Ecclesiastes 1-6    Listen

A note about Ecclesiastes
We see in chapter 1 verses 1 and 12 that Solomon is the author. He had it all, but nearing the end of his life, he equates personal accomplishments with vanity. As a matter of fact, the word "vanity" is used 33 times, evenly distributed throughout the book in every chapter except chapter 10. Solomon understood that satisfaction in life doesn't come through riches or the accumulation of things or even personal accomplishments. It reminds me of the words of Christ in Matthew 6:33 (see notes), "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Incidentally, "vanity" here means "emptiness."

I find it interesting, though I'm not sure of its significance, that Solomon never uses the special name, "LORD," in the entire Book of Ecclesiastes. It's the translation of the personal designation for the God of Israel of the Old Testament saints translated from the Hebrew word, "Jehovah" (aka "Yahweh"). He used it 86 times in the Book of Proverbs, but not at all in Ecclesiastes. He, instead, uses the Hebrew word for God, "elohim," a less personal designation for The Creator; that designation for "God" is used 41 times in Ecclesiastes.

It's all pretty hard to figure out (Ecclesiastes 1:1-11)

1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher;
“Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.”
3 What profit has a man from all his labor
In which he toils under the sun?
4 One generation passes away, and another generation comes;
But the earth abides forever.
5 The sun also rises, and the sun goes down,
And hastens to the place where it arose.
6 The wind goes toward the south,
And turns around to the north;
The wind whirls about continually,
And comes again on its circuit.
7 All the rivers run into the sea,
Yet the sea is not full;
To the place from which the rivers come,
There they return again.
8 All things are full of labor;
Man cannot express it.
The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 That which has been is what will be,
That which is done is what will be done,
And there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which it may be said,
“See, this is new”?
It has already been in ancient times before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things,
Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come
By those who will come after.

Solomon refers to himself as "the preacher" (Hebrew: "ko-heh´-leth"). That Hebrew word is only used 7 times in all of the Old Testament - all in the Book of Ecclesiastes. Since it is used unilaterally in the Old Testament in only one book by one author, it is difficult to determine with any certainty the significance Solomon intends to convey with this particular reference to himself. This Hebrew word is derived from the root "k–h–l," meaning, "to assemble." Hmmm...is that an assembly of thoughts of wisdom...or perhaps an assembly of a congregation of people to listen? We just don't know.

His words in these verses seem to express a desire to understand more about God in nature, but to no avail. He seems to be saying, "Things are more like they are now than they've ever been before." Let that sink in. In other words, Solomon expresses the sameness of...well...everything. Incidentally, there's a phrase unique to Solomon and Ecclesiastes in verses 3 and 9, "under the sun." Altogether, Solomon uses this phrase to describe everything created 29 times in this book.

Who's going to inherit all of my hard work? (Ecclesiastes 1:12-2:23)

12 ¶ I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
13 And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight,
And what is lacking cannot be numbered.
16 ¶ I communed with my heart, saying, “Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has understood great wisdom and knowledge.”
17 And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief,
And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

2:1 I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with mirth; therefore enjoy pleasure”; but surely, this also was vanity.
2 I said of laughter—“Madness!”; and of mirth, “What does it accomplish?”
3 I searched in my heart how to gratify my flesh with wine, while guiding my heart with wisdom, and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do under heaven all the days of their lives.
4 ¶ I made my works great, I built myself houses, and planted myself vineyards.
5 I made myself gardens and orchards, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them.
6 I made myself water pools from which to water the growing trees of the grove.
7 I acquired male and female servants, and had servants born in my house. Yes, I had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me.
8 I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the special treasures of kings and of the provinces. I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and musical instruments of all kinds.
9 ¶ So I became great and excelled more than all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.
10 Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.
I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure,
For my heart rejoiced in all my labor;
And this was my reward from all my labor.
11 Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun.
12 Then I turned myself to consider wisdom and madness and folly;
For what can the man do who succeeds the king?—
Only what he has already done.
13 Then I saw that wisdom excels folly
As light excels darkness.
14 The wise man’s eyes are in his head,
But the fool walks in darkness.
Yet I myself perceived
That the same event happens to them all.
15 So I said in my heart,
“As it happens to the fool,
It also happens to me,
And why was I then more wise?”
Then I said in my heart,
“This also is vanity.”
16 For there is no more remembrance of the wise than of the fool forever,
Since all that now is will be forgotten in the days to come.
And how does a wise man die?
As the fool!
17 Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
18 ¶ Then I hated all my labor in which I had toiled under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.
19 And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will rule over all my labor in which I toiled and in which I have shown myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.
20 Therefore I turned my heart and despaired of all the labor in which I had toiled under the sun.
21 For there is a man whose labor is with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; yet he must leave his heritage to a man who has not labored for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.
22 For what has man for all his labor, and for the striving of his heart with which he has toiled under the sun?
23 For all his days are sorrowful, and his work burdensome; even in the night his heart takes no rest. This also is vanity.

