Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Ecclesiastes 3:21

Clarke's Commentary

Verse 21. Who knoweth the spirit of man — I think the meaning of this important verse is well taken by the above able writer: -

The nobler part of man, 'tis true, survives

The frail corporeal frame: but who regards

The difference? Those who live like beasts, as such

Would die, and be no more, if their own fate

Depended on themselves. Who once reflects,

Amidst his revels, that the human soul,

Of origin celestial, mounts aloft,

While that of brutes to earth shall downward go?"

The word רוח ruach, which is used in this and the nineteenth verse, has two significations, breath and spirit. It signifies spirit, or an incorporeal substance, as distinguished from flesh, or a corporeal one, 1 Kings 22:21-22, and Isaiah 31:3. And it signifies the spirit or soul of man, Psalms 31:6; Isaiah 57:16, and in this book, Ecclesiastes 12:7, and in many other places. In this book it is used also to signify the breath, spirit, or soul of a beast. While it was said in Ecclesiastes 3:19, they have all one breath, i.e., the man and the beast live the same kind of animal life; in this verse, a proper distinction is made between the רוח ruach, or soul of man, and the רוח ruach, or soul of the beast: the one goeth upwards, the other goeth downwards. The literal translation of these important words is this: "Who considereth the רוח ruach) immortal spirit of the sons of Adam, which ascendeth? it is from above; (היא למעלה hi lemalah;) and the spirit or breath of the cattle which descendeth? it is downwards unto the earth," i.e., it tends to the earth only. This place gives no countenance to the materiality of the soul; and yet it is the strongest hold to which the cold and fruitless materialist can resort.

Solomon most evidently makes an essential difference between the human soul and that of brutes. Both have souls, but of different natures: the soul of man was made for God, and to God it shall return: God is its portion, and when a holy soul leaves the body, it goes to paradise. The soul of the beast was made to derive its happiness from this lower world. Brutes shall have a resurrection, and have an endless enjoyment in a new earth. The body of man shall arise, and join his soul that is already above; and both enjoy final blessedness in the fruition of God. That Solomon did not believe they had the same kind of spirit, and the same final lot, as some materialists and infidels say, is evident from Ecclesiastes 12:7: "The spirit shall return unto God who gave it."

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Injustice in the world (3:16-4:3)

Having acknowledged God’s order in human events, the writer now observes that the ‘order’ is, at times, not very orderly. For example, injustice abounds (16). Maybe, thinks the writer, God will put everything right in a judgment day in the afterlife (17). On the other hand, thinks he, there may not be an afterlife. He observes that people die the same as animals, as if God is trying to show that they are no different from the beasts. Also, he asks, can it be proved that people have life after death? The best they can do, concludes the writer, is to enjoy life while they can (18-22).
Although the enjoyment of life is a desirable goal, the world has so much cruelty and oppression that many people have no way of finding any sort of enjoyment. It would be better for these sufferers if they were dead; better still if they had never been born (4:1-3).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

IS MAN ANY MORE THAN A BEAST?

"And moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there. I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work. I said in my heart, It is because of the sons of men, that God may prove them, and that they may see that they are but as beasts. For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they all have one breath; and man hath no preeminence above the beasts; for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who knoweth the spirit of man, whether it goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast, whether it goeth downward to the earth? Wherefore I saw that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him back to see what shall be after him."

This terrible paragraph is a favorite of atheists and skeptics and all materialists who hold the view that man is nothing but an animal. Volney, Frederick the Great and Voltaire loved this paragraph.Ibid., p. 5. Also the Jehovah's Witnesses base their rejection of the immortality of the soul on this passage. We shall present two opposite views of this paragraph, finding in our own heart a great perplexity as to which is correct.

(1)    This understands Solomon here as saying that a man is no better in any way than an animal, that no one knows whether the soul of man goes up to God when he dies, or if the soul of the beast goes downward. "This is a favorite proof-text for those who deny that man has an immortal spirit that survives physical death."Ibid., 25. This writer is no apologist for Solomon. Throughout the historical books, we stressed the consummate wickedness of this evil man; but there are some things about the general interpretation of this paragraph that do not fit. Solomon believed in God; he had just stated that God would judge wicked men (Ecclesiastes 3:17); and he could not possibly have meant that God would judge them in this present life. Furthermore, as Grieve noted, "He here combats the idea that man's breath goes back to God who gave it, although he allows that as a fact in 12:7."Peake's Bible Commentary by Arthur S. Peake (Edinburgh: T. C. and E. C. Jack, Ltd., 1924), p. 413. It raises a question if Solomon actually did, in this passage, contradict what he later said. We seriously doubt it.

