| 13b It is a grievous task which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with. |
The depth of information, the gather of information, and the desire to gain information is emotionally taxing. It a burden that can bend us over with its weight. We have a desire to learn and know and it can drive us. This same idea is seen in the last section of Ecclesiastes, the collector says, “12 But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.”
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| 14a I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, |
כָּל־ kāl – All – הַֽמַּעֲשִׂ֔ים ham·ma·‘ă·śîm – Work, Deeds
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“All work” is hyperbole, but how much. Surely there were culturerally specific activities, being done on earth, that the collector of sentences was not aware. At the same time, king Solomon was aware of many cultures in the area, “1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women.” Adding the examples listed in this scroll and other wisdom liturature, it is reasonable to think this “all” could be practically comprehensive.
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| 14b and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. |
No matter what work or deeds a person does in life, the end is vane. The collector of sentences is convince of this vanity and repeats the phrase.
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| 15 What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. |
You can not count something that is not there, it is vanity. If interested, there are similar extra cultural texts to look up. There are other collected sentences through Ecclesiastes that are similar to others in the region as well.
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