The Book of Ecclesiastes 8:1–17

 ¹Who is like a wise man?

And who knows the interpretation of a thing?

A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,

And the sternness of his face is changed.

²I say, “Keep the king’s commandment for the sake of your oath to God.

³Do not be hasty to go from his presence.

Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.”

⁴Where the word of a king is, there is power; And who may say to him, “What are you doing?” ⁵He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; And a wise man’s heart discerns both time and judgment,

⁶Because for every matter there is a time and judgment,

Though the misery of man increases greatly.

⁷For he does not know what will happen;

So who can tell him when it will occur?

⁸No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit,

And no one has power in the day of death. There is no release from that war,

And wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it.

⁹All this I have seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun: There is a time in which one man rules over another to his own hurt.

¹⁰Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity.

¹¹Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.

¹²Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him.

¹³But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God.

¹⁴There is a vanity which occurs on earth, that there are just men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.

¹⁵So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.

¹⁶When I applied my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that is done on earth, even though one sees no sleep day or night, ¹⁷then I saw all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. For though a man labors to discover it, yet he will not find it; moreover, though a wise man attempts to know it, he will not be able to find it.

Commentary

Vs. 1 ¹Who is like a wise man?

And who knows the interpretation of a thing?

A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,

And the sternness of his face is changed.

King Solomon here seemingly admires the wise man, the person who can give a right interpretation; think Joseph and later Daniel. Indeed, acquiring Biblical Wisdom, by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, one’s face does indeed shine and a once stern countenance is changed.

Vs. 2-3 ²I say, “Keep the king’s commandment for the sake of your oath to God.

³Do not be hasty to go from his presence.

Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.”

Here keeping the king’s commandment is linked with one’s faithfulness to God (consider Rom. 13:1; Titus 3:1-2; 1 Peter 2:13); that said if the king or ruler’s commandment would compel you to violate one of God’s commands then one should always obey God (Acts 5:29). Therefore, do not be hasty to go from his presence; like those whose hearts are always set on doing their own will; nor take a stand for an evil thing; like those who seek to overthrow him; for he does whatever he pleases, and you do not want to be on the receiving end of his wrath.

Vs. 4-6 ⁴Where the word of a king is, there is power; And who may say to him, “What are you doing?” ⁵He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; And a wise man’s heart discerns both time and judgment,

⁶Because for every matter there is a time and judgment,

Though the misery of man increases greatly.

The thought continues, saying, where the word of a king (or ruler) is, there is power, for his men do not hesitate to obey him, and questioning him, as if he is subject to you, needing your approval, will only bring harm to yourself (vs. 4-5). Therefore, a wise mans hearts discerns both time and judgment, for there is a time to speak and a time to remain silent, a time to take a stand for a matter, and a time not too. “Because for every matter there is a time and judgment”, even though the misery of man increases greatly, discerning the time is how one brings change.

Vs. 7 “For he does not know what will happen;

So who can tell him when it will occur?”

The thought concludes by cautioning us all not to presume upon things, especially upon working out as we wish or think. For we don’t know what tomorrow will bring, or even when it will occur.

Vs. 8 No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit,

And no one has power in the day of death. There is no release from that war,

And wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it.

This thought then is clearly seen in our own lives as we have no power over our spirit to retain our spirit, for when death comes, we depart. For no one has power to keep themselves alive on the day of their death, there is no release from that war, for neither you, nor the king, nor the servant can escape it, and wickedness will not deliverer those given to it. Therefore, live uprightly now by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, so that you maybe able to confidently face it when it comes to you.

Vs. 9 “All this I have seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun: There is a time in which one man rules over another to his own hurt.”

King Solomon then came to understand all these great things while alive, and not while pondering and reflecting on his death bed, when its often to late. And so, as he saw, there is time when one man rules over another to their own hurt. Better than to be a just ruler here and now, than to die nd have many grave regrets.

Vs. 10 “Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity.

So, it was the wicked were buried; that is those who had begun in holiness, but for whatever reasons later departed for their sins, (or maybe for the power and prestige of this life), but when they were buried their “legacy” also perished with them, for no one remembered them after they were gone. This also then is vanity.

Vs. 11 “Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.”

