What does it mean that God is higher than the highest and regardeth?

The verse talks about seeing the oppression of the poor and the twisting of justice in a province. It tells you not to be shocked as if God were absent. When it says, “he that is higher than the highest regardeth,” it means God sits above every ruler, judge, and official. No matter how powerful people become, God is still above them, watching what they do. He sees both the oppressors and the oppressed and will deal with them in his own time. This truth calls you to trust God’s oversight instead of losing heart when you see injustice.

What is meant by the profit of the earth is for all and the king is served by the field?

Here the writer turns from courts and officials to the land itself. “The profit of the earth is for all” means that the basic produce of the ground, like grain and other food, is meant to serve everyone, not just a few. Even the king, with all his power, still depends on what comes from the field. His table, his household, and his whole kingdom are supported by ordinary tilling of the soil. This lifts up everyday work, especially farming, and reminds us that basic provision from the earth is a shared good, not something only for the rich.

Why does the passage say he that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver?

The line about loving silver shows how empty it is to set your heart on money. It does not say wealth itself is evil, but that when someone loves it, it never feels like enough. The more he gets, the more he wants. The same is true of loving abundance and increase. This is called “vanity” because it promises contentment but never truly gives it. Instead of bringing rest, this kind of desire keeps a person chasing more. The passage warns you not to treat riches as the thing that will finally make you happy.

What is the contrast between the labouring man and the rich man who cannot sleep?

The writer paints a simple but sharp picture. The labouring man, who works with his hands, sleeps well whether he has eaten a little or a lot. His honest work and modest life allow him to rest. In contrast, the rich man has “abundance” that will not let him sleep. His plenty brings worries, heavy eating, and anxiety about keeping what he has. So the poor worker, though he has less, often enjoys more peace than the rich person whose mind is tied in knots over his possessions.

What does it mean that riches are kept for their owners to their hurt?

This describes a “sore evil” the writer has seen. Some people hoard wealth instead of using it wisely or sharing it. Those riches are “kept” in a way that actually harms them. This can show up in many ways: worry, greed, broken relationships, or even loss of the wealth through bad ventures. The owner clings to his riches but they do him no real good and may help to ruin him. The picture warns that piling up money for its own sake is dangerous and can turn into a curse instead of a blessing.

Why does the passage stress that we come naked and return naked from the world?

The passage reminds us that a person comes out of the womb with nothing and will leave the world the same way. No matter how hard he has worked, he cannot carry anything in his hand when he dies. This is called another “sore evil” because it shows how empty it is to live only for wealth. It is like “labouring for the wind.” The point is not to deny the value of work, but to show that money and things are temporary. They cannot follow you beyond the grave, so they must not be your final hope.

What does it mean that a man eats in darkness with sorrow, wrath, and sickness?

This is the picture of someone whose life has been swallowed up by chasing wealth. Instead of joy, his days are marked by “darkness,” which points to trouble and gloom. He has “much sorrow,” anger, and sickness. His riches have not brought him peace but have worn him down in body and spirit. It is a warning of what happens when a person clings to money, loses it, or lives in fear over it. The writer is showing where a greedy, anxious life can lead, so that you will not choose that path.

What does the passage say is good and proper for a person in this life?

After listing the pains of loving riches, the writer turns to what is actually good. He says it is good and fitting for a person to eat, drink, and enjoy the good that comes from his labour under the sun, all the days God gives him. This is called his “portion.” It means receiving daily food, drink, and work as gifts from God, not as idols. Instead of hoarding or obsessing over more, the person accepts what God has given, enjoys it with a thankful heart, and does not demand what God has not given.

What is the gift of God in giving both riches and the power to enjoy them?

The passage makes an important distinction. Some people receive riches and wealth, and God also gives them the power to eat of them, take their portion, and rejoice in their labour. That ability to enjoy what you have is called “the gift of God.” It is not automatic. A person can be rich and miserable or rich and thankful. When God gives joy with what he gives you, you are not swallowed up by regret or worry. You enjoy your work and your food as from his hand. This simple joy keeps a person from being crushed by the hardships of life.

How does God answer a person in the joy of his heart in this passage?

At the end, it says God “answereth him in the joy of his heart.” This points to God’s kind work inside a person. When someone receives their daily portion from God and enjoys it, God meets them there with inner joy. Because of this, such a person “shall not much remember the days of his life,” meaning he is not always brooding over past troubles and hardships. God gives him a glad heart in the middle of ordinary days. This shows that real contentment and steady joy do not come from possessions themselves but from God’s gracious work within.

Eccl.5.8

Ecclesiastes 5:8

KJV

¶ If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.

The Futility of Wealth

¶ If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.

¶ Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself is served by the field.

He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.

When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?

The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt.

But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand.

As he came forth of his mother’s womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.

And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go: and what profit hath he that hath laboured for the wind?

All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness.

¶ Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.

Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.

For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.

Cross References

No cross references available for this verse.