Without God goodness makes no sense. The atheist faces an enormous problem with morality. This is not saying that atheists are immoral, some are, some are very good people. What it is saying is that they have no basis in atheism for morality. Why should we be good? Indeed, what is goodness? The Teacher here observes that if this life is all there is, then the destiny of all is exactly the same, whether they are good or bad, whether they are religious or irreligious. One might argue that the benefit of goodness is that it helps others. But this really takes us no further, for the ones being helped are going to die as well, on in the end the goodness does them no good. And then why is it good to help others?
He also observes that sin resides in the heart of all of us. Then we die. Yet life is better than death. We were created to be alive, not to die. But if death is the end everything is ultimately meaningless.
So in verse 7 he returns to the point he has been at many times before. Just get on with life and make the best of it. In fact, this is the approach to life adopted by most people. This is the only life in which we can make a difference, so we might as well take our chance.
Furthermore, life does not always work out as it should. It is not always the wise or the strong who do best. Chance, about which we have no control, happens to all of us. Stuff happens.
The world does not always honour those it should. The Teacher recalls a time when a city was saved by a wise but poor man. This was a great deed he did, but he was despised instead of honoured. We see the truth of this in many places in life, the truly praiseworthy do not receive the praise they deserve.
Even so, wisdom is better than folly.
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