Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.
Ain’t it the truth. We probably all know somebody who fits this description— people always have (as this verse of Scripture was written three thousand years ago.) It is incomprehensible when those who are rich complain about needing more money. People who have the cash for lavish homes, upscale restaurants, fantastic vacations, and the best schools for their kids don’t usually live with less and usually wish they had “just a little bit more.”
But this verse of Scripture is not talking about wealthy people. It is speaking about anybody who loves money—so it applies to us all. It’s not wrong to be concerned about paying the bills and buying the things we legitimately need. The recipe for the kind of frustration the teacher in Ecclesiastes warns about is adding more “want” to our lives than the Lord would have us to want.
Money isn’t the root of all evil (as some have misquoted the passage from 1Timothy 6:10) but it is the love of money that is a root of all kinds of evil. We were not created by God to have a personal attachment or a passionate affection for gold and silver, so real joy cannot be found in the pursuit of the cash to get more “stuff.” On the contrary, love of money always denies our deepest desires. (If anyone realizes this, it’s a rich person who can’t buy love.)
Proverbs 30:8-9 says, “Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown You and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’”
There’s real wisdom there—which (by the way) the Bible says is way more valuable than money.