Verse 12 again confirms that it is, indeed, Solomon writing Ecclesiastes. His massive personal accomplishments turn out to be meaningless efforts in the big picture of things. He draws a contrast between himself (a wise man) and the fool.

In verses 16-17 Solomon approaches his acquisition of wisdom rather factually (see notes on I Kings 3:5-15; II Chronicles 1:7-17 for more details regarding Solomon's wisdom). He entertains the notion that all of his accomplishments may one day be the inheritance of one who is a fool. Solomon uses two different Hebrew words for "fool" in five different places in these 14 verses. With these two different words for "fool," he encompasses those who have a disdain for wisdom along with a disregard for standards of morality. How accidentally prophetic was that! In fact, many Kings of Israel who followed Solomon embodied both aspects of foolishness feared by Solomon...to the end destruction of Jerusalem itself in 586 B.C. I can't resist pointing out, however, that the scriptures are clear that Solomon himself violated God's principles, ultimately causing difficulties for his successors, beginning with his own son (see notes on I Kings 11:1-8).

Life can only be enjoyed by rolling with the punches (Ecclesiastes 2:24-3:15)

24 ¶ Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God.
25 For who can eat, or who can have enjoyment, more than I?
26 For God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight; but to the sinner He gives the work of gathering and collecting, that he may give to him who is good before God. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

3:1 To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.
9 ¶ What profit has the worker from that in which he labors?
10 I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied.
11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
12 ¶ I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives,
13 and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.
14 I know that whatever God does,
It shall be forever.
Nothing can be added to it,
And nothing taken from it.
God does it, that men should fear before Him.
15 That which is has already been,
And what is to be has already been;
And God requires an account of what is past.

God is the author and engineer of our lives. Solomon points out that everyone has good and bad times in the course of living. At whatever stage of life one currently finds himself, enjoy the moment. Notice what Solomon writes in 2:24, "Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God." And again in 3:13 he says, "and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God." Circumstances...they are what they are; enjoy the moment. From prison, Paul wrote in Philippians 4:11 (see notes), "Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content."

What is your legacy? (Ecclesiastes 3:16-22)

16 ¶ Moreover I saw under the sun:
In the place of judgment,
Wickedness was there;
And in the place of righteousness,
Iniquity was there.
17 ¶ I said in my heart,
“God shall judge the righteous and the wicked,
For there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.”
18 I said in my heart, “Concerning the condition of the sons of men, God tests them, that they may see that they themselves are like animals.”
19 For what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity.
20 All go to one place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust.
21 Who knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, which goes down to the earth?
22 So I perceived that nothing is better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for that is his heritage. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

Even though God is in charge of our destiny, Solomon emphasizes the need for personal accomplishment. In other words, use the time God gives us wisely. What will people see of one's life after he is dead? Solomon answers that question in verse 22, "So I perceived that nothing is better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for that is his heritage. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?" In other words, your accomplishments while living are the things people will remember after you are dead.

In verse 17 Solomon declares, "God shall judge the righteous and the wicked." Click here for an overview on God's judgment.

Life is hard (Ecclesiastes 4)

