All for nothing, said the Preacher. All is vanity, all for nothing.

There is one fate for all people, righteous and wicked, poor and rich, slaves and free: death. The good things will be lost. Efforts will fail. Dreams will prove to be illusions. But worries will not cease.

"The Preacher" remains an enigma. At the same time that it is characterized as the darkest text in world literature, the Preacher is also described as a philosophical hymn to joy. Perhaps because it dared to immerse itself completely in the darkness of futility, in order to find something truly bright.

The joy of toil. That is the portion of man, the only thing that is worthwhile in the measured days of his life. But worries will not cease.

Also in vain,
a chasing after the wind.

"The Preacher" was most likely written in the 3rd century BCE. It is included in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament.