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There is One Who Knows it All

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Ecclesiastes 11:1 - 12:14

As Ecclesiastes closes we're reminded that it is unlike any of the other "pessimism literature" of the time. The author's point is not that there is no hope for man, who is trapped in a meaningless existence. Ecclesiastes points out that though we cannot understand life and its many twists and turns, we should not despair, because God knows what each twist and turn means. You may remember an earlier reference to the song "Dust in the Wind". Kerry Livgren wrote that song and he would agree with the writer of Ecclesiastes that with God we are not just "dust in the wind". Some years after "Dust", Kerry became a Christian and said that because of Jesus, the song's lyrics definitely no longer reflected his view of life.

God's people can work and play each day to the best of their skills, abilities, and wisdom without knowing the "why" of every event. It is enough to know that God is the Master over all. We can work each day assured that our center is Christ, not our own success or our own knowledge.

Chapter 12 begins with a description of old age. Verses 3–5 paint an intriguing picture of our old age. In verse 3 the legs grow weak and the back bends; the "grinders" are the teeth that become few; the eyes grow weak as they look out. Verse 4 apparently refers to the mouth and to poor sleep. Verse 5 talks of the growing fearfulness of the elderly as they become less self-sufficient; the almond tree has bright white blossoms (one's graying hair); and a grasshopper walking is a pretty sad sight. Though today we can hope for better physical condition as we grow older, the writer's point that we really will die is still true. His message to us is that though the things that we experience through our own wisdom are meaningless vanity; the life that we live in God is empowered by Him, planned by Him, blessed by Him, and precious to Him. We are never left hopeless.

Next time: Song of Songs

Only God Really Knows

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Ecclesiastes 9:1 - 10:20

Not much in life seems a sure thing, but all in all, being alive is better than being dead. That appears to be the king's thought in Chapter 9. As we look at the world through human eyes we see no consistency. One state has drought while across the border there is widespread flooding. The just fail and the evil triumph. A man works decades for a company only to be fired just before retirement. All in all, it's a world that Job's friends would have found ultimately confusing. The king says that since all paths will end in the same place, why put out the effort? Enjoy life—just don't expect to understand it. Seek wisdom, though no one will care. Such a hopeless outlook is too often the case today. People rely on the unreliable, and are devastated when it—whatever it is—fails.

The king does not close each thought with a definite explanation of life. We don't hear the hoped for "But then I realized" very often from this author. This should actually comfort us all as we face the same questions of "why"? After all, Ecclesiastes is attributed to Solomon, the wisest of all the kings of his time. Yet, even with his God-given wisdom he could not decipher God's intent.

In chapter 10 the king returns to a series of proverbs—and the emotion surges. The frustration has again been voiced, but now it is time to return to the reality of life — there are truths that must be acknowledged and advice to be given.

The king's point is never that God is undecided or ill-directed. God is not the problem.

Man will always wonder what his own purpose is. It is a question that has confounded philosophers who have sought the answer without reference to God. They have all failed in their endeavor and many ended their lives in total despair. However, philosophers and scientists who believed that their work was inspired by God found peace in their search. Chapter by chapter in Ecclesiastes the king draws us through all of the emotion and frustration of this search for meaning, but his purpose is not to lead the reader to despair, but to lead the reader to God as the only sure answer to it all.

Next time: There is One Who Knows it All

Thinking Things Out

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Ecclesiastes 7:1 - 8:17

Commentators tell us that the Hebrew word translated "perfume" (NIV) was a metaphor for "reputation". It is good to go to the end of life with a good reputation and the value of one's character should be better on his last day than his first.

In the next verses the king was not encouraging a hopeless view of all things, but advising that a serious contemplation of what goes on around us is of more value than a constant "party spirit".

Chapter 7, verse 10 points to the timelessness of the complaint that the "good old days" were better than the present. A Greek politician/writer felt the same a couple of hundred years before Christ was born. He wrote that there was no hope for the future because the upcoming generation (the teenagers) was hopelessly inept.

The king follows with a statement that no one can know why God does what He does. Man will never be able to figure it out. In verses 15-18 the king is not referring to the righteousness or wisdom given by God, but by the self. Our own opinion of our position can bring us to destruction or ruin (though some commentators interpret this phrase in verse 16 as being "dismayed" to find that we are not as complete as we thought.) Verse 18 assures the reader that trusting in God will keep us in a balanced existence guided by His love.

Chapter 7, verses 28 and 29, present us with another translation difficulty. Here the words for "man" and "woman" can represent the totality of mankind rather than the idea that though the king could find one upright man in a thousand, there were no upright women at all. The king is more likely telling us that, without exception, mankind has failed to live up to expectations.

The king ends today's passage with what seems a somber and contemplative statement of God's control and man's inability to comprehend it, even if some men claim to have it all figured out. Man is not a god and can never understand this holy Being nor His concern for His creation. Our inability to understand, however, can never negate the reality of God's love.

