There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.
There is a person who is completely alone—no companion, no children, no family. Yet he works endlessly without stopping. His eyes are never satisfied with the wealth he accumulates, and he never asks himself, 'Who am I working so hard for? Why am I depriving myself of enjoying life?' This too is meaningless—it's a painful way to live.
The writer is showing how meaningless it is to work endlessly for wealth when you're alone and never stop to enjoy life or ask why you're doing it.
📚 Historical Context
This verse comes from Ecclesiastes, traditionally attributed to King Solomon, who observed the futility of various pursuits in life. The book was written during a time when Israel was experiencing prosperity, but Solomon noticed how even successful people could become trapped in cycles of meaningless work. The concept of 'vanity' (hebel in Hebrew) appears throughout Ecclesiastes, meaning something temporary, empty, or like a vapor.
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