1 Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun:
And look! The tears of the oppressed,
But they have no comforter—
On the side of their oppressors there is power,
But they have no comforter.
2 Therefore I praised the dead who were already dead,
More than the living who are still alive.
3 Yet, better than both is he who has never existed,
Who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.
4 ¶ Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbor. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.
5 The fool folds his hands
And consumes his own flesh.
6 Better a handful with quietness
Than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.
7 ¶ Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:
8 There is one alone, without companion:
He has neither son nor brother.
Yet there is no end to all his labors,
Nor is his eye satisfied with riches.
But he never asks,
“For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good?”
This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.
9 Two are better than one,
Because they have a good reward for their labor.
10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.
11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;
But how can one be warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.
And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
13 Better a poor and wise youth
Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no more.
14 For he comes out of prison to be king,
Although he was born poor in his kingdom.
15 I saw all the living who walk under the sun;
They were with the second youth who stands in his place.
16 There was no end of all the people over whom he was made king;
Yet those who come afterward will not rejoice in him.
Surely this also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Oppressions, tears, travail and vexation of spirit are the ways Solomon describes the hassles of this life in verses 1-6. That leads into his proposal that everyone needs a partner with whom he may share the load and joys of living. He expresses this in several ways, but my favorite is verse 11, "Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone?" There's a case for a double or queen bed over twin beds if ever I saw one.

Watch those vows! (Ecclesiastes 5:1-7)

1 Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil.
2 Do not be rash with your mouth,
And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God.
For God is in heaven, and you on earth;
Therefore let your words be few.
3 For a dream comes through much activity,
And a fool’s voice is known by his many words.
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it;
For He has no pleasure in fools.
Pay what you have vowed—
5 Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.
6 Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God.

Chapter 5 begins to read like Proverbs - same style. Solomon here warns against making vows and not fulfilling them. It is interesting to note all the attention this concept gets in the Old Testament. Vows were considered very binding. Click here to read about the Old Testament stipulations regarding vows and their fulfillment.

What about the accumulation of wealth? (Ecclesiastes 5:8-20)

8 ¶ If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent perversion of justice and righteousness in a province, do not marvel at the matter; for high official watches over high official, and higher officials are over them.
9 ¶ Moreover the profit of the land is for all; even the king is served from the field.
10 He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver;
Nor he who loves abundance, with increase.
This also is vanity.
11 When goods increase,
They increase who eat them;
So what profit have the owners
Except to see them with their eyes?
12 The sleep of a laboring man is sweet,
Whether he eats little or much;
But the abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep.
13 There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun:
Riches kept for their owner to his hurt.
14 But those riches perish through misfortune;
When he begets a son, there is nothing in his hand.
15 As he came from his mother’s womb, naked shall he return,
To go as he came;
And he shall take nothing from his labor
Which he may carry away in his hand.
16 And this also is a severe evil—
Just exactly as he came, so shall he go.
And what profit has he who has labored for the wind?
17 All his days he also eats in darkness,
And he has much sorrow and sickness and anger.
18 ¶ Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage.
19 As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor—this is the gift of God.
20 For he will not dwell unduly on the days of his life, because God keeps him busy with the joy of his heart.

For a wealthy man, Solomon seems to express a disdain for wealth. He sums it up in verse 15, "As he came from his mother’s womb, naked shall he return, To go as he came; And he shall take nothing from his labor Which he may carry away in his hand." In other words, you came in naked, and you'll go out naked. Again he makes the point in these verses that one should use and enjoy his wealth.

In summary, the ideal for the man of God is that he not brood over the past or worry about the future; for God fills his heart with joy. That truth is confirmed to us in Matthew 6:25-34 (see notes) and Philippians 4:4-7 (see notes), just to name a couple of references. Solomon, in this section, seems to have in mind the average person with a living wage.

Rich or poor, our eternal destination is the same (Ecclesiastes 6)

1 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:
2 A man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing for himself of all he desires; yet God does not give him power to eat of it, but a foreigner consumes it. This is vanity, and it is an evil affliction.
3 ¶ If a man begets a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with goodness, or indeed he has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better than he—
4 for it comes in vanity and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness.
5 Though it has not seen the sun or known anything, this has more rest than that man,
6 even if he lives a thousand years twice—but has not seen goodness. Do not all go to one place?
7 All the labor of man is for his mouth,
And yet the soul is not satisfied.
8 For what more has the wise man than the fool?
What does the poor man have,
Who knows how to walk before the living?
9 Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desire.
This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.
10 Whatever one is, he has been named already,
For it is known that he is man;
And he cannot contend with Him who is mightier than he.
11 Since there are many things that increase vanity,
How is man the better?
12 ¶ For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life which he passes like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will happen after him under the sun?

Solomon expresses the importance of experiencing joy in one's life. Actually, that's a reverse deduction from this chapter. He's really proposing: Riches without joy? Vanity! It certainly is obvious that Solomon, at the end of his life, seemed to have an itch that he wasn't able to scratch.