Ecclesiastes 1:1-2
1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:
2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!”
    says the Teacher.
“Utterly meaningless!
    Everything is meaningless.”

The word “meaningless” is really better translated: “Vapor” or “Mist.” So, this world we’re in is important, but it’s a Vapor - a cloud that will disappear as quickly as it came.

Money is not just about money. It’s about:


• Labor - 
Putting a monetary value on the time you have on this planet,
 and the amount of effort you put into your work.

• Power - 
Being able to make decisions for yourself that affect how you live, 
and potentially to make decisions for other people too.

• Comfort - 
Living at a level of comfort you want to live at, including basic necessities.
• Provision
 - Money decides how much of your basic needs are taken care of,
 and how much your kids or your community have as well.

RICHES ARE MEANINGLESS

Ecclesiastes 5:8-10
8 If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still. 9 The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.

10 Whoever loves money never has enough;
    whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
    This too is meaningless.

It's pretty straightforward: There are poor and oppressed in our world, and their justice and rights can be denied because there is always someone up the line who is trying to take advantage of them.

You might be poor and oppressed, but there is not a single person 
who is not also in the shoes of the official who benefits off of someone else.

We live in a broken world, yet we so easily play right into the hand of this broken world, and we get sucked in to always wanting more.

Ecclesiastes 5:11
11 As goods increase,
    so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owners
    except to feast their eyes on them?

Wow, what a small goal in life, right? And more than just that, it comes with stress too:

Ecclesiastes 5:12-14
12 The sleep of a laborer is sweet,
    whether they eat little or much,
but as for the rich, their abundance
    permits them no sleep.
13 I have seen a grievous evil under the sun:
wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,

14     or wealth lost through some misfortune,
so that when they have children
    there is nothing left for them to inherit.

Ecclesiastes 5:15-17
15 Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb,
    and as everyone comes, so they depart.
They take nothing from their toil
    that they can carry in their hands.
16 This too is a grievous evil:
As everyone comes, so they depart,
    and what do they gain,
    since they toil for the wind?

17 All their days they eat in darkness,
    with great frustration, affliction and anger.

Ultimately, just like the rest of this book, we are confronted again with the frailty and temporal nature of life. Money and possessions are no exception.

Solomon ends this section talking about what we SHOULD do:

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20
18 This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. 19 Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. 20 They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.

The core of all of this is to

Be CONTENT with what you have.
Be THANKFUL.