Vanity/Meaningless 1

Vanity/Meaningless Word Study

Key Verse of Study: (from 3 versions)

• "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is

meaningless." (Ecc. 1:2 NIV)

• Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all [is] vanity. (Ecc. 1:2 KJV)

• "Everything is meaningless," says the Teacher, "utterly meaningless!" (Ecc. 1:2 NLT)

Strong’s Number and Part of Speech: H1892; adverb

Hebrew: hebel (heh'vel)

List of Every Passage Using The Hebrew Word “hebel” in the KJV

Deu 32:21 They have moved me to jealousy with [that which is] not God; they have
provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with
[those which are] not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish
nation.
1Ki 16:13 For all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his son, by which they sinned,
and by which they made Israel to sin, in provoking the LORD God of Israel to
anger with their vanities.
1Ki 16:26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin
wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger
with their vanities.
2Ki 17:15 And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers,
and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity,
and became vain, and went after the heathen that [were] round about them,
[concerning] whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like
them.
Job 7:16 I loathe [it]; I would not live alway: let me alone; for my days [are] vanity.
Job 9:29 [If] I be wicked, why then labour I in vain?
Job 21:34 How then comfort ye me in vain, seeing in your answers there remaineth
falsehood?
Job 27:12 Behold, all ye yourselves have seen [it]; why then are ye thus altogether vain?
Job 35:16 Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplieth words without
knowledge.
Psa 31:6 I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the LORD.
Psa 39:5 Behold, thou hast made my days [as] an handbreadth; and mine age [is] as
nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state [is] altogether vanity.
Selah.
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Psa 39:6 Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he
heapeth up [riches], and knoweth not who shall gather them.
Psa 39:11 When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty
to consume away like a moth: surely every man [is] vanity. Selah.
Psa 62:9 Surely men of low degree [are] vanity, [and] men of high degree [are] a lie: to
be laid in the balance, they [are] altogether [lighter] than vanity.
Psa 78:33 Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.
Psa 94:11 The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they [are] vanity.
Psa 144:4 Man is like to vanity: his days [are] as a shadow that passeth away.
Pro 13:11 Wealth [gotten] by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour
shall increase.
Pro 21:6 The getting of treasures by a lying tongue [is] a vanity tossed to and fro of them
that seek death.
Pro 31:30 Favour [is] deceitful, and beauty [is] vain: [but] a woman [that] feareth the
LORD, she shall be praised.
Ecc 1:2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all [is] vanity.
Ecc 1:14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all [is] vanity
and vexation of spirit.
Ecc 2:1 I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy
pleasure: and, behold, this also [is] vanity.
Ecc 2:11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour
that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all [was] vanity and vexation of spirit,
and [there was] no profit under the sun.
Ecc 2:15 Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me;
and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also [is]
vanity.

Ecc 2:17 Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun [is]
grievous unto me: for all [is] vanity and vexation of spirit.
Ecc 2:19 And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise [man] or a fool? yet shall he have
rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed
myself wise under the sun. This [is] also vanity.
Ecc 2:21 For there is a man whose labour [is] in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in
equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it [for] his
portion. This also [is] vanity and a great evil.
Ecc 2:23 For all his days [are] sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest
in the night. This is also vanity.
Ecc 2:26 For [God] giveth to a man that [is] good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge,
and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may
give to [him that is] good before God. This also [is] vanity and vexation of
spirit.
Ecc 3:19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing
befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one
breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all [is] vanity.
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Ecc 4:4 Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is
envied of his neighbour. This [is] also vanity and vexation of spirit.
Ecc 4:7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.
Ecc 4:8 There is one [alone], and [there is] not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor
brother: yet [is there] no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with
riches; neither [saith he], For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good?
This [is] also vanity, yea, it [is] a sore travail.
Ecc 4:16 [There is] no end of all the people, [even] of all that have been before them:
they also that come after shall not rejoice in him. Surely this also [is] vanity and
vexation of spirit.
Ecc 5:7 For in the multitude of dreams and many words [there are] also [divers]
vanities: but fear thou God.
Ecc 5:10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth
abundance with increase: this [is] also vanity.
Ecc 6:2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth
nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat
thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this [is] vanity, and it [is] an evil disease.
Ecc 6:4 For he cometh in with vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be
covered with darkness.
Ecc 6:9 Better [is] the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this [is] also
vanity and vexation of spirit.
Ecc 6:11 Seeing there be many things that increase vanity, what [is] man the better?
Ecc 6:12 For who knoweth what [is] good for man in [this] life, all the days of his vain
life which he spendeth as a shadow? for who can tell a man what shall be after
him under the sun?
Ecc 7:6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so [is] the laughter of the fool: this
also [is] vanity.
Ecc 7:15 All [things] have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just [man] that
perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked [man] that prolongeth [his
life] in his wickedness.
Ecc 8:10 And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the
holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this [is] also
vanity.
Ecc 8:14 There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just [men], unto
whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked
[men], to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that
this also [is] vanity.
Ecc 9:9 Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy
vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for
that [is] thy portion in [this] life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the
sun.
Ecc 11:8 But if a man live many years, [and] rejoice in them all; yet let him remember
the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh [is] vanity.
Ecc 11:10 Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for
childhood and youth [are] vanity.
Ecc 12:8 Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all [is] vanity.
Isa 30:7 For the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried
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Isa 49:4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in
vain: [yet] surely my judgment [is] with the LORD, and my work with my God.
Isa 57:13 When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them
all away; vanity shall take [them]: but he that putteth his trust in me shall
possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain;
Jer 2:5 Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they
are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?
Jer 8:19 Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people because of them that
dwell in a far country: [Is] not the LORD in Zion? [is] not her king in her? Why
have they provoked me to anger with their graven images, [and] with strange
vanities?
Jer 10:3 For the customs of the people [are] vain: for [one] cutteth a tree out of the
forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
Jer 10:8 But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock [is] a doctrine of vanities.
Jer 10:15 They [are] vanity, [and] the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they
shall perish.
Jer 14:22 Are there [any] among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? or can
the heavens give showers? [art] not thou he, O LORD our God? therefore we
will wait upon thee: for thou hast made all these [things].
Jer 16:19 O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction,
the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say,
Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and [things] wherein [there is] no
profit.
Jer 51:18 They [are] vanity, the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they shall
perish.
Lam 4:17 As for us, our eyes as yet failed for our vain help: in our watching we have
watched for a nation [that] could not save [us].
Jon 2:8 They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
Zec 10:2 For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told
false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock,
they were troubled, because [there was] no shepherd.

