Through the Bible - Ecclesiastes

Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?... The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be... and there is no new thing under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1)

Solomon spent everything chasing satisfaction "under the sun"—and his conclusion is a warning to remember the Creator before the days of darkness come.

A World of Injustice and the Question of Meaning

We live in an environment filled with injustice. As you look around, it seems like a world that is falling apart—and really it is. The book of Romans tells us that the whole of creation groans, looking forward to the day when God will return to right all the wrongs. Ever since the fall, this world has been under the curse. So in our own lives there are pains, injustices, and difficulties, and the question rises: why do bad things happen to good people? Especially if we believe in an all-loving, all-powerful God, how can these things be?

The Downward Progression of Philosophy

Look at the history of philosophy over the last thousand years and you see an interesting progression. There was a time when the predominant Western worldview was theistic—man believed in a God who created everything and was intimately involved with His creation. During the Renaissance the shift began toward deism, the idea that God created everything but simply wound up the clock and let it go. From there it kept descending until, about 150 years ago, you arrive at nihilism, from the Latin word for nothing—the belief that there is no purpose in life.

This philosophy is throughout our culture, beneath the surface of the movies and books being produced. It springs from a secular humanistic view that man is all there is. From nihilism came existentialism, big after the Second World War, which deals with your existence on an individual level—life is about you finding your own meaning and satisfaction. That is why everyone has "their own truth."

Nothing New Under the Sun

The philosophers all think these ideas are new. They should go back and read the book of Ecclesiastes, written 3,000 years ago. They would find very clearly that these are not new things. In fact, Solomon says, "There is nothing new under the sun." The idea that human existence is pointless and meaningless and you must find your own happiness was already around in his day.

So Solomon, the wisest man, the richest man, the greatest in the kingdom, set out during a time of great peace to conduct a great experiment: where is satisfaction found? Imagine having everything at your fingertips—all the wealth, all the power. You would think you'd be happy. This book is his thesis on the whole matter.

Vanity of Vanities

We read "the words of the preacher, the son of David." That word preacher might be better translated debater. Here is his thesis statement: "Vanity of vanities... all is vanity." When we hear vanity we think of someone constantly looking in the mirror, but the word really means meaninglessness, with the idea of chasing the wind. Everything is for nothing.

Underline the words under the sun in your Bible, because they appear in every chapter. They speak of life and existence here on earth—only this temporal existence, with God subtracted from the equation entirely. That is exactly what the philosophies have done for the last thousand years. When you cut God out and think only on a temporal, earthly level, your only ultimate conclusion is vanity of vanities.

One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever. The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down... The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be... and there is no new thing under the sun.

Solomon points to the wind on its circuits, the sun rising and setting, the water cycle—the streams running to the sea and returning through the clouds—all in a constant, meaningless loop. This is similar to the evolutionary idea of uniformitarianism, that everything continues the same forever. If man dies and ceases to exist, the earth will still spin. So what is the point of my life? When you teach a culture that there is no God and that you came about by evolution, the end result is: it's all empty. You might as well eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.

"Eat, Drink, and Be Merry" — A Conclusion of Despair

That is the recurring conclusion of this book. In chapter 2:24 Solomon says, "There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy the good of his labour." Now understand: this is a man who has departed from God, speaking only of temporal existence under the sun. You cannot lift these statements out and make them your life verse. This is a man on a mission to examine the purpose of life apart from God.

In chapter 1 and 2 he goes after everything. He gathers all the wisdom he can—it's empty. As the richest man with a thousand wives and flowing wine and great vineyards, he brings to himself pleasure—it's empty. He builds great buildings, vineyards, and gardens—it's empty. He works hard with his hands—and at the end it's just emptiness. So he keeps returning to: you might as well eat, drink, and be merry. We see the same conclusion in chapter 5:18 and chapter 8:15. The end of all being, when God is cut out, is the happiness of man—because there is no other point.

The Despair of Life

In chapter 4 he comes to the point where he says he might as well just die. He despairs of life. Having built great buildings, enjoyed pleasure, chased wisdom and folly—everything you could possibly pursue—he finds it all leads to the same place: emptiness. His conclusion is that it would have been better never to have been born, better to be the man already in the grave.

In reality, if life is only under the sun, never able to look above this existence, then it truly is meaningless. No wonder people take their own lives and the lives of others, as we saw at Columbine in 1999 and in so many school shootings. If you teach children from the time they enter school that there is no meaning—that you evolved from the goo to the zoo to you—what then is the point? They despair of life, and they may take their own life or the lives of others, because there is no point any longer.

This is the same thinking that came to the people of Jerusalem in Isaiah 22. With the city besieged and death seeming certain, they said, "Let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we shall die." If you knew you were going to die tomorrow and you cut God out of the equation, you might just say, I've got 24 hours to live it up. And even so, in chapter 10:19—"money answereth all things"—there is still emptiness, because Solomon knows that after he dies a fool may take over and destroy it all. And he spoke prophetically: his son Rehoboam divided the nation and departed from the Lord. What really is the point?

Remember Now the Creator

The only real good of this book is found in the last chapter, where he summarizes his whole examination. Beginning in chapter 11:7 he says, "Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun." It's interesting that older people near death often want the light kept on. He says even if a man lives many years and rejoices in them, let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many.