(2)    Who are these men whom Solomon said were "but as beasts"? Did he say this of all mankind, or merely of those wicked men who were perverting justice in the courts (Ecclesiastes 3:16). We think the words here should be restricted in their application to wicked men, which would be fully in harmony with what the rest of the Bible flatly declares, namely, that an evil man, "Is like the beasts that perish" (Psalms 49:20). The words `sons of men' are not the same as `all mankind.' And the Biblical usage justifies the conclusion that the words here may be used to distinguish them from `sons of God.' Favoring this viewpoint is what F. C. Cook declared to be the proper translation of Ecclesiastes 3:21. The words translated `whether' are not in the Hebrew text.Barnes' Notes on the Old Testament, op. cit., p. 97. That means that our version, ASV, the RSV, the Septuagint (LXX) and nearly all current translations have `emended the text.' That means that what they have given us is the word of the translators, not the Word of God, which we hold is found only in the Hebrew text. Let us read it correctly:

"Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth" (KJV).

"The words `who knoweth' are used here and elsewhere in Scripture as a reference to that which is not fully understood."Ibid. They do not denote complete ignorance. Speaking of translators and their free-wheeling habit of `emending' God's Word, we should bear continually in mind the fact that the translators of the KING JAMES BIBLE believed that they were translating the Word of God, whereas many current `translators' consider themselves competent to tell us what the Holy Spirit `was trying to say'! This is an important reason why we prefer the alternative understanding of this difficult paragraph.

We should remember, however, that even if the first view of this passage is correct, the message in it would then be most certainly false. It was identified in the text as what Solomon thought in his heart; and like many another thing that Solomon thought in his heart, it was not the teaching of the Holy Spirit; because even the Old Testament reveals that there was a firm conviction among God's people of the resurrection and of life after death. Man is not merely a beast, but he must give an account to God for his behavior as stated in Ecclesiastes 3:17; and that verse is also additional proof of the accuracy of the second view of this paragraph.

IS MAN ONLY AN ANIMAL?

Our wicked society today must face up to this question. Powerful and evil voices are shouting an affirmative answer. When our Supreme Court outlawed prayer in the public schools, while retaining it both in their court, and in the Congress, they yielded to those irresponsible and godless voices.

Every day in 10,000 classrooms, atheistic teachers are telling their gullible students that man is merely an animal, `highly evolved,' of course, but still an animal with no immortal spirit. "The vast majority of these evolutionists have long ago denied the existence of the God of the Bible."James Waddey, p. 26. Their theory of evolution is itself a blatant and unprovable lie; and the ultimate consequences of any society's accepting it are certain to terminate in the absolute destruction of that society.

If man is only an animal, it is not a sin to commit murder, robbery, mayhem, adultery, or anything else that the unregenerated mind may choose to do. Let the gullible fools who are teaching the theory try to explain the necessary implications of it in any other way. It is not wrong for fishes to eat one another, nor for animals to kill each other. It is not wrong for dogs to kill either cats, other dogs, or any other animal.

If man is but an animal, he is not responsible or in any other manner guilty if he commits murder. Clarence Darrow, one of the most famous criminal lawyers of this century, defended the brutal, senseless sex-murder of a young boy, pleading that, "The conduct of man or the other animals is no more subject to whim or choice than the action of the planets."Clarence Darrow, Autobiography, (New York City: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1932), p. 76. Is it true? Certainly, if man is merely an animal.

If our stupid and grossly wicked society really wants the explanation of the irresistible tidal wave of violent crimes which are destroying our cities and threatening the collapse of civilization itself, they must find it in this very conception, i.e., that there is no God and that man is merely an animal.

There is only one reason why it's wrong for one man to kill another; and that reason is that every man is created in the image of God; and his destruction is against God Himself. A godless society has no more rights than a society of brown rats. God help our deluded generation to find the way back to sanity before it is too late! Many in our current culture have not yet caught on to the truth which was so bluntly stated by Clarence Darrow; but a whole generation of young criminals have already adopted it.

