Money and Wealth in the Bible — A Reading of Ecclesiates

Ecclesiastes is probably my favorite book in the Bible because it is a little bit cynical, and at the same time full of hope and faith. It’s a book that matches my personality very well and it has quite a few acute observations about human nature and wealth. Whenever I feel discontent about my career or wealth I read this book and it really puts things in perspective. Here I will highlight some timeless verses from the book, with my comments on how they relate to me.

Chapter 1:

What does a man gain from all his labor which he toils under the sun? Ecc 1:3

 

This is the main topic of Ecclesiastes. What do we gain from working and living? In other words, why are we here? What do we get for working for most of our lives? I think everyone asks this question once or twice.

“Is there a thing of which it may be said, “Behold, this is new?” It has been long ago, in the ages which were before us. There is no memory of the former; neither shall there be any memory of the latter that are to come, among those that shall come after.” Ecc 1:10-11

This verse can be interpreted to mean that history repeats itself and we only think that something is new because we no longer remember that it happened or existed before. For me, it means that there is no point for me to participate in fads and fashions and purchase the most popular and flashy thing. This verse is especially true for technology products, because people are trying to reinvent the wheel all the time, and many companies and products are very quickly forgotten.

Chapter 2:

The entire second chapter of Ecclesiastes is great reading because it shows that rich people aren’t necessarily happy. The author (who is usually believed to be King Solomon) set out to accumulate great wealth and he successfully gathered a fortune that was above all who were before him in Jerusalem. (Ecc 2:9) Yet he says “so I hated life, because the work that is worked under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind. I hated all my labor in which I labored under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me. Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have rule over all of my labor in which I have labored, and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.“ Ecc 2:17-19 In these verses the author realizes that he can’t take his wealth with him when he dies, and he has collected so much just to give it to others. This is true of anyone with too much wealth. Bill Gates and Warren Buffet are great examples. They’ve worked their entire lives just to give their enormous wealth to others. Additionally when people make too much money they also pay large amounts of taxes, which is also distributed to others. I don’t think leaving your wealth to others is necessarily a bad thing, but what really struck a chord with me is verse 19 when the author questions whether the receiver of his hard earned fortune is a “wise man or a fool”. At this very moment my tax dollars are being spent on mortgage bailouts, the war in Iraq, and probably ten thousand other issues that I consider foolish, but what can I do about it? Some hope and answers are offered in chapter 3.

Chapter 3:

For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:
a time to be born,and a time to die;
a time to plant,and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
What profit has he who works in that in which he labors? I have seen the burden which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can’t find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end. – Ecc 3:1-11

These chapter offers encouragement that God has a plan for everything, but God is eternal and timeless so that we don’t know what he has already done for us. It also encourages me to have patience, because eventually I will experience God’s work.

Chapter 3 also has this verse, which is a good verse for those who hate their jobs:

And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God. Ecc: 3:13

Chapters 4 & 5.

These chapters are mostly about all the people that are not satisfied with what they have. It’s a little comical in some parts.

Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. The fool folds his hands together and ruins himself. Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind. Ecc 4:4-6

Verse 4 sums up what we call today “keeping up with the Joneses”, and basically says that labor driven by envy is pretty pointless. Verse 5 is sometimes also translated as “The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh”, which means that some people are so lazy that they don’t work at all and end up eating themselves. I thought that was funny because my mom told me of a story once of an extremely lazy child who died from starvation even when his mom put a giant pie on his head. This verse reminded me of that story. The opposite of these fools are people are those who work for a lot more than they need, and they’re the ones who have “two handfuls” in verse 6. This brings to mind of those people who bought “McMansions” only to work two jobs to keep their homes. So it is best to be at the middle ground which is work and earn the “handful” I need and be happy with it.

Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun. There is one who is alone, and he has neither son nor brother. There is no end to all of his labor, neither are his eyes satisfied with wealth. “For whom then, do I labor, and deprive my soul of enjoyment?” This also is vanity. Yes, it is a miserable business. Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. Ecc 4:7-9

I have met people like this who really have way more money they can spend, but still isn’t satisfied. A good example is my company’s CEO whose networth is probably a few hundred million, but he is single and still works to 2am sometimes. I can’t say if he finds it miserable, but I probably would find it fairly depressing if all I had in my life was work. For me, two are definitely better than one, and I wouldn’t trade my hubby for a few hundred million dollars.

He who loves silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase: this also is vanity. When goods increase, those who eat them are increased; and what advantage is there to its owner, except to feast on them with his eyes? The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not allow him to sleep. There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owner to his harm. Ecc 5:10-13

I think these verses give the answer to why people are always pursuing more money. When I first read this I also thought that he meant those who have more to eat got fatter (increased), and that’s harmful to the wealthy. Then again, not all rich people are fat. I think mostly it means that when you have more money it also becomes harder to manage and there is a fear of losing that wealth. Thus the “abundance” sometimes makes the rich lose sleep. Instead of sleeping they could be working to get more money, or managing their money. So wealth produces more work and stress. I have felt that in my life when I am really afraid that the stock market will tank or maybe someone will just steal everything I own, but what I should really be doing is to enjoy what I have been given. So I am still working on this, so that what I have been given does not become harmful to me.

Chapter 6:

There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is heavy on men: a man to whom God gives riches, wealth, and honor, so that he lacks nothing for his soul of all that he desires, yet God gives him no power to eat of it, but an alien eats it. This is vanity, and it is an evil disease. Ecc 6:1-2

The author speaks of a common affliction of the wealthy. There are many who are blessed with all the riches they desire, but are still depressed and conflicted. Just walk into a supermarket and you’ll see tabloids plastered with pictures of celebrities who could buy everything but happiness. Basically, wealth without the power to enjoy it is worthless, and “an alien” would enjoy it instead. I think the alien here means someone you’re unfamiliar with. For example, there are often stories of people who win lotteries and then suddenly random relatives pop out of the woodworks to befriend them. Money sometimes attracts people who aren’t really your friends, and they may enjoy your wealth more than you. If that happens then there is no point to having all that money.

There are a lot more great verses in this book, and I feel grounded when I read it. Ultimately the book says that God gives people all that they have, and if we enjoy what we’re given it is a gift from God. Also, without some sort of afterlife or eternity every bit of wealth we collect here on earth is meaningless and empty.

Share This

Related Posts