2 God gives one person riches, wealth, and honor so that he doesn’t lack anything he wants. Yet, God doesn’t give him the power to enjoy any of them. Instead, a stranger enjoys them. This is pointless and is a painful tragedy.
3 Suppose a rich person wasn’t satisfied with good things ⌊while he was alive⌋ and didn’t even get an honorable burial ⌊after he died⌋. Suppose he had a hundred children and lived for many years. No matter how long he would have lived, it ⌊still⌋ would have been better for him to have been born dead.
4 A stillborn baby arrives in a pointless birth and goes out into the darkness. The darkness then hides its name.
5 Though it has never seen the sun or known anything, the baby finds more rest than the rich person.
6 Even if the rich person lives two thousand years without experiencing anything good—don’t we all go to the same place?
7 Everything that people work so hard for goes into their mouths, but their appetite is never satisfied.
8 What advantage does a wise person have over a fool? What advantage does a poor person have in knowing how to face life?