Oh, but it is against the law to commit murder! How is this so? It is true because the Ten Commandments, given by God Himself, are recognized in 47 of the 48 contiguous states of our beloved nation as the basic law of the land. Let the atheists have their way long enough and they'll remove that, just like they did prayer in the public schools. In fact, by the removal of the death penalty for murder, they have already contradicted the God-commanded execution of capital punishment upon every human being guilty of murder. Yes, God commanded that every murderer should be put to death (Genesis 9:6); and that is not an option, it is a Divine order. God help America to wake up!

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

That great anomaly in the moral government of this world, the seemingly unequal distribution of rewards and punishments, will be rectified by God, who has future times and events under His control Ecclesiastes 3:16-17. As for people, they are placed by God, who is their teacher, in a humble condition, even on a level with inferior animals, by death, that great instance of their subjection to vanity Ecclesiastes 3:18-19, which reduces to its original form all that was made of the dust of the ground Ecclesiastes 3:20. And though the destinies of man and beast are different, yet in our present lack of knowledge as to God’s future dealing with our spirits Ecclesiastes 3:21, man finds his portion (see the Ecclesiastes 2:10 note) in such labor and such joy as God assigns to him in his lifetime Ecclesiastes 3:22.

Ecclesiastes 3:16

I saw ... - Rather, I have seen (as in Ecclesiastes 3:10) under the sun the place etc. The place of judgment means the seat of the authorized judge. Compare “the place of the holy” Ecclesiastes 8:10.

Ecclesiastes 3:17

A time there - i. e., a time with God.

Ecclesiastes 3:18

literally, I said in my heart with regard to the sons of men, it is that God may prove them and show them that they are beasts, they themselves. “Showing” is the reading of the Septuagint and Syriac: the present Hebrew text reads “seeing.” The meaning is that the long delay of God’s judgment Ecclesiastes 3:16-17 is calculated to show people that the brevity of their life renders them incapable of following out and understanding His distributive justice.

Ecclesiastes 3:19

That which befalleth the sons of men - literally, the event (happenstance) of the sons of men, i. e., what comes upon them from outside, by virtue of the ordinance of God. See the Ecclesiastes 2:14 note. Death in particular Ecclesiastes 3:2, Ecclesiastes 3:11 is a part of the “work that God doeth.”

Ecclesiastes 3:21

The King James Version of this verse is the only rendering which the Hebrew text, as now pointed, allows. It is in accordance with the best Jewish and many modern interpreters. A slightly different pointing would be requisite to authorize the translation, “Who knows the spirit of the sons of man whether it goes above, and, the spirit of the beast whether it goes down below?” etc., which, though it seems neither necessary nor suitable, is sanctioned by the Septuagint and other versions and by some modern interpreters.

Who knoweth - This expression (used also in Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 6:12) does not necessarily imply complete and absolute ignorance. In Psalms 90:11, it is applied to what is partially understood: compare similar forms of expression in Proverbs 31:10; Psalms 94:16; Isaiah 53:1. Moreover, it is evident from marginal references that Solomon did not doubt the future existence and destination of the soul. This verse can only be construed as a confession of much ignorance on the subject.

Ecclesiastes 3:22

What shall be after him - i. e., What shall become of the results of his work after he is dead. Compare Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 6:12.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 3

Now we get into the weary, monotony of life. This has been used poetically as something that is very beautiful. "A time to love," and it's been made very beautiful, but in the Hebrew idea, it was monotony. Life is just monotonous.

There is a time and a season, a time and a purpose under heaven to everything: there is a time to be born, a time to die; a time to plant, a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill, a time to heal; a time to break down, a time to build up; a time to weep, a time to laugh; a time to mourn, a time to dance; a time to cast ( Ecclesiastes 3:1-5 )

And that's the idea of the Hebrew. It's just a monotony. Life seems to be ordered in these things. Just a time, a time, a time, a time. And the Hebrew idea is that of the monotony of life. It isn't, "Oh, the glorious time to love and a time to plant," you know, as we make it very romantic today. It was really being expressed in a very life-gets-so-tedious, don't it? Therefore he concludes.

What profit hath he that works in that wherein he has labored? ( Ecclesiastes 3:9 )

What profit do you get out of your labor?

