Ecclesiastes 6:1
in Ecclesiastes 6There is another evil I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily upon mankind:
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is heavy upon men:
KJV
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:
⋯
This verse in Ecclesiastes 6
Commentary
7 notes on this verseAs it is with the blood in the natural body, so it is with the wealth of the body politic, if, instead of circulating, it stagnates, it will be of ill consequence.
This site's exposition
There is another evil I have seen under the sun
on Ecclesiastes 6:1-2
The Teacher names an evil: God gives a man riches, wealth, and honor, yet God does not allow him to enjoy them. The refrain at 5:19 joins wealth and the power to enjoy it, and here the two are split. The Teacher calls it futile and a grievous affliction.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
A commentator
Gregory of NeocaesareaA Metaphrase of the Book of Ecclesiastes · Written before 270.
proposed
Moreover, I shall exhibit in discourse the ill-fortune that most of all prevails among men. While God may supply a man with all that is according to his mind, and deprive him of no object which may in any manner appeal to his desires, whether …
"There is an evil I have observed beneath the sun, and it is prevalent among mankind; a man to whom God has given riches, wealth and honour, and he lacks nothing that his heart could desire, yet God did not give him the power to enjoy it. This is futility and an evil disease. If a man begets an hundred children and lives many years - great being the days of his life - and his soul is not content with the good - and he even is deprived of burial; I say: the stillborn is better off than he.
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
BonaventureCommentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 6 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
Thirdly, he denounces avarice, because riches are frequently transferred to strangers. "There is also another evil," etc. Above he showed that riches are to be despised, both because they do not enrich their possessors, and because they are frequently not transmitted to posterity. Here thirdly …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Common among - Rather, great (heavy) upon people.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
And it weighs heavily on man. It is prevalent among mankind. 1 It causes distress upon mankind.
2 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
There is an evil which I saw in this world under the sun, and it is great upon the children of man.
Wealth [and] possessions. Its simple explanation, is its apparent meaning.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יֵ֣שׁ | yesh | there | H3426 → | 140 times |
| רָעָ֔ה | raah | [is] an evil | H7451 → | 662 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| רָאִ֖יתִי | raiti | I have seen | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| תַּ֣חַת | tachat | under | H8478 → | 505 times |
| הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁ | hashamesh | the sun | H8121 → | 134 times |
| וְרַבָּ֥ה | verabah | and [is] great | H7227 → | 454 times |
| הִ֖יא | hi' | it | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הָאָדָֽם׃ | haadam | <the> humankind | H120 → | 551 times |
יֵ֣שׁthere
yeshH3426 →140 times
רָעָ֔ה[is] an evil
raahH7451 →662 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
רָאִ֖יתִיI have seen
raitiH7200 →1300 times
תַּ֣חַתunder
tachatH8478 →505 times
הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁthe sun
hashameshH8121 →134 times
וְרַבָּ֥הand [is] great
verabahH7227 →454 times
הִ֖יאit
hi'H1931 →1879 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
הָאָדָֽם׃<the> humankind
haadamH120 →551 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ecclesiastes 5:13There is a grievous evil I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner,
it leads to
- Ecclesiastes 6:1–2
There is another evil I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily upon mankind:
- Luke 18:22–23
On hearing this, Jesus told him, “You still lack one thing: Sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
- Genesis 19:14
So Lot went out and spoke to the sons-in-law who were pledged in marriage to his daughters. “Get up,” he said. “Get out of this place, for the LORD is about to destroy the…
- Luke 16:22–23
One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried.
- James 5:1–4
Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
- Ecclesiastes 6:1–2
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Ecclesiastes
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bonaventure, Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 6; Gregory of Neocaesarea, A Metaphrase of the Book of Ecclesiastes; Jerome, Commentary on Ecclesiastes; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.