Ecclesiastes 5:13

Hoarding Wealth Can Backfire

¹² The sleep of a working man is sweet, if he has little food or much; but to him who is full, sleep will not come. ¹³ There is a great evil which I have seen under the sun--wealth kept by the owner to be his downfall. ¹⁴ And I saw the destruction of his wealth by an evil chance; and when he became the father of a son he had nothing in his hand.

In the World

On Earth

Under the Sun

Ecclesiastes 6:1-2

There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is hard on men;

Genesis 13:5-11

And Lot, who went with him, had flocks and herds and tents;

Genesis 14:16

And he got back all the goods, and Lot, his brother's son, with his goods and the women and the people.

Genesis 19:14

And Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were married to his daughters, Come, let us go out of this place, for the Lord is about to send destruction on the town. But his sons-in-law did not take him seriously.

Genesis 19:26

But Lot's wife, looking back, became a pillar of salt.

Genesis 19:31-38

And the older daughter said to her sister, Our father is old, and there is no man to be a husband to us in the natural way:

Proverbs 1:11-13

If they say, Come with us; let us make designs against the good, waiting secretly for the upright, without cause;

Proverbs 1:19

Such is the fate of everyone who goes in search of profit; it takes away the life of its owners.

Proverbs 1:32

For the turning back of the simple from teaching will be the cause of their death, and the peace of the foolish will be their destruction.

Proverbs 11:4

Wealth is of no profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness keeps a man safe from death.

Proverbs 11:24-25

A man may give freely, and still his wealth will be increased; and another may keep back more than is right, but only comes to be in need.

Ecclesiastes 4:8

It is one who is by himself, without a second, and without son or brother; but there is no end to all his work, and he has never enough of wealth. For whom, then, am I working and keeping myself from pleasure? This again is to no purpose, and a bitter work.

Ecclesiastes 8:9

All this have I seen, and have given my heart to all the work which is done under the sun: there is a time when man has power over man for his destruction.

Isaiah 32:6-8

For the foolish man will say foolish things, having evil thoughts in his heart, working what is unclean, and talking falsely about the Lord, to keep food from him who is in need of it, and water from him whose soul is desiring it.

Zephaniah 1:18

Even their silver and their gold will not be able to keep them safe in the day of the Lord's wrath; but all the land will be burned up in the fire of his bitter wrath: for he will put an end, even suddenly, to all who are living in the land.

Luke 12:16-21

And he said to them, in a story, The land of a certain man of great wealth was very fertile:

Luke 16:1-13

And another time he said to the disciples, There was a certain man of great wealth who had a servant; and it was said to him that this servant was wasting his goods.

Luke 16:19

Now there was a certain man of great wealth, who was dressed in fair clothing of purple and delicate linen, and was shining and glad every day.

Luke 16:22-23

And in time the poor man came to his end, and angels took him to Abraham's breast. And the man of wealth came to his end, and was put in the earth.

Luke 18:22-23

And Jesus, hearing it, said to him, One thing you still have need of; get money for your goods, and give it away to the poor, and you will have wealth in heaven; and come after me.

Isaiah 2:20

In that day men will put their images of silver and of gold, which they made for worship, in the keeping of the beasts of the dark places;

Luke 19:8

And Zacchaeus, waiting before him, said to the Lord, See, Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone wrongly, I give him back four times as much.

1 Timothy 6:9-10

But those who have a desire for wealth are falling into danger, and are taken as in a net by a number of foolish and damaging desires, through which men are overtaken by death and destruction.

James 2:5-7

Give ear, my dear brothers; are not those who are poor in the things of this world marked out by God to have faith as their wealth, and for their heritage the kingdom which he has said he will give to those who have love for him?

James 5:1-4

Come now, you men of wealth, give yourselves to weeping and crying because of the bitter troubles which are coming to you.