I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he has set the world in their heart ( Ecclesiastes 3:10-11 ),

Now the word translated world there in the Hebrew is eternity or the ages. God has actually set the ages in every man's heart. There is a consciousness within every man of the eternal. Now some men seek to sublimate that consciousness. Some men seek to deny that consciousness. They seek to deny God. But there is within every man, God has placed it in the heart, eternal, the eternity in the heart of every man that is seeking out after that which is more than just a part of this monotonous routine of life. I'm grasping and reaching for that which is eternal. God has placed the awareness of the eternal in the heart of every man. And that's that deep, spiritual drive that every man has that can only be filled by coming to Jesus Christ and drinking of the water that He gives.

so that no man can find out the work that God makes from the beginning to the end. I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life. And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of his labor, it is the gift of God. I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be added to it, nor any thing taken from it: for God does it, that men should reverence him ( Ecclesiastes 3:11-14 ).

Now I know this about God. My works are going to pass away. My works are going to be forgotten. But whatever God does, that's forever. And you can't add to the work of God. You can't take away.

Now I love this because I think of the work of God in my life of imputing the righteousness to me through my faith in Jesus Christ. I can't add to it. I can't get a set of rules and start doing all these nice little things and be more righteous. Nor can you take away from that righteousness that I have, that perfect standing that I have before God in Jesus Christ. You can't add to it; you can't take from it. The work of God is complete. The work of God is eternal. And God has worked in me His righteousness by my faith in Jesus Christ.

Now one of the problems that we often have is our endeavor to add to God's work. If I could only, you know, read ten chapters of the Bible everyday, then I could be more righteous. If I'd only pray for four hours a day, then I'd be more righteous. No, no, you can't add. You are righteous, the righteousness of Christ which is through faith. You are righteous in God's sight. "Oh, I got so angry today and screamed at the kids. I'm so unrighteous." No, you can't take away from that righteousness that is yours in Christ Jesus. You can't diminish. God accounts you righteous in His sight. The work of God in imputing righteousness to me.

So I don't need to go around hanging my head, "Oh, I'm so miserable today. I'm such a sinner. I'm so horrible. And I'm so this and that." God is counting me righteous because I am trusting and believing in His work in Jesus Christ. And I can't go around and say, "Well, I'm so righteous, so much more righteous than you, you sinner, you know. I saw what you did. I wouldn't think of doing that," and I can't go around in a self-righteous mold because I have these spiritual gifts or I have done this or that. It doesn't make me any more righteous. You can't add to the work of God. It's complete. It's full. And I'm so glad.

That which ( Ecclesiastes 3:15 )

Verse Ecclesiastes 3:15 is an interesting verse because it is sort of a definition of eternity. And if you have had trouble understanding eternity before, you'll really have trouble now. You see, we live in a time continuum on this planet Earth. Because the planet rotates on its axis about once every twenty-four hours, we call it a day. We measure the time in hours. Because the earth is in an orbit around the sun every 365 days and nine hours and fifty-six minutes and 4/100's of a second, we call that a year. We live on this earth and thus we are spinning around in our days and orbiting around in our years in the time continuum.

Now, if you get outside of the earth, and you begin to accelerate your speed, time no longer is moving in this but it begins to stretch out into a plane according to this speed to where if you can accelerate to this speed of light, time stands still. Now, if we could hop on a ray of light, turning into the energy, get out in this long plane, you could take off on a ray of light in what? One in a quarter seconds, tip your hat to the man on the moon; seven and a half minutes, race past the sun; fourteen minutes, button up your coat as you go past Pluto, so cold--fourteen hours, rather, Pluto. Hundred thousand years you could leave the Milky Way galaxy. One million five hundred thousand years, you could arrive at Adromeda. Make a U-turn, head back to the earth. And in three million years, you could return to the earth on that ray of light and you would be about a day older. But the earth would have gone through three million orbits around the sun, which those who are living upon the earth would have counted as years. So you'd go to look for the house that you used to live in and the cities and the people, and what's going to be in three million years, you see? But you've escaped the time zone. You're into the eternal where there is no time. As you get into the eternal, it is the now zone. God said, "I am." That is expressing His eternal nature. You're no longer within, you're no longer bounded by time, beginning and end; you're now in the eternal. Now. So when you can escape the time zone.

