Ecclesiastes 2:26

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

For to the one who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner, he gives the task of amassing wealth– only to give it to the one who pleases God. This task of the wicked is futile– like chasing the wind!

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Prov 13:22 : 22 A good person leaves an inheritance for his grandchildren, but the wealth of a sinner is stored up for the righteous.
  • Job 27:16-17 : 16 If he piles up silver like dust and stores up clothing like mounds of clay, 17 what he stores up a righteous man will wear, and an innocent man will inherit his silver.
  • John 16:24 : 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive it, so that your joy may be complete.
  • Prov 3:13-18 : 13 Blessings of Obtaining Wisdom Blessed is the one who has found wisdom, and the one who obtains understanding. 14 For her benefit is more profitable than silver, and her gain is better than gold. 15 She is more precious than rubies, and none of the things you desire can compare with her. 16 Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. 17 Her ways are very pleasant, and all her paths are peaceful. 18 She is like a tree of life to those who grasp onto her, and everyone who takes hold of her will be blessed.
  • Prov 28:8 : 8 The one who increases his wealth by increasing interest gathers it for someone who is gracious to the needy.
  • Eccl 1:14 : 14 I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man on earth, and I concluded: Everything he has accomplished is futile– like chasing the wind!
  • Isa 3:10-11 : 10 Tell the innocent it will go well with them, for they will be rewarded for what they have done. 11 Woe to the wicked sinners! For they will get exactly what they deserve.
  • Luke 1:6 : 6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.
  • Job 32:8 : 8 But it is a spirit in people, the breath of the Almighty, that makes them understand.
  • Gen 7:1 : 1 The LORD said to Noah,“Come into the ark, you and all your household, for I consider you godly among this generation.
  • 2 Chr 31:20-21 : 20 This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He did what the LORD his God considered good and right and faithful. 21 He wholeheartedly and successfully reinstituted service in God’s temple and obedience to the law, in order to follow his God.
  • Rom 14:17-18 : 17 For the kingdom of God does not consist of food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 For the one who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by people.
  • 1 Cor 1:30-31 : 30 He is the reason you have a relationship with Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written,“Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
  • Gal 5:22-23 : 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
  • Col 1:9-9 : 9 Paul’s Prayer for the Growth of the Church For this reason we also, from the day we heard about you, have not ceased praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you may live worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects– bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of all patience and steadfastness, joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.
  • Col 3:16-17 : 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and exhorting one another with all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, all with grace in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
  • Jas 3:17 : 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and not hypocritical.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

  • Eccl 2:19-25
    7 verses
    84%

    19Who knows if he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so wisely on earth! This also is futile!

    20So I began to despair about all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so hard on earth.

    21For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; however, he must hand over the fruit of his labor as an inheritance to someone else who did not work for it. This also is futile, and an awful injustice!

    22Painful Days and Restless Nights What does a man acquire from all his labor and from the anxiety that accompanies his toil on earth?

    23For all day long his work produces pain and frustration, and even at night his mind cannot relax! This also is futile!

    24Enjoy Work and its Benefits There is nothing better for people than to eat and drink, and to find enjoyment in their work. I also perceived that this ability to find enjoyment comes from God.

    25For no one can eat and drink or experience joy apart from him.

  • Eccl 8:14-15
    2 verses
    79%

    14Here is another enigma that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. I said,“This also is an enigma.”

    15Enjoy Life In Spite of Its Injustices So I recommend the enjoyment of life, for there is nothing better on earth for a person to do except to eat, drink, and enjoy life. So joy will accompany him in his toil during the days of his life which God gives him on earth.

  • Eccl 3:12-13
    2 verses
    78%

    12Enjoy Life in the Present I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live,

    13and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God.

  • Eccl 2:10-11
    2 verses
    78%

    10I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. So all my accomplishments gave me joy; this was my reward for all my effort.

    11Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it, I concluded:“All these achievements and possessions are ultimately profitless– like chasing the wind! There is nothing gained from them on earth.”

  • Eccl 1:13-14
    2 verses
    78%

    13I decided to carefully and thoroughly examine all that has been accomplished on earth. I concluded: God has given people a burdensome task that keeps them occupied.

    14I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man on earth, and I concluded: Everything he has accomplished is futile– like chasing the wind!

  • Eccl 3:22
    77%

    22So I perceived there is nothing better than for people to enjoy their work, because that is their reward; for who can show them what the future holds?

  • Eccl 5:18-20
    3 verses
    77%

    18Enjoy the Fruit of Your Labor I have seen personally what is the only beneficial and appropriate course of action for people: to eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all their hard work on earth during the few days of their life which God has given them, for this is their reward.

    19To every man whom God has given wealth, and possessions, he has also given him the ability to eat from them, to receive his reward and to find enjoyment in his toil; these things are the gift of God.