This is a great truth, as we have all seen, for judgment delayed often encourages more of the same, again as we have all seen. Men and women then often feel emboldened to do more of them same when there are no immediate consequences, this then is the state of this world down here under the sun, and not under the Son of God. Nonetheless when the Lord Jesus Christ Reigns, this will cease to be, for even before the wicked can hatch their wicked scheme, He will strike them down. “For He will Rule the World with a Rod of iron.”

Vs. 12-13 ¹²Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him. ¹³But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God.

King Solomon though grieved by slowness of justice down here, still saw that the sinner is eventually repaid, just as surely as the person who fears God is. Therefore, it will not be well with the wicked on the Day of Judgment; whose days are like a shadow down here under the sun, because he does not fear before God.

Vs. 14 “There is a vanity which occurs on earth, that there are just men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.”

King Solomon also observed that under the sun, (and not under the Son), there are just and righteous men who are judged and treated like they are wicked, and there are wicked men who are treated like they are just and upright, leading him again to believe that all that is done under sun is vanity.

Vs. 15 “So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.”

Rather than fretting about this injustice, about all that he could not change in mankind’s hearts, King Solomon then commended men to eat, drink and be merry, while they live their lives down here under the sun. And so, we see his and every earthly ruler’s limitation to effect lasting change in people, which again is why the world needs Christ, who by His Gospel and Word changes everyone who believes!

Vs. 16-17 ¹⁶When I applied my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that is done on earth, even though one sees no sleep day or night, ¹⁷then I saw all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. For though a man labors to discover it, yet he will not find it; moreover, though a wise man attempts to know it, he will not be able to find it.

Still King Solomon sought out to understand all of this, to understand all the works that are done under the sun, and yet though he searched day and night, he finely came to the conclusion that God in His Infinite Wisdom and Sovereignty has reserved all such understanding for Himself (consider Deut. 29:29).

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson. 

The Book of Ecclesiastes 7:1–29

 ¹A good name is better than precious ointment,

And the day of death than the day of one’s birth;

²Better to go to the house of mourning

Than to go to the house of feasting,

For that is the end of all men;

And the living will take it to heart.

³Sorrow is better than laughter,

For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.

⁴The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,

But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

⁵It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise

Than for a man to hear the song of fools.

⁶For like the crackling of thorns under a pot,

So is the laughter of the fool.

This also is vanity.

⁷Surely oppression destroys a wise man’s reason,

And a bribe debases the heart.

⁸The end of a thing is better than its beginning;

The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

⁹Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry,

For anger rests in the bosom of fools.

¹⁰Do not say,

“Why were the former days better than these?”

For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

¹¹Wisdom is good with an inheritance,

And profitable to those who see the sun.

¹²For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense,

But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

¹³Consider the work of God;

For who can make straight what He has made crooked?

¹⁴In the day of prosperity be joyful,

But in the day of adversity consider:

Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other,

So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.

¹⁵I have seen everything in my days of vanity:

There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness,

And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness.

¹⁶Do not be overly righteous,

Nor be overly wise:

Why should you destroy yourself?

¹⁷Do not be overly wicked,

Nor be foolish:

Why should you die before your time?

¹⁸It is good that you grasp this,

And also not remove your hand from the other;

For he who fears God will escape them all.

¹⁹Wisdom strengthens the wise

More than ten rulers of the city.

²⁰For there is not a just man on earth who does good

And does not sin.

²¹Also do not take to heart everything people say,

Lest you hear your servant cursing you.

²²For many times, also, your own heart has known

That even you have cursed others.

²³All this I have proved by wisdom. I said,

“I will be wise”;

But it was far from me.

²⁴As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep,

Who can find it out?

²⁵I applied my heart to know,

To search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things,

To know the wickedness of folly,

Even of foolishness and madness.

²⁶And I find more bitter than death

The woman whose heart is snares and nets,

Whose hands are fetters.

He who pleases God shall escape from her,

But the sinner shall be trapped by her.

²⁷“Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher, “

Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,

²⁸Which my soul still seeks but I cannot find:

One man among a thousand I have found,

But a woman among all these I have not found.

²⁹Truly, this only I have found:

That God made man upright,

But they have sought out many schemes.”

