Ecclesiastes 1:3

Holy Bible: Easy-to-Read Version

Do people really gain anything from all the hard work they do in this life?

Cross References

Ecclesiastes 3:9

Do people really gain anything from their hard work?

Ecclesiastes 5:16

It is very sad that people leave the world just as they came. So what does a person gain from “trying to catch the wind”?

Ecclesiastes 2:22

What do people really have after all their work and struggling in this life?

Ecclesiastes 2:11

But then I looked at everything I had done and the wealth I had gained. I decided it was all a waste of time! It was like trying to catch the wind. There is nothing to gain from anything we do in this life.

John 6:27

But earthly food spoils and ruins. So don’t work to get that kind of food. But work to get the food that stays good and gives you eternal life. The Son of Man will give you that food. He is the only one qualified by God the Father to give it to you.”

Matthew 16:26

It is worth nothing for you to have the whole world if you yourself are lost. You could never pay enough to buy back your life.

Isaiah 55:2

Why waste your money on something that is not real food? Why should you work for something that does not really satisfy you? Listen closely to me and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the food that satisfies your soul.

Ecclesiastes 2:19

Some other person will control everything I worked and studied for. And I don’t know if that person will be wise or foolish. This is also senseless.

Habakkuk 2:13

But the Lord All-Powerful has decided that a fire will destroy everything that those people worked to build. All their work will be for nothing.

Ecclesiastes 9:13

I also saw a person doing a wise thing in this life, and it seemed very important to me.

Ecclesiastes 9:6

After people are dead, their love, hate, and jealousy are all gone. And they will never again share in what happens on earth.

Ecclesiastes 9:3

Of all the things that happen in this life, the worst thing is that all people end life the same way. But it is also very bad that people always think evil and foolish thoughts. And those thoughts lead to death.

Ecclesiastes 7:11

Wisdom is better if you also have property. Wise people will get more than enough wealth.

Ecclesiastes 6:12

Who knows what is best for people during their short life on earth? Their life passes like a shadow. No one can tell them what will happen later.

Ecclesiastes 5:18

I have seen what is best for people to do on earth: They should eat, drink, and enjoy the work they have during their short time here. God has given them these few days, and that is all they have.

Ecclesiastes 4:3

And it is even better for those who die at birth, because they never saw the evil that is done in this world.

Habakkuk 2:18

Their false god will not help them, because it is only a statue that someone covered with metal. It is only a statue, so whoever made it cannot expect it to help. That statue cannot even speak!

Ecclesiastes 4:7

Again I saw something else that didn’t make sense:

1 Corinthians 16:16

to follow the leading of people like these and others who work hard and serve together with them.

Ecclesiastes 2:18

I began to hate all the hard work I had done, because I saw that the people who live after me would get the things that I worked for. I will not be able to take them with me.