📖 Ecclesiastes — Chapter 6 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Ecclesiastes 6:1 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:
Ecclesiastes 6:2 RA 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 is vanity, and it is an evil disease.
Ecclesiastes 6:3 If Ra man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he.
Ecclesiastes 6:4 For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and Rhis name shall be covered with darkness.
Ecclesiastes 6:5 Moreover he hath not seen the sun, nor known any thing: Rthis hath more rest than the other.
Ecclesiastes 6:6 Yea, Rthough he live a thousand years twice told, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?
Ecclesiastes 6:7 All Rthe labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the Tappetite is not filled.
Ecclesiastes 6:8 For Rwhat hath the wise more than the fool? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before the living?
Ecclesiastes 6:9 RBetter is the sight of the eyes Tthan the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit.
Ecclesiastes 6:10 That Rwhich hath been is named already, and it is known that it is man: neither may he contend with him that is mightier than he.
Ecclesiastes 6:11 Seeing there be many things that increase vanity, what is man the better?
Ecclesiastes 6:12 For Rwho knoweth what is good for man in this life, Tall 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?
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Ecclesiastes 6:1–4 — Possession without enjoyment
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Riches and honor can coexist with an inability to enjoy them. The stark comparison with an untimely birth exposes the ache of unsatisfied living.
Key Truth: Possession alone does not ensure fulfillment.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “There is an ____ which I have seen under the sun, and it is …” (Ecclesiastes 6:1)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:1 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “If a man beget an hundred ____ , and live many years, so that the days of …” (Ecclesiastes 6:3)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:3 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “For he cometh in with ____ , and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be …” (Ecclesiastes 6:4)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:4 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Ecclesiastes 6:5–8 — Length of life does not settle the question
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Long life, appetite, wisdom, and social skill cannot by themselves answer the common destination of death or secure complete satisfaction.
Key Truth: Do not measure life only by quantity.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “____ he hath not seen the sun, nor known any thing: …” (Ecclesiastes 6:5)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:5 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “All the labour of man is for his ____ , and yet the appetite is not filled.” (Ecclesiastes 6:7)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:7 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “For what hath the wise more than the ____ ? what hath the poor, that knoweth to walk before …” (Ecclesiastes 6:8)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:8 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Ecclesiastes 6:9–12 — Desire and the limits of knowing
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Present sight is set against wandering desire. Humanity cannot master the stronger one or confidently tell all that will follow under the sun.
Key Truth: Live humbly with limited knowledge.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “Seeing there be many things that increase ____ , what is man the better?” (Ecclesiastes 6:11)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:11 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “____ there be many things that increase vanity, what is man …” (Ecclesiastes 6:11)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:11 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “For who knoweth what is good for man in this ____ , all the days of his vain life which he …” (Ecclesiastes 6:12)
Find it in Ecclesiastes 6:12 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Luke 12:15 — Life does not consist in abundant possessions.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
Where does wandering desire keep you from receiving present good?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. What makes the wealthy man’s situation grievous?
2. What fails to compensate for not experiencing good?
3. What tension is described between labour and appetite?
4. What is preferred to the wandering of desire?
5. How do the closing questions emphasize human limits?
Notes
Write what you want to remember, questions to explore, or Scriptures to look up later. Your saved notes are private to your account.
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