Commentary

Vs. 1 “A good name is better than precious ointment,

And the day of death than the day of one’s birth;”

A good name here is symbolic with having good character. For being an upright and just person has a much greater and more pleasing fragrance than one who is only costumed up with perfumes and colognes. That the day of ones death is better than the day of ones birth clearly then is tied with those whose lives have been lived justly and righteously, for truly every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ will have a glorious end, even if their beginning and life before Christ was not.

Vs. 2 “Better to go to the house of mourning

Than to go to the house of feasting,

For that is the end of all men;

And the living will take it to heart.”

Contriteness and humility before God is a much better stance to take than to go on “feasting” with the partying crowd, for our appearing before Him is end of us all (consider Isaiah 22:12-14).

Vs. 3 “Sorrow is better than laughter,

For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.”

Some people never let themselves experience grief, and yet it is by grief, by mourning one’s losses, that one’s heart is made better.  

Vs. 4 “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,

But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.”

Again, wise people know when contriteness and humility is called for, while fools only live their lives for partying, for whatever pleasures they can have here and now. While some also always need to be laughing, like a drug they cannot live with out it. Everything they do and say then is meant to arouse it. Thus, they avoid serious conversations and serious reflection, serious interactions and interventions, and in the end, they only live very shallow self-centered lives.

Vs. 5 “It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise

Than for a man to hear the song of fools.”

The wise man will rebuke you when you are going astray, but the fool will sing songs to you; that is, he will encourage you to carry on in your folly, to carry on with what will only harm you in the end.

Vs. 6 “For like the crackling of thorns under a pot,

So is the laughter of the fool.

This also is vanity.”

The laughter of the fool always has an annoying sound to the ears of anyone who walks uprightly, like nails on a chalkboard etc., because the wise man knows that what makes the fool laugh is ruining him and will ruin others.

Vs. 7 “Surely oppression destroys a wise man’s reason,

And a bribe debases the heart.”

People who wield power must not become power hungry, and they must never yield to bribes or "gifts" that will influence their decisions, since receiving such only corrupts (debases) ones hearts, which then leads them into overlooking (or justifying) all kinds of evil and sins.

Vs. 8 “The end of a thing is better than its beginning;

The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”

Completing something that one started (like a journey) is always better than its beginning, for now all of the trials and struggles are behind you. For a Christian this is the end of our journey down here, when we go to be with Jesus Christ forever! And so it is, the patient in spirit is always better than the proud in spirit, for the patient in spirit will be rewarded, but the proud in spirit will be repaid.

Vs. 9 “Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry,

For anger rests in the bosom of fools.”

The person who is quick to anger only shows themselves a fool, as a person incapable of controlling their emotions and governing their responses, all which inevitably only harms them.

Vs. 10 Do not say,

“Why were the former days better than these?”

For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

Some people like to “glorify” the past, as if there was once "a golden era" that we have now missed out on. And yet the past also had its own hardships, trials, and evil afflictions, therefore don’t glorify the past, instead live your life in the here and now and make the most of it!

Vs. 11-12 ¹¹Wisdom is good with an inheritance,

And profitable to those who see the sun.

¹²For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense,

But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

The wisdom here with an inheritance is not philosophical, it is eminently practical, Biblically guiding you into making wise choices and decisions. And so it is a defense (like money is defense), but the value of wisdom is that it gives life to those who have it, especially those who have now received Christ! For Money in of itself does bring life, and can bring its own temptations, troubles, and sorrows, which you cannot buy your way out of.

Vs. 13 “Consider the work of God;

For who can make straight what He has made crooked?”

The thought here is to always revere God as Highest, as the only Sovereign One, for He alone is the One who gives decrees that cannot be circumvented or altered.

Vs. 14 “In the day of prosperity be joyful,

But in the day of adversity consider:

Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other,

So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.”

King Solomon now counsels us to be joyful in the days of our prosperity, but more importantly to also consider in the days of our adversity, for surely God has appointed one as well as the other (Isaiah 45:17), so that we cannot find out what will come after us. Therefore we should always be self reflective to see if we have sinned and or erred in some way when troubles or adversity comes our way. Still, there are times when God brings adversity into our lives, that are not so easily explained or understood.

Vs. 15 “I have seen everything in my days of vanity:

There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness,

And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness.”