That which has been is now; and that which is to be has already been ( Ecclesiastes 3:15 );

That's weird. God is outside of our time dimension. God is in the eternal dimension. So with God, "a day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years is as a day" ( 2 Peter 3:8 ). In other words, there is no time. You're in the eternal now. So that any event that will ever take place is taking place. Any event that has ever taken place is taking place. That which has been is now; that which shall be has already been.

and God requires that which is past ( Ecclesiastes 3:15 ).

You can't escape it. You say, "Well, I don't understand that." Well, join the crowd. You see, not only are we living in this time continuum, but we are also living in this finite existence and it is impossible that the finite can understand the infinite. Time deals with the finite aspects. Eternal deals with the infinite. And you can't cross the gulf. It's too great. You can only make childish illustrations, but you can't cross the gulf from the finite to the infinite.

Moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there. I said in my heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work. And I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts ( Ecclesiastes 3:16-18 ).

Now this is life under the sun, that man might see himself that he's an animal. But this is not true. Man is more than an animal. Man is made in the image and likeness of God. He's looking at man from the purely humanistic standpoint.

For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth the beasts; even one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other ( Ecclesiastes 3:19 );

Not true.

yea, they have all one breath ( Ecclesiastes 3:19 );

The word breath in Hebrew is ruwach which is also translated spirit. There are some who say that man and animals have one spirit.

so that a man has no preeminence above the beast: for all is vanity ( Ecclesiastes 3:19 ).

That is not true. That is looking at man from a humanistic standpoint. Man under the sun. That is not looking at man as God looks at man as a divine creation with eternity in his heart. The animal, of what animal can you say God has put eternity in his heart?

All go to one place ( Ecclesiastes 3:20 );

False.

all are of the dust ( Ecclesiastes 3:20 ),

Our bodies, yes.

and all turn to the dust again ( Ecclesiastes 3:20 ).

Our bodies, yes.

But who knows if the spirit of man goes upward, and the spirit of the beast goes downward to the earth? ( Ecclesiastes 3:21 )

Well, the Lord Jesus Christ knows, and He declares it to be true.

Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him? ( Ecclesiastes 3:22 )

Who knows what's going to happen after him? So just live for now, rejoice in your works now. This is the purely human view of life. And God has recorded it in His Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit that you might see the view of life from the human standpoint, that it is empty and frustrating, because you don't see man any more than just an animal. And that's why the world around you is so filled with frustration and emptiness today, because it views man as an animal. "

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward?.... There is indeed a difference between a man and a beast; though they have one breath, they have not one spirit or soul; man has a rational and immortal soul, which, when he dies, goes upwards to God that gave it; to be judged by him, and disposed of by him, in its proper apartment, until the day of the resurrection of the body;

and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth? when the beast dies, its spirit goes down to the earth, from whence it came, and is resolved into it, and is no more. But who is it that sees, or can see and know with the eyes of his body, the difference of these two spirits, or the ascent of the one, and the descent of the other?, Or who knows by the dint of reason, by the strength of his own understanding, without a divine revelation, that man has an immortal soul which goes upwards at death, when that of a beast goes downwards? No man, clearly and fully, as appears from the doubts and half faith of the wisest Heathens concerning it: or rather who knows and considers this difference between the spirit of a man and the spirit of a beast, and thinks within himself what a precious and immortal soul he has, and is concerned for the salvation of it? Very few; and hence it is they live and die like beasts, as they do. The Midrash interprets this of the souls of the righteous that go up to heaven, and of the souls of the wicked that go down to hell.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      16 And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there.   17 I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.   18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.   19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.   20 All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.   21 Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?   22 Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?

      Solomon is still showing that every thing in this world, without piety and the fear of God, is vanity. Take away religion, and there is nothing valuable among men, nothing for the sake of which a wise man would think it worth while to live in this world. In these verses he shows that power (than which there is nothing men are more ambitious of) and life itself (than which there is nothing men are more fond, more jealous of) are nothing without the fear of God.

