So another objection comes. “But . . . men are envious and lazy.” This really is the flip side of the previous problem: before, we saw the powerful kicking the powerless, but now we see the powerless spitting at those who have exercised a creative dominion. When a man works hard and accomplishes much, his neighbor envies him (4:4–6). The man who envies is often a cannibal, devouring himself (v. 5). But hard work alone can also be unsatisfying (v. 6).