    20For he does not think much about the fleeting days of his life because God keeps him preoccupied with the joy he derives from his activity.

  • Eccl 1:17-18
    2 verses
    77%

    17So I decided to discern the benefit of wisdom and knowledge over foolish behavior and ideas; however, I concluded that even this endeavor is like trying to chase the wind!

    18For with great wisdom comes great frustration; whoever increases his knowledge merely increases his heartache.

  • Eccl 4:4
    77%

    4Labor Motivated by Envy Then I considered all the skillful work that is done: Surely it is nothing more than competition between one person and another. This also is profitless– like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 6:1-2
    2 verses
    77%

    1Not Everyone Enjoys Life Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs heavily on people:

    2God gives a man riches, property, and wealth so that he lacks nothing that his heart desires, yet God does not enable him to enjoy the fruit of his labor– instead, someone else enjoys it! This is fruitless and a grave misfortune.

  • Eccl 2:17
    76%

    17So I loathed life because what happens on earth seems awful to me; for all the benefits of wisdom are futile– like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 7:13-14
    2 verses
    76%

    13Wisdom Acknowledges God’s Orchestration of Life Consider the work of God: For who can make straight what he has bent?

    14In times of prosperity be joyful, but in times of adversity consider this: God has made one as well as the other, so that no one can discover what the future holds.

  • Eccl 6:8-9
    2 verses
    75%

    8So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool? And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?

    9It is better to be content with what the eyes can see than for one’s heart always to crave more. This continual longing is futile– like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 8:17
    75%

    17then I discerned all that God has done: No one really comprehends what happens on earth. Despite all human efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp it. Even if a wise person claimed that he understood, he would not really comprehend it.

  • Eccl 3:9-10
    2 verses
    75%

    9Man is Ignorant of God’s Timing What benefit can a worker gain from his toil?

    10I have observed the burden that God has given to people to keep them occupied.

  • Eccl 9:1
    75%

    1Everyone Will Die So I reflected on all this, attempting to clear it all up. I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their works, are in the hand of God; whether a person will be loved or hated– no one knows what lies ahead.

  • Eccl 2:1
    75%

    1Futility of Self-Indulgent Pleasure I thought to myself,“Come now, I will try self-indulgent pleasure to see if it is worthwhile.” But I found that it also is futile.

  • Eccl 5:16
    74%

    16This is another misfortune: Just as he came, so will he go. What did he gain from toiling for the wind?

  • Eccl 1:3
    74%

    3Futility Illustrated from Nature What benefit do people get from all the effort which they expend on earth?

  • Eccl 4:8
    74%

    8A man who is all alone with no companion, he has no children nor siblings; yet there is no end to all his toil, and he is never satisfied with riches. He laments,“For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” This also is futile and a burdensome task!

  • Eccl 6:11-12
    2 verses
    74%

    11The more one argues with words, the less he accomplishes. How does that benefit him?

    12For no one knows what is best for a person during his life– during the few days of his fleeting life– for they pass away like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth.

  • Ps 39:6
    73%

    6Surely people go through life as mere ghosts. Surely they accumulate worthless wealth without knowing who will eventually haul it away.”

  • Job 3:20
    73%

    20Longing for Death“Why does God give light to one who is in misery, and life to those whose soul is bitter,

  • Eccl 12:8
    73%

    8Concluding Refrain: Qoheleth Restates His Thesis“Absolutely futile!” laments the Teacher,“All of these things are futile!”

  • Eccl 8:6
    73%

    6For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, for the oppression of the king is severe upon his victim.

  • Eccl 11:8
    73%

    8So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many– all that is about to come is obscure.

  • Eccl 4:6
    73%

    6Better is one handful with some rest than two hands full of toil and chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 2:15
    73%

    15So I thought to myself,“The fate of the fool will happen even to me! Then what did I gain by becoming so excessively wise?” So I lamented to myself,“The benefits of wisdom are ultimately meaningless!”

  • Eccl 2:3
    73%

    3I thought deeply about the effects of indulging myself with wine(all the while my mind was guiding me with wisdom) and the effects of behaving foolishly, so that I might discover what is profitable for people to do on earth during the few days of their lives.

  • Prov 10:23
    73%

    23Carrying out a wicked scheme is enjoyable to a fool, and so is wisdom for the one who has discernment.

  • Eccl 4:16
    73%

    16There is no end to all the people nor to the past generations, yet future generations will not rejoice in him. This also is profitless and like chasing the wind.

  • Eccl 9:3
    73%

    3This is the unfortunate fact about everything that happens on earth: the same fate awaits everyone. In addition to this, the hearts of all people are full of evil, and there is folly in their hearts during their lives– then they die.