all the fortune my hands had built up, to the wealth I had acquired and won—and oh, it was all futile and pursuit of wind; there was no real value under the sun! For what will the man be like who will succeed the one who is ruling over what was built up long ago?My thoughts also turned to appraising wisdom and madness and folly. I found thatWisdom is superior to follyAs light is superior to darkness; The wise have their eyes in their head,Whereas fools walk in darkness.But I also realized that the same fate awaits them all. So I reflected: “The fate of the fool is also destined for me; to what advantage, then, have I been wise?” And I came to the conclusion that that too was futile, because the wise, just like the foolish, are not remembered forever; for, as the succeeding days roll by, both are forgotten. Alas, the wise die, just like the foolish! And so I loathed life. For I was distressed by all that goes on under the sun, because everything is futile and pursuit of wind. So, too, I loathed all the wealth that I was gaining under the sun. For I shall leave it to the man who will succeed me— and who knows whether he will be wise or foolish?—and he will control all the wealth that I gained by toil and wisdom under the sun. That too is futile. And so I came to view with despair all the gains I had made under the sun. For sometimes a person whose fortune was made with wisdom, knowledge, and skill must hand it on to be the portion of somebody who did not toil for it. That too is futile, and a grave evil. For what do mortals get for all the toiling and worrying they do under the sun? All their days their thoughts are grief and heartache, and even at night their mind has no respite. That too is futile! There is nothing worthwhile for mortals but to eat and drink and afford themselves enjoyment with their means. And even that, I noted, comes from God. For who eats and who enjoys but myself?, “by God’s doing.” One, namely, who pleases [God] is given the wisdom and shrewdness for enjoyment; while one who displeases is given the urge to gather and amass—only for handing on to someone who is pleasing to God. That too is futile and pursuit of wind.

Ecclesiastes 2:1-20 records Solomon's grand experiment: laughter, wine, great building projects, gardens, slaves, silver, gold, singers, and every luxury—yet each pursuit ends with the verdict that it was 'futile, a pursuit of wind.' Wisdom proves better than folly, but even the wise share the fool's fate. The passage clears the ground for faith: human accomplishment, however magnificent, cannot bear the weight of the soul.