      I. Here is the vanity of man as mighty, man in his best estate, man upon the throne, where his authority is submitted to, man upon the judgment-seat, where his wisdom and justice are appealed to, and where, if he be governed by the laws of religion, he is God's vicegerent; nay, he is of those to whom it is said, You are gods; but without the fear of God it is vanity, for, set that aside, and,

      1. The judge will not judge aright, will not use his power well, but will abuse it; instead of doing good with it he will do hurt with it, and then it is not only vanity, but a lie, a cheat to himself and to all about him, Ecclesiastes 3:16; Ecclesiastes 3:16. Solomon perceived, by what he had read of former times, what he heard of other countries, and what he had seen in some corrupt judges, even in the land of Israel, notwithstanding all his care to prefer good men, that there was wickedness in the place of judgment. It is not so above the sun: far be it from God that he should do iniquity, or pervert justice. But under the sun it is often found that that which should be the refuge, proves the prison, of oppressed innocency. Man being in honour, and not understanding what he ought to do, becomes like the beasts that perish, like the beasts of prey, even the most ravenous, Psalms 49:20. Not only from the persons that sat in judgment, but even in the places where judgment was, in pretence, administered, and righteousness was expected, there was iniquity; men met with the greatest wrongs in those courts to which they fled for justice. This is vanity and vexation; for, (1.) It would have been better for the people to have had no judges than to have had such. (2.) It would have been better for the judges to have had no power than to have had it and used it to such ill purposes; and so they will say another day.

      2. The judge will himself be judged for not judging aright. When Solomon saw how judgment was perverted among men he looked up to God the Judge, and looked forward to the day of his judgment (Ecclesiastes 3:17; Ecclesiastes 3:17): "I said in my heart that this unrighteous judgment is not so conclusive as both sides take it to be, for there will be a review of the judgment; God shall judge between the righteous and the wicked, shall judge for the righteous and plead their cause, though now it is run down, and judge against the wicked and reckon with them for all their unrighteous decrees and the grievousness which they have prescribed," Isaiah 10:1. With an eye of faith we may see, not only the period, but the punishment of the pride and cruelty of oppressors (Psalms 92:7), and it is an unspeakable comfort to the oppressed that their cause will be heard over again. Let them therefore wait with patience, for there is another Judge that stands before the door. And, though the day of affliction may last long, yet there is a time, a set time, for the examination of every purpose, and every work done under the sun. Men have their day now, but God's day is coming, Psalms 37:13. With God there is a time for the re-hearing of causes, redressing of grievances, and reversing of unjust decrees, though as yet we see it not here, Job 24:1.

      II. Here is the vanity of man as mortal. He now comes to speak more generally concerning the estate of the sons of men in this world, their life and being on earth, and shows that their reason, without religion and the fear of God, advances them but little above the beasts. Now observe,

      1. What he aims at in this account of man's estate. (1.) That God may be honoured, may be justified, may be glorified--that they might clear God (so the margin reads it), that if men have an uneasy life in this world, full of vanity and vexation, they may thank themselves and lay no blame on God; let them clear him, and not say that he made this world to be man's prison and life to be his penance; no, God made man, in respect both of honour and comfort, little lower than the angels; if he be mean and miserable, it is his own fault. Or, that God (that is, the world of God) might manifest them, and discover them to themselves, and so appear to be quick and powerful, and a judge of men's characters; and we may be made sensible how open we lie to God's knowledge and judgment. (2.) That men may be humbled, may be vilified, may be mortified--that they might see that they themselves are beasts. It is no easy matter to convince proud men that they are but men (Psalms 9:20), much more to convince bad men that they are beasts, that, being destitute of religion, they are as the beasts that perish, as the horse and the mule that have no understanding. Proud oppressors are as beasts, as roaring lions and ranging bears. Nay, every man that minds his body only, and not his soul, makes himself no better than a brute, and must wish, at least, to die like one.

