Man Should Not See Himself As Anything Special (Ecclesiastes 6:10-12).
The section closes with the warning that man should not see himself as anything special. Like all creatures he was named by God (Genesis 1:26). Thus he must beware of setting himself up against the One Who is mightier than he. ‘Man' is simply one name among many which are applied to what has been seen as futile, the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9; Ecclesiastes 1:14; Ecclesiastes 2:11; Ecclesiastes 2:18 etc), the rivers (Ecclesiastes 1:7), the fruit trees (Ecclesiastes 2:5), the herds and flocks (Ecclesiastes 2:7), man's labour (Ecclesiastes 2:10-11; Ecclesiastes 2:19; Ecclesiastes 2:22; Ecclesiastes 2:24; etc. What then is man? (Psalms 8 has a different perspective on him). What he must recognise is that only God knows what is good for a man in his life (which is but a shadow), and only God can tell him what will be after him.
‘Whatever has been, its name has already been called. And it is known that it is (the same for) Man. Nor can he contend with him who is mightier than he. Seeing that there are many words that increase vanity (futility, meaninglessness), what is ‘Man' the better? For who knows what is good for Man in his life, all the days of his vain life which he spends as a shadow? For who can tell a man what shall be after him under the sun?'
The reference here is back to the creation accounts in Genesis, when all was ‘named', and man was named Man (Genesis 1:26-27; Genesis 2:7). Everything that exists originally came into being and was ‘called' by a name (see Genesis 1). That revealed God's sovereignty over it. And it is something that has already happened. So all is thus under His control and sovereignty. The same is true of the one who was called ‘Man'. He also was called by a name from the beginning. His name too has already been called. He too is under God's control and sovereignty. Thus he is unable to strive with the One Who is mightier than he, the One Who named him. In this Man is no different from any other part of creation.
Furthermore there are many ‘words' that were used of things that were named that he has shown are a part of the meaninglessness of life, ‘the sun' (the ‘light' of Genesis 1:14) in Ecclesiastes 1:5 and often; the rivers (Genesis 2:10-14) in Ecclesiastes 1:7; the trees of all kinds of fruit (Genesis 1:11) in Ecclesiastes 2:5; the herds and flocks (Genesis 2:20) in Ecclesiastes 2:7; man's labour (Genesis 2:15) regularly in Ecclesiastes. Even the ‘breath' of life (Genesis 7:22) in Ecclesiastes 3:19. So what is ‘Man' the better? For none can really declare what is good for man in all the days of his vain and meaningless life which ‘makes like a shadow', that is as something that is not permanent, as being on the edge of death (1 Chronicles 29:15; Job 8:9; Psalms 144:4). Nor can anyone tell what shall be after him. He is merely living a short span, a meaningless part of the time-line, the time-line that goes on everlastingly. He only gains importance when he becomes in touch with God.
So the Preacher closes off the first section of his book on a pessimistic note. But he is talking paradoxically. Outwardly what he says is correct, but he himself has already spoken of what is good for man (Ecclesiastes 2:24; Ecclesiastes 5:18). Thus there is the struggle within him between the outward meaninglessness of life and the inner meaning that he discerns for the godly man, for the man who lives before God. As a philosopher and thinker he is pessimistic, although as a believer, at least to some extent, he is optimistic. But there is still the problem of death to be taken into account.