Then in verse 9 he tells the young man he can live it up and follow all the desires of his heart and eyes—but he must remember that there is coming a day of reckoning before God. And then the great turn: "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth." This is the first time he brings God into the equation. For eleven chapters it was all about life under the sun; now, in chapter 12, God is brought back in. His exhortation, based on all his findings, is: do not do as I have done. While you are young, seek the Lord and serve Him before the difficult days come.

The Poetry of Old Age

From verse 2 through verse 7 he describes growing old in beautiful, poetic language. The sun, moon, and stars darkened speak of the eyes beginning to go; the clouds returning after the rain speak of one pain coming after another. "The keepers of the house shall tremble"—the hands begin to shake. "The strong men shall bow themselves"—the legs give way. "The grinders cease because they are few"—the teeth. "Those that look out of the windows be darkened"—again the eyes.

"The doors shall be shut in the streets" and "the sound of the grinding is low"—the lips no longer open clearly and chewing becomes hard. "He shall rise up at the voice of the bird"—sleep becomes difficult, the smallest noise wakes you. "The daughters of musick shall be brought low"—the singing voice fails. "Afraid of that which is high"—the equilibrium goes and stairs become fearful. "The almond tree shall flourish"—the white buds picture white hair. "The grasshopper shall be a burden"—even a small thing seems heavy. "Desire shall fail"—the appetites go, because man goes to his long home and the mourners gather in the streets.

Whether you are rich or poor, wise or foolish, every single person comes to one thing: the day of death. So remember the Creator while you are young. Following the Lord while young doesn't mean you'll escape these things, but it does mean you have something to look forward to at the end. For "then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it."

The Conclusion of the Matter

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecclesiastes 12)

You may notice some Bibles say "the whole duty of man," but the word duty is not in the original. "This is the whole of man." The only thing that can make man whole is to fear God and keep His commandments. Cut God out and you find only emptiness; there is nothing worthwhile in this world apart from God.

Earlier he calls the words of the wise "goads" and "nails fastened by the master of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd." A goad keeps the ox moving in the right direction; the words of the wise keep us on course. And notice—they are given by one shepherd. Who is the good shepherd? Jesus, in John 10. He also warns, "Of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh"—go on Amazon and you'll see how true that is.

The Difference an Eternal Perspective Makes

The predominant mindset of Americans today is eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die—just get whatever you can and make yourself happy, because there is no intrinsic meaning. That comes from a culture taught there is no God; it is the ultimate outcome of cutting God out. But the recognition of verse 14—that there is coming a day when God shall bring everything into judgment—changes the whole course of a person's life. "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment."

Solomon's method was flawed. He didn't really need to experience all these things personally, because God had already given the answer beforehand—fear the Lord and serve Him, just as Moses and Joshua told the children of Israel. Yet after all his experiments, his conclusion was the same: fear the Lord and serve Him, because there is no meaning in big buildings or in everything the world offers. Those things may be fun under the sun, but another kingdom is coming.

Abraham and the Heavenly City

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went... For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (Hebrews 11)

Why did Abraham leave all he had in Ur—a place archaeologists tell us had some of history's first hot baths? God called him to leave his comfort and dwell in a tent, and he did it because he recognized this world was not all there was. He looked for a city whose builder and maker is God. By faith Sarah received strength to conceive when she was past age, and from one man "as good as dead" came descendants as numerous as the stars.

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but seeing them afar off, confessing they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. The author says that if they had been mindful of the country they came out of, they could have returned. If they were focused on life under the sun, they would have given up and gone back—"Sarah, pack up, we're going back to the hot tub." But they desired a better, heavenly country. And here is the amazing part: "Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God." That implies there is a people God is ashamed to be called their God—people who follow the Lord with their lips but are consumed with this world.

Their seeking is not in vain. The world may call us foolish for giving up the comforts of this world to follow the Lord, but God has prepared a city for them. By faith Abraham offered up Isaac, accounting that God was able to raise him from the dead, receiving him back as a figure—a type of Another who would give His only begotten Son completely.

The Whole of Man

The teaching of Ecclesiastes is that life is not only about eating, drinking, and being merry. If that's all it is, we are no different than the animals. But God has made us different; He breathed into us the breath of life and gave us a purpose that surpasses this world—an eternal purpose. He calls us to fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole of man. If we do not serve and follow the Lord, we are not whole, and we will have an empty existence eternally as well.

I would encourage you to study this book more deeply than we can on a Saturday night. May our quick glance through the Bible book by book stir your interest to dig deep and see what the Lord wants to speak to you.

Closing Prayer

Lord, I thank You for giving us this book that we might learn from it, so that we don't have to follow in the same footsteps as Solomon but learn from his words. Just as Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, all these things happened to them as examples; may we learn from what the king of Israel went through as he traveled down the road of folly. He has given us the conclusion of the matter, and may we take it to heart and remember You our entire life.

Even as we grow older and see all the things we read poetically in chapter 12—the eye dimming, the voice going, the hair turning white, the legs feeble, the hands shaking—that is the way every human will go. But for the person who has set You apart in their heart, who has eternity in view, there is coming a day when this body returns to the earth but our spirit will be with You. Help me to be one who is looking for that city which has foundations, the one You have built—not the empire I or anyone could build here, but that heavenly kingdom You have created for us. Give us the mind of heaven, our eyes fixed upon You, running this race looking to You, the author and finisher of our faith. We praise You and thank You, in Jesus' name. Amen.