Ecc 4:6 | KingComments | STEP | A special form of oppression or unrighteousness which the Preacher has seen in observing people and what they do is rivalry or jealousy ( ). The double use of the word “every” indicates that any kind of labor and skill is involved. The point is that labor and skill are often the result of the desire to master others. We constantly live in a state of competition. It has been said that nine out of ten office workers suffer from ‘professional rivalry’ of colleagues who, in their opinion, shine more or are better paid than they are. This drives many people to climb the ladder of success: they want to surpass others. Many want to be more successful than their colleagues or neighbors or friends. They want to be seen and recognized, to be admired with the admiration others get and what they envy. Rivalry is a strong force in man. People who are envious are oppressed by their own wrong feelings and motives, because they control them. Hard work and high goals all too often stem from the desire to be the best, not to be inferior to others. Rivalry and competition lead to making great efforts and hating one another. We see this in sports, in politics, in business, and it also happens in the church of God. Anyone who feels like a loser will discover in his heart this kind of jealousy of which the Preacher speaks here. He is oppressed by rivalry, rivalry controls him. Instead of liberating himself from it by being content, he allows himself to be dominated by it. This jealousy is a breeding ground for bitterness and resentment. The only result that anyone can reap from his labor and the skill he shows is that others envy him for it. The tribute he receives for his performance is often disguised jealousy. What use is it to him? For a moment, he is in the spotlight, but people get tired of all his efforts, they are “vanity”. What is the net result of his performance? Nothing more than what the “striving after wind” brings. He does not keep anything of it nor has he got anything left of it what gives inner peace and satisfaction. Look at the Olympic Games, for example. People are adored for winning a medal. But how long does this admiration last? And the honor that is earned is always at the expense of another person who was one hundredth of a second slower. The people who have trained just as long and just as hard, but are just a little short to win a medal, can go home with a ‘loser flight’. The winners can take a ‘winner’s flight’ home and will be praised on arrival at the airport and later in their hometown. How frustrating! is the opposite of , while there is also a clear similarity. The fool does not want to have anything to do with this fanatical competition and is characterized by total indifference. He folds his hands, not to pray, but to make it clear that he does not intend to use his hands ( ). His laziness is as wrong as the rush of the fanatic. A lazy fool consumes not only what he owns, but also what he is. He commits ‘self-cannibalism’. He loses control over reality and his ability to support himself. The latter is the resemblance with someone who is consumed by rivalry, for such a person has also lost control over reality. In contrast to the two previous wrong ways – being driven by jealousy and laziness – gives the only good alternative: Do not let yourself be rushed. A busy agenda may be impressive, but it also destroys you. You get ahead of yourself, you get a heart attack and you die. Do not be lazy either, because then you won’t make a living and you will die as well. There has to be balance in a person’s life. This balance is present in people who, just like the Preacher, looks at life soberly. Those who are satisfied with “one hand full of rest” do not take part in the strife to be the best neither in total passivity. Everyone just needs a bit of rest and recreation at the right time. This is of more use than just non-stop hard labor. One hand full of rest expresses two thoughts: that of modest desires and of inner peace. This attitude is as far away from the fool with his selfish laziness as it is from the perfectionist who always strives for the best and highest. How foolish it is to have “two fists full of labor”, for the pursuit of results is the same as the “striving after wind”: you cannot hold anything of it.

‏ Ecclesiastes 4:6

Labor, Laziness and One Hand Full of Rest

A special form of oppression or unrighteousness which the Preacher has seen in observing people and what they do is rivalry or jealousy (Ecc 4:4). The double use of the word “every” indicates that any kind of labor and skill is involved. The point is that labor and skill are often the result of the desire to master others. We constantly live in a state of competition.

It has been said that nine out of ten office workers suffer from ‘professional rivalry’ of colleagues who, in their opinion, shine more or are better paid than they are. This drives many people to climb the ladder of success: they want to surpass others. Many want to be more successful than their colleagues or neighbors or friends. They want to be seen and recognized, to be admired with the admiration others get and what they envy. Rivalry is a strong force in man.

People who are envious are oppressed by their own wrong feelings and motives, because they control them. Hard work and high goals all too often stem from the desire to be the best, not to be inferior to others. Rivalry and competition lead to making great efforts and hating one another. We see this in sports, in politics, in business, and it also happens in the church of God.

Anyone who feels like a loser will discover in his heart this kind of jealousy of which the Preacher speaks here. He is oppressed by rivalry, rivalry controls him. Instead of liberating himself from it by being content, he allows himself to be dominated by it. This jealousy is a breeding ground for bitterness and resentment. The only result that anyone can reap from his labor and the skill he shows is that others envy him for it.

The tribute he receives for his performance is often disguised jealousy. What use is it to him? For a moment, he is in the spotlight, but people get tired of all his efforts, they are “vanity”. What is the net result of his performance? Nothing more than what the “striving after wind” brings. He does not keep anything of it nor has he got anything left of it what gives inner peace and satisfaction.

Look at the Olympic Games, for example. People are adored for winning a medal. But how long does this admiration last? And the honor that is earned is always at the expense of another person who was one hundredth of a second slower. The people who have trained just as long and just as hard, but are just a little short to win a medal, can go home with a ‘loser flight’. The winners can take a ‘winner’s flight’ home and will be praised on arrival at the airport and later in their hometown. How frustrating!

Ecc 4:5 is the opposite of Ecc 4:4, while there is also a clear similarity. The fool does not want to have anything to do with this fanatical competition and is characterized by total indifference. He folds his hands, not to pray, but to make it clear that he does not intend to use his hands (Pro 6:9-10 ; Pro 24:33). His laziness is as wrong as the rush of the fanatic.

A lazy fool consumes not only what he owns, but also what he is. He commits ‘self-cannibalism’. He loses control over reality and his ability to support himself. The latter is the resemblance with someone who is consumed by rivalry, for such a person has also lost control over reality.

In contrast to the two previous wrong ways – being driven by jealousy and laziness – Ecc 4:6 gives the only good alternative: Do not let yourself be rushed. A busy agenda may be impressive, but it also destroys you. You get ahead of yourself, you get a heart attack and you die. Do not be lazy either, because then you won’t make a living and you will die as well. There has to be balance in a person’s life.

This balance is present in people who, just like the Preacher, looks at life soberly. Those who are satisfied with “one hand full of rest” do not take part in the strife to be the best neither in total passivity. Everyone just needs a bit of rest and recreation at the right time. This is of more use than just non-stop hard labor. One hand full of rest expresses two thoughts: that of modest desires and of inner peace.

This attitude is as far away from the fool with his selfish laziness as it is from the perfectionist who always strives for the best and highest. How foolish it is to have “two fists full of labor”, for the pursuit of results is the same as the “striving after wind”: you cannot hold anything of it.