Money Cannot Satisfy—and Cannot Cross Death

Love of silver produces an appetite that silver cannot satisfy. Increased goods can bring increased consumers, worry, sleeplessness, and the possibility of sudden loss. Qoheleth then presses the point with birth and death: a person enters the world naked and leaves unable to carry accumulated labor away. This observation closely resembles later biblical teaching, including 1 Timothy 6:7, but the New Testament verse should not automatically be labeled a formal quotation of Ecclesiastes because similar wisdom occurs elsewhere. The connection is nevertheless canonically powerful. Wealth is a real good that can be received gratefully, but it is a terrible candidate for ultimate security. Death exposes the limit of possession.