16. Wise or foolish, we all die and are soon forgotten.”
17. This made me hate life. Everything we do is painful; it's just as senseless as chasing the wind.
18. Suddenly I realized that others would some day get everything I had worked so hard for, then I started hating it all.
19. Who knows if those people will be sensible or stupid? Either way, they will own everything I have earned by hard work and wisdom. It doesn't make sense.
20. I thought about all my hard work, and I felt depressed.
21. When we use our wisdom, knowledge, and skill to get what we own, why do we have to leave it to someone who didn't work for it? This is senseless and wrong.
22. What do we really gain from all our hard work?
23. Our bodies ache during the day, and work is torture. Then at night our thoughts are troubled. It just doesn't make sense.
24. The best thing we can do is to enjoy eating, drinking, and working. I believe these are God's gifts to us,
25. and no one enjoys eating and living more than I do.
26. If we please God, he will make us wise, understanding, and happy. But if we sin, God will make us struggle for a living, then he will give all we own to someone who pleases him. This makes no more sense than chasing the wind.