Parallel Bible results for "ecclesiastes 6"

Ecclesiastes 6

New Living Translation NLT

1 There is another serious tragedy I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily on humanity.

2 God gives some people great wealth and honor and everything they could ever want, but then he doesn’t give them the chance to enjoy these things. They die, and someone else, even a stranger, ends up enjoying their wealth! This is meaningless—a sickening tragedy.

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.

8 So are wise people really better off than fools? Do poor people gain anything by being wise and knowing how to act in front of others?

9 Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind.

10 Everything has already been decided. It was known long ago what each person would be. So there’s no use arguing with God about your destiny.

11 The more words you speak, the less they mean. So what good are they?

12 In the few days of our meaningless lives, who knows how our days can best be spent? Our lives are like a shadow. Who can tell what will happen on this earth after we are gone?

Common English Bible CEB

1 I saw a tragedy under the sun, and it weighs heavily upon humanity.

2 God may give some people plenty of wealth, riches, and glory so that they lack nothing they desire. But God doesn't enable them to enjoy it; instead, a stranger enjoys it. This is pointless and a sickening tragedy.

3 Some people may have one hundred children and live a long life. But no matter how long they live, if they aren't content with life's good things, I say that even a stillborn child with no grave is better off than they are.

4 Because that child arrives pointlessly, then passes away in darkness. Darkness covers its name.

5 It hasn't seen the sun or experienced anything. But it has more peace than those

6 who live a thousand years twice over but don't enjoy life's good things. Isn't everyone heading to the same destination?

7 All the hard work of humans is for the mouth, but the appetite is never full.

8 What advantage do the wise have over the foolish? Or what do the poor gain by knowing how to conduct themselves before the living?

9 It's better to enjoy what's at hand than to have an insatiable appetite. This too is pointless, just wind chasing.

10 Whatever happens has already been designated, and human beings are fully known. They can't contend with the one who is stronger than they are.

11 Because the more words increase, the more everything is pointless. What do people gain by it?

12 Because who knows what's good for human beings during life, during their brief pointless life, which will pass away like a shadow? Who can say what the future holds for people under the sun?