King Solomon was frustrated by seemingly injustices down here under the sun, where the just man perishes in his righteousness, while the wicked man prolongs his life while in his wickedness. For this world down here under the sun, and not under the Son of God, can be an evil and very unjust place, where people don't always get what they deserve in this life.

Vs. 16-18 ¹⁶Do not be overly righteous,

Nor be overly wise:

Why should you destroy yourself?

¹⁷Do not be overly wicked,

Nor be foolish:

Why should you die before your time?

¹⁸It is good that you grasp this,

And also not remove your hand from the other;

For he who fears God will escape them all.

Two polar opposite errors are now presented to us and we are cautioned about both. The first is being overtly righteous or wise; now as to being overly righteous this can be an attitude of "superiority" or self righteousness, as the Pharisees exemplified in the N.T. It can also be found today in seeing sin and sinners everywhere, and then ranting on about them in the cruelest and harshest ways. Such an attitude though is wrong since it denies the Lord Jesus Christ's and the Gospels purpose, to reconcile people back to God. Generally such people then have no desire for reconciliation and restoration of the sinner when they sin, just anger, punishment, and wrath. It is an attitude then that only harms them, for in the end, the measure one uses will be measured back to you. Similarly, there are those who think themselves wise, who think they are always one step head of everyone around them, but again in reality, they are only blind and self deceived to their own sims and many shortcomings (Prov. 30:12; Luke 18:9-14). Following then either of those paths will only destroy you, just as surely as being overly wicked or foolish will cause you to die before your time, for both self righteousness and arrogance, sin and folly will shorten your days down here. And so it is, he who fears God will escape them all!

Vs. 19 Wisdom strengthens the wise

More than ten rulers of the city.

The exceedingly great value of wisdom is now exalted, for it strengthens the wise more than a city with ten rulers, who even if they are intelligent, or industrious, or even mighty and courageous, if they do not have wisdom, Biblical sound wisdom, the city which they rule may just come to ruin, because bad decisions (and poor planning) always have many negative ripple effects.

Vs. 20 “For there is not a just man on earth who does good

And does not sin.”

This is why humility is needed by us all, because there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin. For even people at their very best will sin, and the only way to avoid sins many pitfalls which ruin lives and relationships is by Biblical wisdom.

Vs. 21-22 ²¹Also do not take to heart everything people say,

Lest you hear your servant cursing you.

²²For many times, also, your own heart has known

That even you have cursed others.

As an employer overhearing your employees conversations about you is almost unavoidable, now when you do, don’t take everything they say to heart, for idle talk about the boss is a given in any workplace. And as the Scripture says, you also have spoken unbecoming words (cursed others) as well. Letting those words slide then is the best way to deal with them. 

Vs. 23 All this I have proved by wisdom. I said,

“I will be wise”;

But it was far from me.

Even though King Solomon came to great truths and understanding, he still saw that in striving to be wise, it was still far from him. Here then is his acknowledgment that we all need Someone much wiser than ourselves in our lives, to guide our lives, and that Person is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Vs. 24 “As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep,

Who can find it out?”

Again, king Solomon acknowledges that there are things which the Lord God Almighty has reserved for Himself, to alone know and understand (Deut. 29:29). There is then a need to return too and deal with the everyday affairs in ones own life, rather than chasing and pursuing that which belongs to God alone. 

Vs. 25-26 ²⁵I applied my heart to know,

To search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things,

To know the wickedness of folly,

Even of foolishness and madness.

²⁶And I find more bitter than death

The woman whose heart is snares and nets,

Whose hands are fetters.

He who pleases God shall escape from her,

But the sinner shall be trapped by her.

King Solomon now declares that in searching out the depths of wisdom, of even knowing the depths of wickedness and folly, of foolishness and madness, that there is nothing more enslaving for a man than to be enraptured by the harlot women, whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters, for most ironically, she is the person by which God deals with the sinner down here.

Vs. 27-28 ²⁷“Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher, “

Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,

²⁸Which my soul still seeks but I cannot find:

One man among a thousand I have found,

But a woman among all these I have not found.

