Ecclesiastes 6:12

For who knoweth what [is] good for man in [this] life?.... To be in a higher or lower station of life, to live in grandeur or meanness, to be rich or poor, learned or unlearned; since that which

For who knoweth what is good for man in this 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? Who knoweth what is good?

Who knoweth what is good for man? no man certainly knows what is best for him here, whether to be high or low, rich or poor, because those great things which men generally desire and pursue are very frequently the occasions of men’ s utter ruin, as hath been noted again and again in this book. Vain life; life itself, which is the foundation of all men’ s comforts and enjoyments here, is a vain, and uncertain, and transitory thing, and therefore all things which depend. upon it must needs be so too. A shadow; which, whilst it abides, hath nothing real, and solid, or substantial in it, and doth speedily pass away, and leaves no sign behind it. And as no man can be happy with these things whilst he liveth and enjoyeth them, so he can have no content in leaving them to others, because he knoweth not either who shall possess them, or how the future owners will use or abuse them, or what mischief they may do by them, either to others, or even to themselves.

Ecclesiastes 6:12 For who knoweth what [is] good for man in [this] 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?Ver. 12. For who knoweth what is good for man.] He may think this and that to be good, but is, mostly, mistaken and disappointed. Ambrose hath well observed, that other creatures are led by the instinct of nature to that which is good for them. The lion, when he is sick, cures himself by devouring an ape; the bear, by devouring ants; the wounded deer, by feeding upon dittany, &c.; tu ignoras, O homo, remedia tua, but thou, O man, knowest not what is good for thee. "He hath showed thee, O man, what is good," saith the prophet; "and what doth the Lord require of thee, but this" - instead of raking riches together - "to do justly, and to love mercy, and" - instead of contending with him - "to humble thyself to walk with thy God." For who can tell a man what shall be after him?] When the worms shall be scrambling for his body, the devils, haply, for his soul, and his friends for his goods. A false Jesuit published in print, some years after Queen Elizabeth’ s death, that she died despairing, and that she wished she might, after her death, hang a while in the air, to see what striving would be for her kingdom. I loved the man, said Ambrose of Theodosius, for this, that when he died, he was more affected with care of the Church’ s good, than of his own. A labiate plant, Origanum Dictamnus, called also Dictamnus Creticus or dittany of Crete; formerly famous for its alleged medicinal virtues. Camden’ s Elisabeth. Dilexi virum qui cum corpore solveretur magis de Ecclesiarum statu, &c.

(12) As a shadow.—Ecclesiastes 8:13; Job 14:2.

Verse 12. For who knoweth what is good for man in this life] Those things which we deem good are often evil. And those which we think evil are often good. So ignorant are we, that we run the greatest hazard in making a choice. It is better to leave ourselves and our concerns in the hands of the Lord, than to keep them in our own. For who can tell a man what shall be after him] Futurity is with God. While he lives, man wishes to know what is before him. When he is about to die, he wishes to know what will be after him. All this is vanity; God, because he is merciful, will reveal neither.

12. who knoweth what is good for man] We have once more the distinctive formula of Pyrrhonism. “Who knows?” was the sceptic’s question, then as at all times. See note on ch. Ecclesiastes 3:21. After all discussions on the supreme good, some pointing to pleasure, and some to virtue, and some to apathy, who can give a definite and decisive answer? Life remained after all vain, and not worth living. See again the poem of Omar Khayyam in the Appendix. which he spendeth as a shadow] The thought was so natural as to be all but universal. It had been uttered by Job (Ecclesiastes 8:9), and by David (1 Chronicles 29:15). It was uttered also by Sophocles: ὁρῶγὰρἡμᾶςοὐδὲνὄνταςἄλλο, πλὴνεἴδωλʼ ?, ὅσοιπερζῶμεν, ἢκούφηνσκιάν.“In this I see that we, all we that live,Are but vain shadows, unsubstantial dreams.” Aias, 127. for who can tell a man] Man’s ignorance of the future, of what may become of children or estate, is, as before in chs. Ecclesiastes 2:18-19; Ecclesiastes 4:7, another element in the “vanity” of human life. Granted that it is long and prosperous to the end, still the man is vexed or harassed with the thought that his work may be all undone, his treasures wasted, his plans frustrated.

After him - i. e., On earth, in his own present sphere of action, after his departure hence (compare Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 3:22).

12. All the days — That is, the fixed number of his days. The shadow is a frequent illustration in oriental poetry.