# Ecclesiastes 5 AMP

An episode of [The Audio Bible](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1486169193), 24 Oct 2026, 5:11.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/dd72fdc/podcast/play/127751379/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-9-20%2Fb119bc80-4a4b-db20-90f2-1d36e628b9f7.mp3

Today we continue our reading in the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes in the Amplified Bible translation with Ecclesiastes chapter 5 from the Word of God. The Audio Bible Podcast is listener-supported. If these daily readings have encouraged your faith, consider becoming a one-time or even a monthly supporter. Your gifts help keep God's Word freely available to listeners around the world. Monthly subscribers: https://anchor.fm/theaudiobible/subscribe One-time gift: https://buymeacoffee.com/pastorben If you want more content, beyond the Audio Bible, consider checking out my SubStack and reading additional thoughts and commentary there: bmarshall.substack.com. Thanks for listening and being a part of this community!

## Transcript

[0:04] Ecclesiastes chapter 5. Guard your steps and focus on
[0:10] what you are doing as you go to the House of God, and draw near
[0:16] to listen rather than to offer the careless or irreverent
[0:21] sacrifice of fools, for they are too ignorant to know they are
[0:26] doing evil. Do not be hasty with your mouth,
[0:30] speaking careless words or vows or impulsive in thoughts to
[0:36] bring up a matter before God, for God is in heaven and you are
[0:41] on earth. Therefore let your words be few,
[0:46] for the dream comes through much effort, and the voice of the
[0:51] fool through many words. When you make a vow or a pledge
[0:56] to God, do not put off paying it, for God takes no pleasure in
[1:02] fools who thoughtlessly mock Him.
[1:05] Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not
[1:09] vow than that you should vow and not pay.
[1:13] Do not allow your speech to cause you to sin, and do not say
[1:18] before the messenger or priest of God that it was a mistake.
[1:24] Why should God be angry because of your voice or words and
[1:29] destroy the work of your hands? For in a multitude of dreams and
[1:36] in a flood of words there is worthlessness.
[1:40] Rather reverently fear God and worship Him with awe.
[1:45] Field respect, knowing who He is.
[1:49] If you see the oppression of the poor and the denial of justice
[1:54] and righteousness in the province, do not be shocked at
[1:58] the sight of corruption. For a higher official watches
[2:02] over another official, and there are higher ones over them,
[2:07] looking out for one another. After all, a king who cultivates
[2:12] the field is an advantage to the land.
[2:16] He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who
[2:22] loves abundance with its gains. This, too, is vanity or
[2:28] emptiness. When good things increase, those
[2:32] who consume them increase, So what advantage is there to their
[2:37] owners except to see them with their eyes?
[2:41] The sleep of a working man is sweet whether he eats little or
[2:46] much, but the full stomach or greed of the rich who hungers
[2:52] for even more, will not let him sleep.
[2:56] There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun, riches
[3:02] being kept and hoarded by their owner to his own misery.
[3:07] For when those riches are lost in bad investments, and he
[3:12] becomes the father of a son, then there is nothing in his
[3:16] hand for the support of the child.
[3:19] As he came naked from his mother's womb, so he will return
[3:24] as he came, and he will take away nothing from all his labor
[3:29] that he can carry in his hand. This also is a grievous evil.
[3:36] Exactly as he was born, so he shall die.
[3:40] So what advantage has he who laborers for the wind all of his
[3:45] life? He also eats in darkness
[3:49] cheerlessly, without sweetness and light, with great
[3:53] frustration, sickness, and anger.
[3:58] Behold, here is what I have seen to be good and fitting, to eat
[4:04] and drink, and to find enjoyment in all the labor in which he
[4:09] laborers under the sun during the few days of his life which
[4:14] God gives him. For this is his allotted reward
[4:20] also. Every man to whom God has given
[4:23] riches and possessions, he has also given the power and ability
[4:29] to enjoy them, and to receive this as his allotted portion,
[4:35] and to rejoice in his labor. This is the gift of God to him,
[4:42] for he will not often consider the troubled days of his life
[4:46] because God keeps him occupied and focused on the joy of his
[4:51] heart and the tranquility of God indwells him.
[4:58] Thank you for tuning into the Audio Bible podcast today.
[5:01] This has been Ecclesiastes chapter 5 from the Word of God.

Shows are listed from Apple Podcasts' charts and directory, and Podcast Index where it is used. Every show and episode belongs to its publisher and plays from the publisher's own feed; this site hosts none of them.