King Solomon in seeking out wisdom found that only one man in thousand was worth listening too; was capable of enlightening and enrichening his soul. But among women (with all of his wives and concubines) he found none. Clearly then this passage is pointing us all to the Lord Jesus Christ as truly that one Man in a thousand. For down here everybody else, every "religion",  falls exceedingly short of His Wisdom and Understanding. 

Vs. 29 “Truly, this only I have found:

That God made man upright,

But they have sought out many schemes.”

When God created Adam and Eve they were without sin, they were made upright, they then bore the Image of God just as He created them to do so, but after their fall when sin entered the world, mankind's hearts have been bent on evil. Generation after generation then have only sought out many schemes. Of which humanity, sadly seems incapable of running out of.

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson. 

The Book of Ecclesiastes 6:1–12

 ¹There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: ²A 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.

³If 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— ⁴for it comes in vanity and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness. ⁵Though it has not seen the sun or known anything, this has more rest than that man, ⁶even if he lives a thousand years twice—but has not seen goodness. Do not all go to one place?

⁷All the labor of man is for his mouth,

And yet the soul is not satisfied.

⁸For what more has the wise man than the fool?

What does the poor man have,

Who knows how to walk before the living?

⁹Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desire.

This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

¹⁰Whatever 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.

¹¹Since there are many things that increase vanity,

How is man the better?

¹²For 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?

Commentary 

Vs. 1-2 ¹There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: ²A 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.

King Solomon now presents us with another individual who seemingly lacked nothing, for they were given by God, riches, wealth, and honor, but for whatever reasons they themselves never got to experience or enjoy it all. But rather a foreigner; thus not even someone of their own household; gets to consume it. This is vanity, and an evil affliction. The lesson then is don’t presume upon anything, either your life, or your prosperity, or your prospects etc., because we are assured of nothing in this life, better than to seek God and have eternal life through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ while you can, than to lose it all, and have nothing in the end. So lay up your treasures in heaven now while you can, for your lawyers and such will consume it all when you are gone. 

Vs. 3-6 ³If 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— ⁴for it comes in vanity and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness. ⁵Though it has not seen the sun or known anything, this has more rest than that man, ⁶even if he lives a thousand years twice—but has not seen goodness. Do not all go to one place?

King Solomon also considered the man whose household overflows with children (i.e. a sign of God’s blessing, Ps. 127:3-5), who also lives well into his old age (again another sign of God’s blessing in one’s life), and so he has children and grand children and great grand children, and yet for all of that you would think he would consider himself truly blessed, and yet his soul is not satisfied with goodness. His long life and many offspring did not satisfy his soul, and so now at the end of his life he longs for something more, again this is a tragedy, when people make their children or having long life what their lives are about down here under the sun. For we all die, and to die without Christ is the greatest tragedy of all. Thus, a still born child is better than that person, for at least they will never have to live for all eternity with that great regret at the end. Of having traded one for the other. 

Vs. 7 All the labor of man is for his mouth,

And yet the soul is not satisfied.

This is a great truth, and grave misfortune all in one. For truly to work and live only to feed and gratify one’s flesh, will leave your soul hungering for so much more (consider John 6:35, also Matt. 11:28-30).

Vs. 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?”

King Solomon now sees that having wisdom in of itself, does make one any better off than the fool, because we all face the same end. And if a "fool" finds Christ but a  "wise man" does not, who is the wiser in the end (consider 1 Cor. 1:26-31). 

Vs. 9 “Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desire.

This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.”

Contentment is always a great advantage to overcoming..., rather than always desiring…, because having a wandering heart and desiring for… will always lead you astray, for covetousness is sin and the ruin of many (consider Jer. 17:9).

Vs. 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.”

There are things and attributes about ourselves that we cannot change, only God can, which He does when we become new creations In Christ by faith in His Person. Therefore, to contend with Him about the way we now are, when we are merely men and women of clay is only to pick a “fight” that one cannot win (consider Rom. 9:14-28).

Vs. 11-12 ¹¹Since there are many things that increase vanity, How is man the better? ¹²For 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?

There are many things in this life that only increase vanity, many things (and people) that will allure and mislead you if you let them. Therefore, don’t go seeking gurus’ and the like. For neither they, nor anyone else down here under the sun can tell you how to spend your lifetime down here. They do not know what your end will be. However, there is One, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ who does know and He can direct your life and make your time well spent down here if you let Him. For He has not only the keys to the Kingdom of heaven, but also the key to living a rich and full and abundant life down here, therefore seek Him!

