Ecclesiastes 2:21

For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.

Cross-reference

Ecclesiastes 2:17 expresses the hatred of life that arises from the very injustice described in 2:21—toil wasted on another.

Ecclesiastes 2:18 states the same frustration—hating toil left to another—and provides the basis for the specific case in 2:21.

Ecclesiastes 1:2 declares all is vanity — this verse exemplifies that claim, calling the specific situation 'vanity and a great evil'.

Ecclesiastes 4:4 also addresses the vanity of toil, attributing it to envy — a different cause but the same conclusion about labor's futility.

Psalm 39:6 Parallel

Psalm 39:6 echoes this exact frustration: man heaps up wealth but doesn't know who will gather it — a clear parallel to laboring for another's benefit.

Psalm 49:10 Parallel

Psalm 49:10 reinforces the same thought: even the wise die and leave their wealth to others — directly paralleling the futility of laboring for another.