22 For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun?
22 For what hath H1933 man H120 of all his labour, H5999 and of the vexation H7475 of his heart, H3820 wherein H1931 he hath laboured H6001 under the sun? H8121
22 For what hath a man of all his labor, and of the striving of his heart, wherein he laboreth under the sun?
22 For what hath been to a man by all his labour, and by the thought of his heart that he laboured at under the sun?
22 For what will man have of all his labour and of the striving of his heart, wherewith he hath wearied himself under the sun?
22 For what has a man of all his labor, and of the striving of his heart, in which he labors under the sun?
22 What does a man get for all his work, and for the weight of care with which he has done his work under the sun?
What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth?
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.
Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.
All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled. For what hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living?
He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity. When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?
There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Ecclesiastes 2
Commentary on Ecclesiastes 2 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 2
Solomon having pronounced all vanity, and particularly knowledge and learning, which he was so far from giving himself joy of that he found the increase of it did but increase his sorrow, in this chapter he goes on to show what reason he has to be tired of this world, and with what little reason most men are fond of it.
Ecc 2:1-11
Solomon here, in pursuit of the summum bonum-the felicity of man, adjourns out of his study, his library, his elaboratory, his council-chamber, where he had in vain sought for it, into the park and the playhouse, his garden and his summer-house; he exchanges the company of the philosophers and grave senators for that of the wits and gallants, and the beaux-esprits, of his court, to try if he could find true satisfaction and happiness among them. Here he takes a great step downward, from the noble pleasures of the intellect to the brutal ones of sense; yet, if he resolve to make a thorough trial, he must knock at this door, because here a great part of mankind imagine they have found that which he was in quest of.
Ecc 2:12-16
Solomon having tried what satisfaction was to be had in learning first, and then in the pleasures of sense, and having also put both together, here compares them one with another and passes a judgment upon them.
Ecc 2:17-26
Business is a thing that wise men have pleasure in. They are in their element when they are in their business, and complain if they be out of business. They may sometimes be tired with their business, but they are not weary of it, nor willing to leave it off. Here therefore one would expect to have found the good that men should do, but Solomon tried this too; after a contemplative life and a voluptuous life, he betook himself to an active life, and found no more satisfaction in it than in the other; still it is all vanity and vexation of spirit, of which he gives an account in these verses, where observe,