Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. Ecclesiastes 1:2.
Not only foolish doings in state and trade, and other filthy cares and pleasures are vain; but great knowledge and sciences also, in which we aim only at our own glory; and even the most specious works, unless they are done in Christ from the right principle of faith and love, fall under this denomination.
Man has a soul of vast desires,
He burns within with restless fires:
Tossed to and fro, his passions fly
From vanity to vanity.
In vain on earth we hope to find
Some solid good to fill the mind:
We try new pleasures, but we feel
The inward thirst and torment still.
So when a raging fever burns,
He shifts from side to side by turns;
And ’tis a poor relief to gain,
To change the place but keep the pain.
Great God! subdue this vicious thirst,
This love of vanity and dust:
Cure this wild fever of the mind,
And feed our souls with joys refined.