Ecclesiastes 6:5

5 and he would never have seen the sun or known of its existence. Yet he would have had more peace than in growing up to be an unhappy man.

Ecclesiastes 6:5 Meaning and Commentary

Ecclesiastes 6:5

Moreover, he hath not seen the sun
This must be spoken of the abortive, and seems to confirm the sense of the former text, as belonging to it; and whereas it has never seen the light of the sun, nor enjoyed the pleasure and comfort of it, it is no ways distressing to it to be without it. The Targum is,

``the light of the law he seeth not; and knoweth not between good and evil, to judge between this world and that to come:''

so the Vulgate Latin version, "neither knows the difference of good and evil"; nor known [anything];
not the sun, nor anything else: or "experienced" ^F26 and "felt" the heat of the sun, and its comfortable influences; which a man may, who is blind, and has never seen it, but an abortive has not; and indeed has known no man, nor any creature nor thing in this world, and therefore it is no concern to it to be without them; and besides, has never had any knowledge or experience of the troubles of lifts, which every living man is liable to. Wherefore this is certain, this hath more rest than the other;
that is, the abortive than the covetous man; having never been distressed with the troubles of life, and now not affected with the sense of loss.

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FOOTNOTES:

F26 (edy alw) "ueque expertus est", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Rambachius, so Broughton.

Ecclesiastes 6:5 In-Context

3 A man might have a hundred children and live to be very old. But if he finds no satisfaction in life and doesn’t even get a decent burial, it would have been better for him to be born dead.

4 His birth would have been meaningless, and he would have ended in darkness. He wouldn’t even have had a name,

5 and he would never have seen the sun or known of its existence. Yet he would have had more peace than in growing up to be an unhappy man.

6 He might live a thousand years twice over but still not find contentment. And since he must die like everyone else—well, what’s the use?

7 All people spend their lives scratching for food, but they never seem to have enough.