The Futility of Life 1 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it is heavy upon man:
Gregory of Neocaesarea · AD 270 Moreover, I shall exhibit in discourse the ill-fortune that most of all prevails among men. While God may supply a man with all that is according to his mind, and deprive him of no object which may in any manner appeal to his desires, whether it be wealth, or honour, or any other of those things for which men distract themselves; yet the man, while thus prospered in all things,…
Jerome · AD 420 "There is an evil I have observed beneath the sun, and it is prevalent among mankind; a man to whom God has given riches, wealth and honour, and he lacks nothing that his heart could desire, yet God did not give him the power to enjoy it. This is futility and an evil disease.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 Thirdly, he denounces avarice, because riches are frequently transferred to strangers. "There is also another evil," etc. Above he showed that riches are to be despised, both because they do not enrich their possessors, and because they are frequently not transmitted to posterity.
2 a man to whom God gives riches and possessions and honor, and he lacks nothing for his soul of all that he craves, yet God does not give him power to eat of it, but a foreign man eats it. This is breath, and it is an evil sickness.
Athanasius of Alexandria · AD 373 Let none of us entertain the desire for possessions, for what gain is it to acquire those things which we cannot take with us? Why not rather acquire those that we can take: prudence, justice, temperance, fortitude, understanding, charity, love of the poor, faith in Christ, gentleness, hospitality?
Ambrose of Milan · AD 397 What good is there for a person in this life? He lives in darkness and cannot be satisfied in his desires. And if he is sated with riches, he loses the enjoyment of his rest, because he is forced to guard the possessions he has acquired through his wretched greed. Thus he possesses them in greater wretchedness, seeing that they can do him no good.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 And he assumes the vanity, which is observed in this, that one hoards riches and another devours them: therefore he says: "A man, to whom God has given riches," as regards movable goods; "and wealth," as regards immovable goods; "and honors," as regards exalted things.
3 If a man begets a hundred and lives many years, and many are the days of his years, but his soul is not satisfied from the good, and also he has no burial — I said the stillborn is better than he.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 "If anyone should beget" etc. Here is noted the detestation of miserliness by reason of the aforementioned transfer, and he reproves miserliness itself, however much successive prosperity he may have.
4 For in breath it came and in darkness it goes, and in darkness its name is covered.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 "For he comes in vain" etc. Here is subjoined thirdly the reason for the detestation, namely that an abortive is better than one who is miserly in this manner, because, just as an abortive comes in vain and goes to darkness, since it immediately dies, so also does he; therefore it is said: "For he comes in vain and goes to darkness," namely the miser himself: Job chapter three:…
5 Also it has not seen the sun and has not known — this has more rest than that.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 On account of the inexperience of good, he adds: "he does not see the sun," in which namely there is delight and experience of good, according to what is said below in the eleventh chapter: "The light is sweet, and it is delightful for the eyes to see the sun." The avaricious man has not seen this, because he errs: Wisdom 5: "We have erred from the way of truth, and the light o…
6 And though he lived a thousand years twice over and did not see good — do not all go to one place?
Bonaventure · AD 1257 Therefore he says: "Even if he should live two thousand years," because we do not have knowledge through length of time, but through experience: Sirach 34: "He who has not been tested knows few things," according to what the Philosopher says: "Experience produced art, inexperience produced chance." On account of the incompleteness of desire, he adds: "Do not all things hasten t…
7 All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the soul is not filled.
Tertullian · AD 220 To the corrupting power of riches [the Lord] made the enormity of voracious appetite antecedent; indeed, the former generates the latter.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 The rich man reveals the great burning in his tongue when he says, "Send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, since I am tormented in this flame." The unbelieving people keep the words of the law in their mouths but refuse to act on them.
Bonaventure · AD 1257 For this reason he says: "All the labor of man is in his mouth:" the mouth is called the initiation of desire; for he who desires, as it were, opens his mouth.
8 For what advantage has the wise man over the fool? What has the poor man who knows how to walk before the living?
Bonaventure · AD 1257 "What more does he have" etc. He set forth above the remedy against the vanity of malice and against the vanity of avarice: here thirdly he sets forth the remedy against the vanity of imprudence.
9 Better the sight of the eyes than the going of the soul. This also is breath and chasing after wind.
Jerome · AD 420 "Better is what the eyes see than what is imagined. That, too, is futility and a vexation of the spirit." Symmachus interpreted this clearly, he says: "it is better to make provision, than to walk about as it pleases you".
Bonaventure · AD 1257 It is asked concerning what he says: "It is better to see what you desire than to desire what you do not know." Therefore it does not involve a contradiction that someone can desire what he does not know.
10 What has been — its name has already been called, and it is known what man is; and he cannot contend with one stronger than he.
Evagrius Ponticus · AD 399 There are two sorts of names: some names designate those things which by nature have a body; others designate those which by nature are without a body.
Jerome · AD 420 "What has been was already named, and it is known that he is but a man. He cannot contend with one who is mightier than him." Clearly this is predicting the arrival of the Saviour, since he writes 'he will be'; before he was seen in body his name was already written in the Scriptures and was known by prophets and holy men of God, since he was a man; and similar to this, since h…
Bonaventure · AD 1257 And indeed he forbids to scrutinize this, consequently saying: "He who is to be" etc. Here he calls back from scrutinizing hidden things, such as the divine disposition: on account of which he says: "He who is to be, his name has already been called," with respect to eternal election; Romans 4: "Who calls those things which are not, as though they were." "And it is known that h…
11 For there are many words that increase breath. What advantage is there for man?
Bonaventure · AD 1257 Therefore he adds: "Words are very many," that is, few things are known: below, chapter 10: "The fool multiplies words." "And having much vanity in disputing," and little truth, above, chapter 3: "He has delivered the world to their disputation, so that man may not find the work which God has wrought from the beginning even to the end"; and therefore those who wish to scrutiniz…
12 For who knows what is good for man in life, the number of the days of the life of his breath, and he makes them like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?
Bonaventure · AD 1257 Here he calls back a third time from scrutinizing lofty things and inquiring into them, and this, since he has enough to do in knowing his own evils, or common ones.