What needeth a man to seek things that are above him, whereas he knoweth not what is profitable for him in his life, in all the days of his pilgrimage, and the time that passeth like a shadow? Or who can tell him what shall be after him under the sun?
Ecclesiastes 7:1 What needeth a man to seek things that are above him, whereas he knoweth not what is profitable for him in his life, in all the days of his pilgrimage, and the time that passeth like a shadow? Or who can tell him what shall be after him under the sun?
Ecclesiastes 7:2 A good name is better than precious ointments: and the day of death than the day of one's birth.
Ecclesiastes 7:3 It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to the house of feasting: for in that we are put in mind of the end of all, and the living thinketh what is to come.
The verse centers on "needeth", "seek", "things", "above", "whereas", "knoweth", "profitable", and "life". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "needeth" and "seek", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The next verse adds "A good name is better than precious...", so "needeth" and "seek" should be read forward into that movement. In Ecclesiastes context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "needeth" and "seek" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.