Ecclesiastes 2:18-26

¹⁸I hated all my accomplishments for which I had worked under the sun because I must leave them behind to the man who comes after me.

¹⁹For who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over everything under the sun that my work and wisdom have built. This also is vapor.

²⁰Therefore my heart began to despair over all the work under the sun that I did.

²¹For there might be someone who works with wisdom, with knowledge, and skill, but he will leave everything he has to a man who has not made any of it. This also is vapor and a great tragedy.

²²For what profit does the person gain who works so hard and tries in his heart to complete his labors under the sun?

²³Every day his work is painful and stressful, so at night his soul does not find rest. This also is vapor.

²⁴There is nothing better for anyone than to simply eat and drink and be satisfied with what is good in his work. I saw that this truth comes from God's hand.

²⁵For who can eat or who can have any kind of pleasure apart from God?

²⁶For to anyone who pleases him, God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy. However, to the sinner he gives the work of gathering and storing up so that he may give it away to someone who pleases God. This also amounts to vapor and an attempt to shepherd the wind.