STUDIES IN ECCLESIASTES … No. 1
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Graham Scroggie called it “the most mysterious book
in the Bible”. Richard De Haan adds “it
is not easy to understand…” And Martin
Luther claimed that it had never been satisfactorily explained!!
So let’s tackle it!!
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1. SOLOMON’S
TRAGIC DEGREDATION
To understand at least something of what
Ecclesiastes is all about we need to remember Solomon’s tragic apostacy. He who began his reign walking with the God
of his father, David, ended up 40 years later offering sacrifices to pagan
idols (1 Kings 11:5).
Notice his downward path …
(a) 1
Chronicles 29:23 … “seated upon the Throne of the Lord!”
The Talmud (a Hebrew commentary) suggests that such
a phrase means that even the angels were subject to him! Which is pushing things a bit too much!!
(b) 1
Kings 4:21 … He reigned “over all kingdoms” …
(c) Ecclesiastes
1:12 … He
speaks of how he had been “King over Israel”.
(d) Ecclesiastes
2:10 …
He who once had all that money could buy … greatness unparalleled by any
Eastern Potentate … now laments that all he is left with is “this”. And Jewish commentators suggest that
the “this” refers to his staff!!
Even the Koran of the Moslems takes up the peculiar
theory that he died resting on this staff … and a worm gnawed away at it so
that it disintegrated too!! (Koran, chapter 34, verse 10).
Although a curious legend, it illustrates the
disintegration of Solomon’s kingdom … from the “Throne of the Lord” to a
worm-eaten walking stick!
And that is when he pens the Book of Ecclesiastes.
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2. SOLOMON’S
SAD DISSERTATION
What is the purpose of life? Does it have any meaning? Is it just a monotonous round of trouble? (1:3-9). Can a man’s heart really find peace and contentment?
Round and round we go … like the cycle of nature
(vs. 4-7), but there is no satisfaction (v. 8). There is always more to be accomplished. Or someone else has done it before us (v.
9).
Life, he says, is “vanity” … i.e. empty. Without purpose. Meaningless. Like
“chasing the wind” … and when you think you have it, it’s gone.
Solomon tells us that he sought to find lasting
contentment in…
(a) Education … study … knowledge. So what?
The more you learn the more you find out that there is so much you don’t
know (1:12-13).
(b) Pleasure … party after wild
party. Is that where lasting joy is
found? Alas, Solomon tried that and
found that the “pleasures of sin are but for a season” (Hebrews 11:25).
(c) Possessions … lots of slaves and
buildings and gold (2:4-11). Surely
that will meet a person’s deepest needs?
No, says Solomon, I tried that … and there is still an emptiness within
(v. 11).
Like Macbeth, he decided that life was as sensible
as a “tale told by an idiot”...
Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking
shadow; a poor player,
That struts and frets his
hour upon the stage,
Told by an idiot, full of
sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
(Macbeth, Act V, Scene 5)
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3. SOLOMON’S
FINAL DECLARATION
Wait a minute … before we “eat, drink and be merry”
… there IS a purpose in living … Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 ...
“After all this, there is only one thing to say: ‘Fear God, and obey His commands, because this is all that man was created for. God is going to judge everything we do, whether good or bad, even things done in secret.”
There is a God who has a plan for our life … and He
wants the best for us.
Looking at this verse through New Testament
spectacles we are reminded that His Son, Jesus Christ, must be given His
rightful place (John 5:23).
Living for self, leaving God out, not only results
in a meaningless existence here and now but in judgement to come (v. 14). And
there is an urgency about making this commitment. For in old age (vs. 3-6) it is difficult to change one’s ways.
Now is the Day of Salvation!
NOW!!
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