'Man' in the Bible

What advantage does man have in all his workWhich he does under the sun?

All things are wearisome;Man is not able to tell it.The eye is not satisfied with seeing,Nor is the ear filled with hearing.

So I turned to consider wisdom, madness and folly; for what will the man do who will come after the king except what has already been done?

For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man and the fool alike die!

Thus I hated all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is vanity.

When there is a man who has labored with wisdom, knowledge and skill, then he gives his legacy to one who has not labored with them. This too is vanity and a great evil.

For what does a man get in all his labor and in his striving with which he labors under the sun?

There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen that it is from the hand of God.

He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

moreover, that every man who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—it is the gift of God.

I said to myself, “God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man,” for a time for every matter and for every deed is there.

For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same. As one dies so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity.

Who knows that the breath of man ascends upward and the breath of the beast descends downward to the earth?

I have seen that nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him?

I have seen that every labor and every skill which is done is the result of rivalry between a man and his neighbor. This too is vanity and striving after wind.

There was a certain man without a dependent, having neither a son nor a brother, yet there was no end to all his labor. Indeed, his eyes were not satisfied with riches and he never asked, “And for whom am I laboring and depriving myself of pleasure?” This too is vanity and it is a grievous task.

The sleep of the working man is pleasant, whether he eats little or much; but the full stomach of the rich man does not allow him to sleep.

This also is a grievous evil—exactly as a man is born, thus will he die. So what is the advantage to him who toils for the wind?

Furthermore, as for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, He has also empowered him to eat from them and to receive his reward and rejoice in his labor; this is the gift of God.

a man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor so that his soul lacks nothing of all that he desires; yet God has not empowered him to eat from them, for a foreigner enjoys them. This is vanity and a severe affliction.

If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, however many they be, but his soul is not satisfied with good things and he does not even have a proper burial, then I say, “Better the miscarriage than he,

Even if the other man lives a thousand years twice and does not enjoy good things—do not all go to one place?”

For what advantage does the wise man have over the fool? What advantage does the poor man have, knowing how to walk before the living?

Whatever exists has already been named, and it is known what man is; for he cannot dispute with him who is stronger than he is.

For there are many words which increase futility. What then is the advantage to a man?

For who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime, during the few years of his futile life? He will spend them like a shadow. For who can tell a man what will be after him under the sun?

It is better to go to a house of mourningThan to go to a house of feasting,Because that is the end of every man,And the living takes it to heart.

It is better to listen to the rebuke of a wise manThan for one to listen to the song of fools.

For oppression makes a wise man mad,And a bribe corrupts the heart.

In the day of prosperity be happy,But in the day of adversity consider—God has made the one as well as the otherSo that man will not discover anything that will be after him.

I have seen everything during my lifetime of futility; there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his wickedness.

Wisdom strengthens a wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.

Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins.

which I am still seeking but have not found. I have found one man among a thousand, but I have not found a woman among all these.

Who is like the wise man and who knows the interpretation of a matter? A man’s wisdom illumines him and causes his stern face to beam.

No man has authority to restrain the wind with the wind, or authority over the day of death; and there is no discharge in the time of war, and evil will not deliver those who practice it.

All this I have seen and applied my mind to every deed that has been done under the sun wherein a man has exercised authority over another man to his hurt.

But it will not be well for the evil man and he will not lengthen his days like a shadow, because he does not fear God.

So I commended pleasure, for there is nothing good for a man under the sun except to eat and to drink and to be merry, and this will stand by him in his toils throughout the days of his life which God has given him under the sun.

and I saw every work of God, I concluded that man cannot discover the work which has been done under the sun. Even though man should seek laboriously, he will not discover; and though the wise man should say, “I know,” he cannot discover.

For I have taken all this to my heart and explain it that righteous men, wise men, and their deeds are in the hand of God. Man does not know whether it will be love or hatred; anything awaits him.

It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who is afraid to swear.

Moreover, man does not know his time: like fish caught in a treacherous net and birds trapped in a snare, so the sons of men are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them.

But there was found in it a poor wise man and he delivered the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.

So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the wisdom of the poor man is despised and his words are not heeded.

Words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, while the lips of a fool consume him;

Yet the fool multiplies words. No man knows what will happen, and who can tell him what will come after him?

Furthermore, in your bedchamber do not curse a king, and in your sleeping rooms do not curse a rich man, for a bird of the heavens will carry the sound and the winged creature will make the matter known.

Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes. Yet know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things.

Furthermore, men are afraid of a high place and of terrors on the road; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags himself along, and the caperberry is ineffective. For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street.

In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs.