What is the meaning of Ecclesiastes 5:16? This too is a grievous affliction “Grievous” signals something painfully wrong in the life God designed. Solomon has just exposed the futility of hoarding riches only to lose them (Ecclesiastes 5:13-15). • Scripture repeatedly calls the pursuit of gain for its own sake an “affliction” (Ecclesiastes 6:2; 1 Timothy 6:10). • The word “too” links this verse to earlier laments about life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:14), reminding us that apart from God everything devolves into hardship and frustration. • Romans 8:20 notes that creation was subjected to futility, explaining why any effort divorced from eternal purpose feels grievous. Exactly as a man is born, so he will depart The verse now points to the inescapable bookends of life. • We enter and exit with nothing—Job 1:21; Psalm 49:17; 1 Timothy 6:7 echo the same truth. • Solomon stresses the word “exactly,” emphasizing the literal sameness of birth and death regarding possessions, status, or acclaim. • The thought pushes us to face mortality honestly: what we cling to now will not accompany us past the grave (Luke 12:20-21). What does he gain as he toils for the wind? “Toil” highlights strenuous labor; “wind” pictures something ungraspable. • Chasing wealth without God is like trying to net a breeze—once the hands open, nothing is there (Ecclesiastes 2:11; Proverbs 23:4-5). • Jesus presses the same point: “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). • The gospel offers the only lasting gain: treasures in heaven that do not fade or fail (Matthew 6:19-20). summary Ecclesiastes 5:16 confronts the reader with life’s stark reality: earthly riches are temporary, death is certain, and self-centered striving ends in emptiness. By exposing this “grievous affliction,” Scripture lovingly redirects us to seek eternal treasure in God Himself, where labor becomes meaningful and gain endures forever. |
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