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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0;"/><title>Ecclesiastes 6 Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/commentaries/expositors/ecclesiastes/6.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/5001.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 4800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 4800px)" href="/4801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1550px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1550px)" href="/1551.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1250px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1250px)" href="/1251.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1050px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1050px)" href="/1051.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 900px), only screen and (max-device-width: 900px)" href="/901.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 800px)" href="/801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 575px), only screen and (max-device-width: 575px)" href="/501.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-height: 450px), only screen and (max-device-height: 450px)" href="/h451.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/ecclesiastes/6.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="//biblehu.com/bmcom/ecclesiastes/6-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="//biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="/commentaries/">Commentary</a> > <a href="../">Ellicott</a> > <a href="../ecclesiastes/">Ecclesiastes</a></div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../ecclesiastes/5.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 5">◄</a> Ecclesiastes 6 <a href="../ecclesiastes/7.htm" title="Ecclesiastes 7">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</div><div class="chap"> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-1.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:1</a></div><div class="verse">There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it <i>is</i> common among men:</div><span class= "bld">VI.</span><p>(1) <span class= "bld">Common among.—</span>Rather, <span class= "ital">heavy upon. </span>In this section it is remarked how even when riches remain with a man to the end of his life they may fail to bring him any real happiness.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-2.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:2</a></div><div class="verse">A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this <i>is</i> vanity, and it <i>is</i> an evil disease.</div>(2) <span class= "bld">Riches, wealth, and honour.—</span>The three words are used together regarding Solomon (<a href="/2_chronicles/1-11.htm" title="And God said to Solomon, Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches, wealth, or honor, nor the life of your enemies, neither yet have asked long life; but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge my people, over whom I have made you king:">2Chronicles 1:11</a>).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-3.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:3</a></div><div class="verse">If a man beget an hundred <i>children</i>, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also <i>that</i> he have no burial; I say, <i>that</i> an untimely birth <i>is</i> better than he.</div>(3) That a man should be so occupied in the pursuit of riches as never to take any enjoyment from them is a common experience enough; but that the same man should have no sepulchre to preserve his name after him need not necessarily happen, so that one is tempted to think that the Preacher has some actual occurrence in his mind.<p><span class= "bld">Untimely birth.</span>—See references. We have just had another reminiscence of the Book of Job. (See <a href="/ecclesiastes/5-15.htm" title="As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labor, which he may carry away in his hand.">Ecclesiastes 5:15</a>.)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-4.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:4</a></div><div class="verse">For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness.</div>(4) <span class= "bld">He.</span>—Rather, <span class= "ital">it—</span>viz., the untimely birth.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-6.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:6</a></div><div class="verse">Yea, though he live a thousand years twice <i>told</i>, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?</div>(6) <span class= "bld">Though.</span>—The conjunction here used is only found again in <a href="/esther/7-4.htm" title="For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. But if we had been sold for slaves and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the enemy could not countervail the king's damage.">Esther 7:4</a>.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-8.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:8</a></div><div class="verse">For what hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living?</div>(8) <span class= "bld">That knoweth to walk.—</span><span class= "ital">Understands how to conduct himself. </span>But why this should be limited to the poor is not obvious.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-10.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:10</a></div><div class="verse">That which hath been is named already, and it is known that it <i>is</i> man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.</div>(10) Of this difficult verse I prefer the translation, “What he is his name has been called long ago, and it is known that it is man; neither may he strive,” &c—<span class= "ital">i.e., </span>the name given long ago to man (<a href="/genesis/2-7.htm" title="And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.">Genesis 2:7</a>) indicates his weakness; neither can he contend with the Almighty. There may be a reference to <a href="/genesis/6-3.htm" title="And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.">Genesis 6:3</a>, where a kindred word is used.<p><span class= "bld">Mightier.</span>—The word here used is found only in the Chaldee books of the Bible and in later Hebrew.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-11.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:11</a></div><div class="verse">Seeing there be many things that increase vanity, what <i>is</i> man the better?</div>(11) <span class= "bld">Things.</span>—We might also translate “words.”<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/ecclesiastes/6-12.htm">Ecclesiastes 6:12</a></div><div class="verse">For who knoweth what <i>is</i> good for man in <i>this</i> life, all the days of his vain life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?</div>(12) <span class= "bld">As a shadow.—</span><a href="/ecclesiastes/8-13.htm" title="But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he fears not before God.">Ecclesiastes 8:13</a>; <a href="/job/14-2.htm" title="He comes forth like a flower, and is cut down: he flees also as a shadow, and continues not.">Job 14:2</a>.<p><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers<br /><br />Text Courtesy of <a href="//biblesupport.com" target="_top">BibleSupport.com</a>. 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