Ecclesiastes Chapter Six - Solomon see's a common folly among men

Ecclesiastes 6:1 “There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:”

Solomon is about to reveal to us an observation he has made; it is something he has observed and drawn his own conclusions (as you may suspect he has concluded wrongly that it is a vanity). This realm where we draw conclusions is an area where must take care; we must conclude what is true because to come to the wrong conclusion can set us off in the wrong direction. As we learned from Proverbs the actions of mankind follows a certain flow; first it begins in the mind, how one thinks then the lips, how one speaks then the action how one behaves. But it all begins in thoughts and opinions realm. Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he...”

2 “A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease”.

Here is his observation referred to in the previous verse: "A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth..." In this statement Solomon is obviously referring to himself, he had all that heart could wish for, however, because his ways did not please the Lord and his heart was focused on the wrong things the next portion clearly relates his torment "...yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease." If we follow the Lord with our whole heart, mind and strength then whether we are in need or we abound we will have peace and joy in our lot. If we are not at peace within ourselves we will not find it in the things around us. History is littered with the rich and famous who had all heart could wish for and yet they were miserable tormented and alone. Solomon was good at declaring why he was miserable; the thing that amazes us is that he knows what the cure is (the fear of the Lord) but he does not choose to pursue it and therefore remains in torment instead of turning his life around to enjoy the blessings he knows will come to those who fear the Lord. There is some force that prevents him; it is the power of the iniquity he has given himself to, he cannot break free from it so all he can do is complain about it. This is very instructive to us, especially to the young; you must choose the fear of the Lord when you are young because if one plays with sin then eventually it can take hold and drag you where you do not want to go.