Is It Wrong to Enjoy Worldly Things? What Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Say

Jewish scripture presents a notably affirming view of worldly enjoyment, particularly in the wisdom literature. Qohelet (the author of Ecclesiastes) returns again and again to the idea that eating, drinking, and finding satisfaction in one's labor are not sinful indulgences but genuine divine gifts Ecclesiastes 2:24.

Ecclesiastes 3:22 reinforces this: enjoyment of one's portion in life is described as the natural and appropriate human condition, since no one can know what comes after death Ecclesiastes 3:22. This isn't hedonism — it's a sober, even melancholy, acceptance that present enjoyment is meaningful precisely because it comes from God.

That said, the tradition does draw lines. Proverbs 21:17 warns that loving pleasure — making it the organizing principle of one's life — leads to poverty Proverbs 21:17. The Hebrew word there, shemach (sport/pleasure), implies excess rather than ordinary enjoyment. And Ecclesiastes 6:2 notes the bitter irony of a man who has everything his appetite craves yet cannot enjoy it — suggesting that enjoyment itself is a divine permission, not a human right Ecclesiastes 6:2.

Rabbinic tradition, building on these texts, developed the concept that one will be held accountable for refusing legitimate pleasures. The Jerusalem Talmud (Kiddushin 4:12), as cited by scholar David Kraemer in Jewish Eating and Identity Through the Ages (2007), records the view that a person must answer for every permitted pleasure they declined. Worldly enjoyment, properly ordered, is thus a religious obligation, not a concession.

Christianity inherits the Hebrew Bible's ambivalence about worldly pleasure. On one hand, the Old Testament texts Christians share with Judaism — especially Ecclesiastes — commend moderate enjoyment as God-given Ecclesiastes 8:15. Ecclesiastes 8:15 is striking in its directness: the author doesn't merely permit mirth, he commends it, calling eating and drinking the best thing available to humans under the sun Ecclesiastes 8:15.

On the other hand, the New Testament introduces a sharper eschatological urgency. Paul warns against those who are "lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God" (2 Timothy 3:4, KJV), and Jesus famously warns that one cannot serve both God and mammon (Matthew 6:24). The concern isn't that creation is bad — Christian theology, especially since Irenaeus of Lyon (c. 180 CE), has strongly affirmed creation's goodness — but that disordered attachment to worldly things crowds out devotion to God.

Theologians have disagreed sharply here. Augustine of Hippo (354–430 CE) was suspicious of sensory pleasure, linking it to concupiscence. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274 CE), by contrast, argued in the Summa Theologica that moderate enjoyment of created goods is not only permissible but reflects proper appreciation of God's gifts. The Reformation broadly followed Aquinas on this point; John Calvin affirmed that God "created food not only for our necessity but also for our delight."

Proverbs 21:17's warning against loving pleasure — which Christians also read as canonical — sets the boundary: enjoyment is fine, but making pleasure one's chief end is not Proverbs 21:17.

Islam doesn't condemn worldly enjoyment outright, but the Qur'an consistently frames it as temporary and inferior to what awaits believers with Allāh. Surah 28:60 is representative: worldly goods are real, they're described as "enjoyment" and "adornment," but the passage immediately pivots — what is with Allāh is "better and more lasting" Quran 28:60.

Surah 42:36 repeats this structure almost verbatim, addressing believers specifically: worldly enjoyment is acknowledged, but those who believe and rely on their Lord are oriented toward something greater Quran 42:36. The rhetorical pattern — concede the reality of worldly pleasure, then redirect — is a recurring Qur'anic technique.

Surah 87:16 is more pointed, noting simply that humans "prefer the worldly life" — framing this preference as a spiritual problem rather than a neutral fact Quran 87:16. Classical scholars like Al-Ghazali (1058–1111 CE), in his Ihya Ulum al-Din, developed this into a full theology of zuhd (detachment), arguing that worldly enjoyment isn't sinful per se but becomes dangerous when it distracts from the hereafter.

Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) distinguishes between halal pleasures — food, marriage, beauty, rest — which are not only permitted but sometimes encouraged as sunnah — and those that are haram. The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) reportedly said, "Your body has a right over you" (Sahih Bukhari), indicating that self-denial isn't the Islamic ideal either. The key is balance and gratitude (shukr), not renunciation.

Ecclesiastes repeatedly permits and even commends joy in ordinary goods—food, drink, and gladness—as part of one’s portion from God Ecclesiastes 8:15Ecclesiastes 2:24Ecclesiastes 3:22. Yet the same wisdom corpus warns that loving pleasure for its own sake leads to loss and emptiness, signaling a boundary between grateful enjoyment and hedonism Proverbs 21:17Isaiah 44:9. Readers also notice a tension inside Ecclesiastes: it blesses enjoyment as a gift, but laments when someone is unable to enjoy what they have, underscoring life’s fragility and the need for balance Ecclesiastes 2:24Ecclesiastes 3:22Ecclesiastes 6:2. In short, enjoyment isn’t wrong; unwise attachment is Ecclesiastes 8:15Proverbs 21:17.

Christian readings of the shared wisdom books affirm that enjoying created goods can be proper when received as part of one’s portion under God, while cautioning that love of pleasure corrodes integrity and outcomes Ecclesiastes 8:15Proverbs 21:17. Ecclesiastes’ call to eat, drink, and find joy in one’s labor sits beside warnings about the limits of such goods, encouraging gratitude without making pleasure an idol Ecclesiastes 8:15Isaiah 44:9. Thus, enjoyment is permissible, but it shouldn’t rule the heart Proverbs 21:17.

The Qur’an describes worldly enjoyments as temporary adornments that many prefer, yet it repeatedly reminds that what is with God is better and more lasting Quran 87:16Quran 28:60Quran 42:36. Believers are urged to enjoy within faith and reliance on God while not letting the fleeting eclipse the eternal Quran 42:36. The contrast frames enjoyment as allowable but subordinate to the pursuit of what endures with God Quran 28:60Quran 42:36.