Ecclesiastes 6:3
If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he.
Cross-reference
Ecclesiastes 6:6 continues the same argument: long life without enjoyment is futile, and all share the same fate.
Ecclesiastes 6:7 expands on the unsatisfied appetite, a key reason here for deeming a stillborn better.
Ecclesiastes 5:17-19 describes the gift of enjoying one's labor, countering the dissatisfaction lamented in the main verse.
Ecclesiastes 4:3 says the one who never existed is better than the living, directly paralleling the preference for stillborn.
Isaiah 14:19 depicts a king cast out of his grave with no proper burial, echoing the dishonor of having no burial in the main verse.
Isaiah 14:19 depicts a king cast out of his grave with no proper burial, echoing the dishonor of having no burial in the main verse.
2 Kings 9:35 shows Jezebel's lack of proper burial, illustrating the dishonor of 'no burial' mentioned in the main verse.
Jeremiah 22:19 also describes a denied burial — Jehoiakim is dragged and thrown out, echoing the same fate.
Job 3:16 wishes to have been a stillborn, using the same image to argue nonexistence is better than suffering.
Psalm 127:3 declares children a gift from God, directly opposing Ecclesiastes 6:3's view that they can be unsatisfying.
Psalm 127:5 presents many children as a blessing, contrasting the futility of many children without satisfaction in the main verse.
Jeremiah 36:30 adds that Jehoiakim's body will be exposed to heat and frost, reinforcing the theme of no proper burial.
Matthew 26:24 says it would be better for Judas if he had not been born — same logic as preferring nonexistence over a doomed life.
Jeremiah 20:17 curses his birth, wishing he had died in the womb, reinforcing the preference for stillbirth over miserable life.
Job 3:10 laments not being stillborn, echoing the idea that a stillborn is better than a life of misery without satisfaction.
Job 3:13 describes the rest and peace of a stillborn, reinforcing why the stillborn is better off in this verse.
Genesis 15:15 promises Abraham a peaceful death and proper burial — contrasting with the man who lacks both.
In 2 Kings 9:37, Jezebel's unburied corpse becomes dung, a vivid example of the disgraceful no burial mentioned here.
Isaiah 14:18 describes kings honored with tombs, contrasting with the no-burial disgrace in this verse.
Psalm 58:8 uses 'stillborn' as a curse for enemies — opposite valuation from Ecclesiastes where stillborn is better.
Proverbs 17:6 honors grandchildren as a crown of old age, contrasting the dissatisfaction despite many children in the main verse.
Esther 5:11 shows Haman boasting of his sons and riches, a prideful attitude contrasting with Ecclesiastes 6:3's emptiness.
1 Chronicles 28:5 has David thanking God for many sons, contrasting with the dissatisfaction in Ecclesiastes 6:3.
1 Samuel 2:21 records God visiting Hannah with more children, a blessing that contrasts with the vanity in Ecclesiastes 6:3.
1 Samuel 2:20 shows Eli blessing Elkanah and Hannah with children, a positive view contrasting with Ecclesiastes 6:3.
In Genesis 47:9, Jacob considers his long life as few and evil, paralleling the futility of long life without goodness in the main verse.
Genesis 33:5 calls children a gracious gift from God, contrasting with Ecclesiastes 6:3's dissatisfaction despite many children.
Genesis 23:19 records Abraham burying Sarah — a proper burial in contrast to the man's denied burial.
Genesis 23:4 shows Abraham seeking a burial site, highlighting the importance of proper burial that the man lacks.