Next time: Only God Really Knows

A Moment of Hope

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Ecclesiastes 5:1 - 6:12

The beginning of chapter 5 reflects a problem that the people of Israel battled for hundreds of years. It was easy to go to the temple and offer sacrifice; one just obeyed the rules and went home happy. Many had no concept of their personal sin. In Jesus' time, almost a thousand years later, He pointed out the arrogant prayer of the Pharisee who spent his time pretty much thanking God for his perfection, assuming that God was lucky to have such a faithful and obedient official in His kingdom. Of course today all Christians approach worship with an understanding of their own unworthiness, and gratitude for God's mercy. They come seeking the word of God and its value in their lives. Well, maybe not all.

Ecclesiastes 5:8-9 form a short but accurate picture of bureaucracy run amok. The guy at the bottom of the ladder is the only one for whom no one seems to have concern.

Verse 18 begins a passage of hope and relief. It begins "then I realized." (NIV) That is so often the beginning of peace from depression for all of us. Suddenly the haze clears and we recognize that though we have seen only the negative side of our situation—the side seen from our human self-concern—there is another way to see life. God is in control. It is good to live life under His rule. It isn't meaningless to live in the light of our Maker. It is God who enables us to choose to do more than exist. He makes it possible for us to make a difference.

In chapter 6 the king plunges back into despair. Even if God gives a man prosperity, if it does not bring him peace and enjoyment it is evil. Why toil, if it only brings more toil and more desire and more worry?

As Christians, especially in today's atmosphere of financial worry for many, we realize that God blesses us, keeps our needs met, so that we can concentrate on helping those with less. Prosperity never brings peace unless it is joyfully placed at God's disposal, to share according to His leading. Churches across the country are reporting huge declines in giving because so many fail to recognize God's powerful caring in their lives. They pull back and fall into the temptation of depending on their own ability instead of God's promises.

Next time: Thinking Things Out

The Questions Continue

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Ecclesiastes 3:1 - 4:16

In the beginning of today's reading the king acknowledges that God has indeed placed everything in order according to His good will, but the king finds little comfort in that because to mankind everything is still a mystery.

In Ecclesiastes 3:18-21, the king's point is not that man is only an animal in the sight of God. It is that man must acknowledge that there is no obvious superiority in the position of man. Both he and the animals die. Neither has an advantage in their ability to change the world by their individual efforts. Neither can see beyond their own life and time. This adds support to the previous verses in which the king emphasizes the importance of God in the life of man.

In chapter 4 the writer grieves a life where the poor are not comforted, much the same as today. His words about those living, those dead, and those not born are somewhat strange to us, but his understanding of the afterlife was limited. God had not yet fully revealed the reality of heaven and hell to His people.

Chapter 4, verse 4 reflects a pretty poor view of why people toil, but it may be a reminder to us that while a democratic, capitalistic, form of culture is more successful than any other, we should always be aware that giving of ourselves and our resources for the good of all is a more important reason for toil than merely "keeping up with the Joneses". The king follows with examples that show how much more value is gained by sharing the burden as well as the wealth.

Chapters 3 and 4 certainly bring more hope than 1 and 2, but the author still closes with "This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind." (NIV)

Next Time: A Moment of Hope

Yet There Is Hope

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Ecclesiastes 1:1 - 2:26

Today we begin Ecclesiastes. Its moody atmosphere is found in other literature of the time from countries including Egypt. However the writings of those other nations did not contain a thread of hope. They did not know God; they had no hope other than themselves.

Did Solomon pen the book? His name is not mentioned, though the writer seems to be presenting the feelings of the great king of Israel, perhaps even the king's own words.

In chapter 1 a man seemingly in the midst of a bout of depression vents his feelings. Perhaps you have had days like his; days when nothing seems to matter, when one's efforts are obviously fruitless; days when it is too obvious that the world doesn't really change or even care and man seems able to do nothing of importance or value. Though not true, the feelings can be strong. His mood was not limited to his time and place. Some of you may remember a song from a few decades ago called "Dust in the Wind". One line from it was "all we are is dust in the wind".

To the king even contrasting folly and wisdom did not help. Unlike the message throughout Proverbs, the king comes to the conclusion that both the fool and the wise will end up dead and forgotten.

Finally we find a ray of hope at the end of chapter 2. There are the words acknowledging that God is the only bringer of joy to man.

Though Ecclesiastes is written in a specific form for a specific purpose, these chapters remind us of the hopelessness that even Christians can feel. However, the ray of hope, the true hope for our world, will continue to thread its way into the upcoming chapters.

The ultimate answer to the king's questions came in Christ, the One who delivers us from hopelessness and into the confidence that He really does care and He really does work in our lives, no matter how we may "feel" about it from time to time.

Next time: The Questions Continue