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson. 

 

 

 

The Book of Ecclesiastes 5:1–20

 ¹Walk 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.

²Do 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.

³For a dream comes through much activity,

And a fool’s voice is known by his many words.

⁴When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it;

For He has no pleasure in fools.

Pay what you have vowed—

⁵Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.

⁶Do 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? ⁷For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God.

 ⁸If 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. ⁹Moreover the profit of the land is for all; even the king is served from the field.

¹⁰He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver;

Nor he who loves abundance, with increase.

This also is vanity.

¹¹When goods increase,

They increase who eat them;

So what profit have the owners

Except to see them with their eyes?

¹²The 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.

¹³There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun:

Riches kept for their owner to his hurt.

¹⁴But those riches perish through misfortune;

When he begets a son, there is nothing in his hand.

¹⁵As 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.

¹⁶And 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?

¹⁷All his days he also eats in darkness,

And he has much sorrow and sickness and anger.

¹⁸Here 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. ¹⁹As 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. ²⁰For he will not dwell unduly on the days of his life, because God keeps him busy with the joy of his heart.

Commentary

Vs. 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”

The idea of reverence (and even silence) before God comes to mind. For there are those who feel that going to church is almost like going out to be "entertained", or going out to try to have some kind of spiritual “experience”. And yet the Scripture says,

“By those who come near Me

I must be regarded as holy;

And before all the people

I must be glorified.” ^{Lev. 10:3}

Therefore rather than give the sacrifice of fools who make all kinds of grand and misleading declarations, or who seek to worship God according to the dictates of their own hearts, consider the N.T. teachings on our assembling and worshipping together. For all things are to be done decently and in order, for God is not the Author of confusion, but of peace as in all of the churches of the saints (1 Cor 14:33). Therefore when you go and present yourselves in the house of God do so as a serious and reverent worshipper or seeker of God, and not as an irreverent fool, for they do not know that they do evil.

Vs. 2-3 ²Do 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.

³For a dream comes through much activity,

And a fool’s voice is known by his many words.

Continuing on then with our worship and service towards God, it is always best not to be rash with ones mouth, and thus hastily utter false promises to God. For God is in heaven and you are on earth and He does not like false declarations and long winded prayers meant to impress people (consider Mark 12:38-40; Acts 5:1-11). Therefore while in presence of God let your words be few, “For a dream comes through much activity, and fools voice is known by his many words.”

Vs. 4-7 ⁴When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it;

For He has no pleasure in fools.

Pay what you have vowed—

⁵Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.

⁶Do 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? ⁷For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God.

In Acts chapter five we see what happened to Ananias and Sapphira when they knowingly and openly  lied to the Holy Spirit, and yet as that section of Scripture also reveals, they were never compelled either by Him, or anyone else to vow to give anything to support the church. Yet they choose to lie openly to the whole congregation about doing so when so many were making great sacrifices to help maintain and establish it, and thus they incurred God’s wrath. Therefore consider long and hard before you decide to vow anything to God unless you intend to keep it. And if you have vowed to pay something to God then pay it! For God has no pleasure in fools! (Consider Malachi 1:6-14). For Again God is in heaven and you are on earth, and if you renege on your vows and promises to Him and His messenger comes to you; i.e. in Old Covenant times his priest or prophet was His messenger, but today that aspect of that role is now fulfilled by His church leadership; and so if you say to them that it was an error that you promised to donate this or that, then you risk incurring His Displeasure, and He can very easily either establish or destroy the works of your hands according to what He Himself truly knows. Don’t then be one who sends the messenger of God away disillusioned, leaving him to then explain to the congregation that there is not now enough funds to do this thing or that. For again why should God be angry at you and destroy the works of your hands. For in the multitude of words with lofty and dreamy aspirations, and yet with no action behind them, is also vanity. Therefore fear God!

Vs. 8-9 ⁸If 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. ⁹Moreover the profit of the land is for all; even the king is served from the field.

