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The Futility of Wisdom

12 I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 And I set my mind to seek and explore by [man’s] [a]wisdom all [human activity] that has been done under heaven. It is a miserable business and a burdensome task which [b]God has given the sons of men with which to be busy and distressed. 14 I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity, a futile grasping and chasing after the wind.

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 1:13 The “wisdom” of Proverbs is not the “wisdom” of Ecclesiastes. The former is godly wisdom; the latter is usually human wisdom.
  2. Ecclesiastes 1:13 Heb Elohim: mighty, creator, ruler of man and nature.

Wisdom Is Meaningless

12 I, the Teacher,(A) was king over Israel in Jerusalem.(B) 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens.(C) What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind!(D) 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.(E)

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