What is the meaning of Ecclesiastes 6:4? For a stillborn child enters in futility – “For a stillborn child enters in futility” (Ecclesiastes 6:4a) • Solomon has just compared a wealthy man who never enjoys God’s gifts to a baby who never breathes outside the womb. Both arrive in the world with unrealized potential. • The word “futility” echoes the book’s recurring theme: “Vanity of vanities” (Ecclesiastes 1:2). Life without enjoying God’s provision is as empty as vapor. • Psalm 39:6 pictures the same emptiness: “Surely every man goes about like a phantom; surely they bustle in vain.” • Jesus warns against piling up abundance without a soul anchored in God (Luke 12:15–21). and departs in darkness – “…and departs in darkness” (Ecclesiastes 6:4b) • The stillborn child never sees daylight; likewise, lives spent without God’s joy end in a shadowed finale. • Job spoke of hidden, dark existence for the unborn (Job 3:16), again highlighting the severe statement Solomon makes. • John 3:19 teaches that people who love darkness lose the light they were offered. A life that never steps into God’s light finishes where it began—dark and unseen. and his name is shrouded in obscurity – “…and his name is shrouded in obscurity” (Ecclesiastes 6:4c) • In biblical culture a name carries identity and legacy. The stillborn child’s name is unrecorded, wiped from earthly memory. • Solomon says the same is true for the prosperous person who never tastes God’s goodness—his identity ultimately fades. Compare Proverbs 10:7: “The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.” • Revelation 3:5 reassures believers that their names remain in the Book of Life. Assurance stands in stark contrast to the namelessness Solomon describes for those who live yet never truly live. summary Ecclesiastes 6:4 uses the heartbreaking image of a stillborn infant to expose the tragedy of a life void of God’s joy. Entering in futility, departing in darkness, and ending without a name portray the empty loop of existence when wealth or achievement substitutes for a relationship with the Giver. In Christ we receive light, meaning, and a name that endures. |
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