Ecclesiastes has an overall negative tone towards many of the elements or life for which humans strive. Wisdom brings sorrow. Pleasure is futile and temporary. Labor and the rewards of hard work add up to material possession that you can’t take with you. Power and money are also futile in the grand scheme of God’s plan. As we examine Ecclesiastes 6, we see the final investigation by the teacher — the futility of wealth and life itself.
While Ecclesiastes 5 was focused on the pursuit of money and monetary riches, Chapter 6 investigates the meaning of life through the lifestyles of the wealthy. The teacher’s conclusion is that “champagne wishes and caviar dreams” are just like pleasure — fleeting. While wealthy people can live healthier lifestyles and possibly prolong their lives, the life of man compared to eternity is still small. In the ancient world, the wise teacher observed that there was no difference in the poor and the wealthy in the end.
Ecclesiastes 6:10
That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it is man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.
