What is the meaning of Ecclesiastes 6:5? The child Solomon is speaking of a stillborn infant, introduced in the previous verses (Ecclesiastes 6:3–4). Scripture treats this little one as a real person—created by God, possessing dignity, yet never taking a breath in the daylight world. Job voiced a similar thought: “Or like a stillborn I would not be, like infants who never see the light” (Job 3:16). That comparison grounds the discussion in the stark reality that even an unborn life matters to God (Psalm 139:13–16) and can be weighed against the life of an adult. Though neither seeing the sun The stillborn child “never sees the sun,” never enjoys the warmth and brightness Solomon often celebrates (Ecclesiastes 11:7). In biblical imagery, sunlight pictures the joys and opportunities of earthly life (Psalm 84:11). By stating that the child never experiences even that first sunrise, Solomon highlights how completely the child misses every earthly pleasure, yet the conclusion of the verse will still favor the infant. Nor knowing anything Because life ends in the womb, the child “knows nothing” of human achievement, relationships, success, or sorrow. Ecclesiastes 9:5 notes that “the dead know nothing,” underscoring the absence of conscious participation in this world. The unborn infant’s ignorance is total; nevertheless, Scripture teaches that ignorance of earthly toil can actually spare one from vanity and grief (Job 3:17–19). Has more rest Remarkably, Solomon insists the child “has more rest.” Rest in Scripture speaks of relief from labor and trouble (Hebrews 4:9; Revelation 14:13). The stillborn’s rest is immediate and unbroken—no striving after wind, no frustration with futility, no endless toil under the sun. In contrast, the prosperous man described in Ecclesiastes 6:1–2 enjoys material abundance yet cannot “enjoy the good things God gives,” so his soul remains restless despite outward success. Than that man “That man” refers to the wealthy individual whose prosperity is consumed by strangers and who departs this life unsatisfied (Ecclesiastes 6:2). Possessions without contentment make his days “meaningless” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). Solomon’s startling conclusion is that a life cut short before it begins is preferable to a long, affluent life devoid of joy in God—echoing his earlier verdict: “Better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil done under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 4:3). summary Ecclesiastes 6:5 confronts us with a counter-intuitive truth: a stillborn child, though never tasting the smallest delight of earthly life, enjoys deeper rest than a prosperous adult who lacks the God-given ability to savor his blessings. The verse underscores the sanctity of unborn life, the emptiness of wealth without contentment, and the reality that true rest comes not from what we possess or experience but from being freed from the curse of toil and vanity. |
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