King Solomon now looks into the oppression of the poor and the violent perversion of justice and righteousness in a province, in essence at the corruption in a governing establishment or land. And yet he says not to marvel at the matter, because rooting out corruption is no easy task, for high official watches over high official, and higher officials are watching over them. And so each one acts as the guardian of the other, and thus they all preserve themselves. Nonetheless we are all dependent on the services rendered by our government officials, whether they are good or corrupt. And as he also notes the “profit of the land is for all”; for everyone benefits from all of the resources of it, and all the labors done in it. For even the king is served from the field. When though does justice and fairness and equity come to one and to all you might ask, when the Lord Jesus Christ Reigns, because none of His officials will ever be corrupt (Isaiah 11:1-9; 33:5-6, 14-16 etc.). 

Vs. 10-11 ¹⁰He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver;

Nor he who loves abundance, with increase.

This also is vanity.

¹¹When goods increase,

They increase who eat them;

So what profit have the owners

Except to see them with their eyes?

It is so true that those who love money are never satisfied; that they always want more; and the more they get, the more they want. In today’s world we are seeing like never before an exuberant amount of wealth going to the very few. For multi-billionaires is now the norm, not the exception. For the very top one percent now has more than 50% of this worlds wealth. There are even some individuals whose net worth is more than many nations. Now some have gained their massive wealth by being very industrious, while others like Russia's Oligarch's by being very corrupt.  And yet as we have seen the new “industrialists” are often no different than the old. For their employees who helped to generate all their wealth are still left out in the cold when it comes to sharing in their great prosperity. Indeed many of these extremely wealthy individuals could radically change the fortunes of so many poor and impoverished peoples around the world, and yet in proportion to the amount of wealth they take in, what they give out as “charity” is often very little. Nonetheless you don’t have to be a billionaire to be afflicted with covetousness, with that insatiable appetite for more and more, an appetite which is really, our souls appetite that only the Lord Jesus Christ can satisfy (John 6:35). Now as to ones financial increase, the more ones wealth increases the more there are people who will begin to feed off it: lawyers, bankers, stock brokers, wealth advisors, politicians, and “experts” of every sort, thus there is a wisdom in not letting ones estate get so large so that one cannot hold it all in one’s own hands. For what profit has the owners except to see it with their own eyes, while many others enjoy it.

Vs. 12-15 ¹²The 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.

¹³There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun:

Riches kept for their owner to his hurt.

¹⁴But those riches perish through misfortune;

When he begets a son, there is nothing in his hand.

¹⁵As 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 contrast then to the wealthy person that is only driven for more and more, is the contented laborer. For whether he east little or much his sleep is sweet; for he is not filled with all the anxious thoughts and endless worries about this or that as rich person is who is constantly fretting over their wealth and fortune, for as markets and fortunes, nations and rulers, climb and fall, so does their emotional well being. And even in their most prosperous and "peaceful" days there are always endless things to worry about if they want to keep their fortunes intact.

Vs. 16-17 ¹⁶And 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?

¹⁷All his days he also eats in darkness,

And he has much sorrow and sickness and anger.

King Solomon not only saw the folly of overworking working to get rich (Prov. 23:4-5), but also the vanity of such a person’s life, which was only spent on laboring for the wind, for there is no profit when ones dies and has to leave all that they have worked for behind. Indeed all of their days that they spent eating in darkness, meaning never really enjoying to fruits of their labors, or lives simple pleasures that God affords everyone in this life, because they were always too busy trying to get more, or protect and keep what they had already acquired. or worried if they spent some of their wealth it might run out. And so in the end what did it profit them? They neither enjoyed their lives down here, nor will there be any reward from God for all the vanity that have labored for and have done under the sun. Their lives then which could’ve been overflowing with love and laughter, blessings and joy from God and with others instead were only filled with darkness and sorrow, sickness and anger, as they went from one worry or conflict or “crisis” to the next.

 Vs. 18-20 ¹⁸Here 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. ¹⁹As 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. ²⁰For he will not dwell unduly on the days of his life, because God keeps him busy with the joy of his heart.

This then is what King Solomon saw as the remedy for living that grave tragedy, which he called a severe evil (vs. 17). And that is for you to enjoy what God gives you from all of your toils and labors in this life, for this is your heritage, it is your gift from Him (vs. 18-19). For that is what those of this world have been appointed from God, to be kept busy with the joy of their hearts (vs. 20).

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.