      2. The manner in which he verifies this account. That which he undertakes to prove is that a worldly, carnal, earthly-minded man, has no preeminence above the beast, for all that which he sets his heart upon, places his confidence, and expects a happiness in, is vanity,Ecclesiastes 3:19; Ecclesiastes 3:19. Some make this to be the language of an atheist, who justifies himself in his iniquity (Ecclesiastes 3:16; Ecclesiastes 3:16) and evades the argument taken from the judgment to come (Ecclesiastes 3:17; Ecclesiastes 3:17) by pleading that there is not another life after this, but that when man dies there is an end of him, and therefore while he lives he may live as he lists; but others rather think Solomon here speaks as he himself thinks, and that it is to be understood in the same sense with that of his father (Psalms 49:14), Like sheep they are laid in the grave, and that he intends to show the vanity of this world's wealth and honours "By the equal condition in mere outward respects (as bishop Reynolds expounds it) between men and beasts," (1.) The events concerning both seem much alike (Ecclesiastes 3:19; Ecclesiastes 3:19); That which befals the sons of men is no other than that which befals beasts; a great deal of knowledge of human bodies is gained by the anatomy of the bodies of brutes. When the deluge swept away the old world the beasts perished with mankind. Horses and men are killed in battle with the same weapons of war. (2.) The end of both, to an eye of sense, seems alike too: They have all one breath, and breathe in the same air, and it is the general description of both that in their nostrils is the breath of life (Genesis 7:22), and therefore, as the one dies, so dies the other; in their expiring there is no visible difference, but death makes much the same change with a beast that it does with a man. [1.] As to their bodies, the change is altogether the same, except the different respects that are paid to them by the survivors. Let a man be buried with the burial of an ass (Jeremiah 22:19) and what preëminence then has he above a beast? The touch of the dead body of a man, by the law of Moses, contracted a greater ceremonial pollution than the touch of the carcase even of an unclean beast or fowl. And Solomon here observes that all go unto one place; the dead bodies of men and beasts putrefy alike; all are of the dust, in their original, for we see all turn to dust again in their corruption. What little reason then have we to be proud of our bodies, or any bodily accomplishments, when they must not only be reduced to the earth very shortly, but must be so in common with the beasts, and we must mingle our dust with theirs! [2.] As to their spirits there is indeed a vast difference, but not a visible one, Ecclesiastes 3:21; Ecclesiastes 3:21. It is certain that the spirit of the sons of men at death is ascending; it goes upwards to the Father of spirits, who made it, to the world of spirits to which it is allied; it dies not with the body, but is redeemed from the power of the grave,Psalms 49:15. It goes upwards to be judged and determined to an unchangeable state. It is certain that the spirit of the beast goes downwards to the earth; it dies with the body; it perishes and is gone at death. The soul of a beast is, at death, like a candle blown out--there is an end of it; whereas the soul of a man is then like a candle taken out of a dark lantern, which leaves the lantern useless indeed, but does itself shine brighter. This great difference there is between the spirits of men and beasts; and a good reason it is why men should set their affections on things above, and lift up their souls to those things, not suffering them, as if they were the souls of brutes, to cleave to this earth. But who knows this difference? We cannot see the ascent of the one and the descent of the other with our bodily eyes; and therefore those that live by sense, as all carnal sensualists do, that walk in the sight of their eyes and will not admit any other discoveries, by their own rule of judgment have no preëminence above the beasts. Who knows, that is, who considers this? Isaiah 53:1. Very few. Were it better considered, the world would be every way better; but most men live as if they were to be here always, or as if when they die there were an end of them; and it is not strange that those live like beasts who think they shall die like beasts, but on such the noble faculties of reason are perfectly lost and thrown away.

      3. An inference drawn from it (Ecclesiastes 3:22; Ecclesiastes 3:22): There is nothing better, as to this world, nothing better to be had out of our wealth and honour, than that a man should rejoice in his own works, that is, (1.) Keep a clear conscience, and never admit iniquity into the place of righteousness. Let every man prove his own work, and approve himself to God in it, so shall he have rejoicing in himself alone,Galatians 6:4. Let him not get nor keep any thing but what he can rejoice in. See 2 Corinthians 1:12. (2.) Live a cheerful life. If God have prospered the work of our hands unto us, let us rejoice in it, and take the comfort of it, and not make it a burden to ourselves and leave others the joy of it; for that is our portion, not the portion of our souls (miserable are those that have their portion in this life, Psalms 17:14, and fools are those that choose it and take up with it, Luke 12:19), but it is the portion of the body; that only which we enjoy is ours out of this world; it is taking what is to be had and making the best of it, and the reason is because none can give us a sight of what shall be after us, either who shall have our estates or what use they will make of them. When we are gone it is likely we shall not see what is after us; there is no correspondence that we know of between the other world and this, Job 14:21. Those in the other world will be wholly taken up with that world, so that they will not care for seeing what is done in this; and while we are here we cannot foresee what shall be after us, either as to our families or the public. It is not for us to know the times and seasons that shall be after us, which, as it should be a restraint to our cares about this world, so it should be a reason for our concern about another. Since death is a final farewell to this life, let us look before us to another life.