I decided to study things carefully. I used my wisdom to check everything out. I looked into everything that is done on earth. What a heavy load God has put on human beings!I’ve seen what is done on this earth. All of it is meaningless. It’s like chasing the wind.
You will have to work hard and sweat a lot to produce the food you eat. You were made out of the ground. You will return to it when you die. You are dust, and you will return to dust.”
God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness to the person who pleases him. But to a sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth. Then the sinner must hand it over to the one who pleases God. That doesn’t have any meaning either. It’s like chasing the wind.
We didn’t eat anyone’s food without paying for it. In fact, it was just the opposite. We worked night and day. We worked very hard so that we wouldn’t cause any expense to any of you.
Brothers and sisters, I am sure you remember how hard we worked. We labored night and day while we preached to you God’s good news. We didn’t want to cause you any expense.