The same has proved true time and again in regard to prominent men in modern times who have made a pursuit of wealth, fame or power, be they billionaires or chiefs of state. One of the richest of such men, whose final years underscore the truth of Solomon’s words, was Howard Hughes. We are told that in his last fifteen years “he lived a sunless, joyless, half-lunatic life . . . a virtual prisoner walled in by his own crippling fears and weaknesses,” at the same time being at the mercy of the coterie of men who surrounded him. (Time, December 13, 1976) His exploits in aviation and his business acumen had brought him great wealth and power. But these things certainly brought him neither contentment nor happiness. Reputedly worth billions of dollars, he died at the age of seventy, under extremely pathetic circumstances.

Then, again, setting one’s heart on materialistic goals often proves to be vanity because of the uncertainty of things. As Solomon so well observed: “The swift do not have the race, nor the mighty ones the battle, nor do the wise also have the food, nor do the understanding ones also have the riches, nor do even those having knowledge have the favor; because time and unforeseen occurrence befall them all.” How true! How uncertain the future is!​—Eccl. 9:11.