Significant Findings By Book Categories (Using KJV References Above)

Pentateuch/Historical Books Passage Implied Definition

Deut. 32:21 These references all speak to

1 Kings 16:13, 26; an enemy or Israel who, by
2 Kings 17:15 their vanities, provoke God to
jealousy and anger. Vanities
seem to be connected to sin
and/or a rejection of God’s
law and covenant. This may
imply a certain attitude
wherein a people see
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themselves as superior to God

and his ways but in the end is
emptiness.

Wisdom/Poetry/Writings Passage Implied Definition

Job 7:6; 9:29; 21:34; 27:12; In Job the word is translated as
35:16 either “vain” or “vanity/ies.”
All passages speak of things
that are empty. For example,
labor and all the days of Job’s
life are “vain.” This implies a
waste or meaningless
existence.
Ps 31:6; 39:5, 6, 11; 62:9; The Psalmist speaks primarily
78:33; 94:11; 144:4 of life that is short, has trouble
and death levels the field. It
may imply that life because of
its brevity and difficulty can
seem meaningless.
Proverbs 13:11; 21:6; 31:30 The Proverbs seem to connect
vanity with the idea of getting.
That is, one can get wealth,
beauty or favor but it is
deceitful. Again this may
possibly imply a sort of empty
promise that comes from
earthly things.
Ecclesiastes 1:2, 14; 2:1, 11, Labor, pleasure, life, etc., all
15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26; 3:19; seem to be the things we do to
4:4, 7, 8, 16; 5:7, 10; 6:2, 4, 9, find meaning but none is
11, 12; 7:6, 15; 8:10, 14; 9:9; found. We work hard to build
11:8, 10; 12:8 a legacy but in the end it is left
to another. Vanity is seen as a
perpetual problem for
humankind; the emptiness of
existence cannot be filled with
things or pleasure.

Major Prophets Passage Implied Definitions

Isaiah 30:7; 49:4; 57:13 Isaiah implies that looking for
a savior for Israel outside of
God is useless
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Jeremiah 2:5; 8:19; 10:3, 8, Jeremiah speaks of those who

15; 14:22; 16:19; 51:18 are Gentile and/or those who
worship carved idols. He
contrasts the uselessness of
these idols to answer problems
(i.e. the need of rain) with
God’s ability to answer.

Minor Prophets/Lamentations Passage Implied Definitions

Lamentations 4:17 The lamenter speaks of
looking for a nation that would
save them but none could. The
looking implies a seeking for
an earthly savior but this was
vain or useless because there
was not one.
Jonah 2:8 Jonah connects vanity with
worship. He is in the great fish
and remembers the temple and
his vows but realizes that
instead he has observed the
meaninglessness of lying to
oneself about your own
righteousness.
Zechariah 10:2 Here the “idols” speak vanity.
An idol is nothing (compared
to God) therefore an idol that
speaks only speaks of useless,
meaningless or empty words.

Questions Concerning Significant Findings:

1. What most significant insights did you gain about the Old Testament use of the word

“vanity/meaningless”?

The meaning of vanity/meaningless seems to be consistent across the board. Almost

every instance of the word is connected to something that promises earthly possibilities that

cannot be delivered upon. The writer of Ecclesiastes seems to focus in on this idea by suggesting

all human effort to find meaning in labor, wealth or the things of this earth only leads to greater

frustration because all these things are empty. He also connects vanity with the repeated phrase
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“vexation of spirit” (1:14, 17; 2:11, 17, 26; 4:4, 6, 14; 6:9) or as the NIV translates, “a chasing

after the wind.” This connection intimates a further frustration, that is, trying to find meaning in

the vanities of life only exacerbates life’s frustration. The reader is then challenged to not work

so hard to find meaning but rather to enjoy what is given by God and further to accept that life is

often unexplainable.

2. How does your work with this word prepare you for a look at the five books of biblical

wisdom literature?

Working with this word helps me to see emptiness of a life without God. All work or

pleasure is meaningless if it is not done to the glory of God. Even then there is the possibility of

allowing an attitude of emptiness into our life if we are not careful. It helps me to see that the

idols of this world still only offer empty promises and that looking to any other thing to save me

only becomes idolatry – only becomes empty. This can then be applied to Israel, David or other

characters of the Wisdom books and can bring a fresh perspective to their lives. For example, we

might see Job not as a man who went through terrible trials that seemed meaningless but as a

man who trusted God even in the face of what may have seemed useless.