Ecclesiastes 5:8-17

" If you see in a province the oppression of the poor and the violation of justice and righteousness, do not be amazed at the matter, for the high official is watched by a higher, and there are yet higher ones over them. But this is gain for a land in every way: a king committed to cultivated fields. He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes? Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, whether he eats little or much, but the full stomach of the rich will not let him sleep. There is a grievous evil that I have seen under the sun: riches were kept by their owner to his hurt, and those riches were lost in a bad venture. And he is father of a son, but he has nothing in his hand. As he came from his mother’s womb he shall go again, naked as he came, and shall take nothing for his toil that he may carry away in his hand. This also is a grievous evil: just as he came, so shall he go, and what gain is there to him who toils for the wind? Moreover, all his days he eats in darkness in much vexation and sickness and anger." (Ecclesiastes 5:8-17, ESV)

As the Preacher slowly sows together various strands of meaning and significance, he also continues to tear down all false hopes for meaning in life. One such false hope, and one he has already dealt with in some measure, is that of wealth. He has three complaints with the pursuit of wealth. First, oppression and injustice are children of wealth mongering (vs.8-9). You should not be surprised, says the Preacher, to see oppression of the poor, because there are officials over them, and officials over the officials, and eventually a king over them all, and every last one of them is out to get as much out of the land as they can. The lower official extracts everything he can out of the poor, for the official over him will do the same to him, and so on to the very top of the ladder. Everyone is looking for greater wealth, which means no one is looking out for justice and compassion. When money becomes your passion, people just become a means to an end, and oppression is soon born.

Secondly, wealth offers nothing but sleepless nights(vs.10-12). As the bank account grows and possessions increase, so do the anxiety, stress, indigestion, and sleepless nights that accompany the maintenance of that wealth. You may have a full stomach and more stuff to look at, but you also have a massive world of new responsibility. The greater attachment you have to the stuff of this world, the more work you have to keep it going. Great wealth doesn’t set you free; it binds you.

Thirdly, the greatest evil that great wealth brings is the fear of loosing it (vs.13-17). After all, what good is the accumulation of riches if you loose it? Thus, all his days the rich man “eats in darkness in much vexation and sickness and anger”(vs.17).

These musings cannot but make you question whether the American dream is really such a great dream. Our constant drive for more leads to oppression and personal anxiety, stress, fear, and bondage. Sounds like an awesome dream. Sign me up.