Ecclesiastes 1:3

Free Bible Version

What benefit do you get for slaving away in this life?

Cross References

Ecclesiastes 2:11

But when I thought about what I had worked so hard to achieve, everything I'd done, it was so short-lived—as significant as someone trying to catch the wind. There really is no enduring benefit here on earth.

Ecclesiastes 2:18

I even ended up hating what I had achieved here on earth because I have to hand it over to whoever comes after me.

Ecclesiastes 2:19

And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will rule over everything I accomplished through my wisdom here on earth. This is just so frustrating, so hard to understand!

Ecclesiastes 2:22

What do you get here on earth for all your hard work and worry?

Ecclesiastes 3:9

So what do you get for all your hard work?

Ecclesiastes 4:3

But best of all are those who have never existed—they haven't seen the evil things people do to each other here on earth.

Ecclesiastes 4:7

Then I turned to consider something else here on earth that is also frustratingly hard to understand.

Ecclesiastes 5:16

This also makes me sick! What do people gain, working for the wind?

Ecclesiastes 5:18

But I observed that what is good and right is to eat, drink, and to find enjoyment in the work God gives us here in this life. This is God's gift to us.

Ecclesiastes 6:12

Who knows what's best for us and our lives? During our short lives that pass like shadows we have many unanswered questions. And who can tell us what will happen when we're gone?

Ecclesiastes 7:11

Wisdom is good—it's like receiving an inheritance. It benefits everyone in life.

Ecclesiastes 9:13

Here's another aspect of wisdom that impressed me about what happens here on earth.

Ecclesiastes 9:3

This is just so wrong—that everyone here on earth should suffer the same fate! On top of that, people's minds are filled with evil. They spend their lives thinking about stupid things, and then they die.

Ecclesiastes 9:6

Their love, hate, and envy—it's all gone. They have no further part in anything that happens here on earth.

Isaiah 55:2

Why are you spending money on what isn't food, and why work for something that doesn't satisfy you? Listen carefully to me: eat what is good, and you'll enjoy the very best food.

Habakkuk 2:13

Hasn't the Lord Almighty decided that all the hard work of such nations is going to be burned up—that they wear themselves out for nothing?

Habakkuk 2:18

What use is a wooden idol carved by human hands, or a metal image that teaches lies? What is the point of their makers trusting in their own handiwork, creating idols that can't speak?

Matthew 16:26

What benefit is it for you to gain the whole world, yet lose your life? What would you give in exchange for your life?

John 6:27

Don't be preoccupied about food that doesn't last, but concentrate on the lasting food of eternal life which the Son of man will give you, for God the Father has placed his seal of approval on him.”

1 Corinthians 16:16

to respect their leadership, and everyone who helps the work with such dedication.