Ecclesiastes 6 - No satisfaction

It's been a while since I decided to do this study and am way behind, time to pick up where I left off...

Ecclesiastes 6(NIV)

6 I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on mankind:2 God gives some people wealth, possessions and honor, so that they lack nothing their hearts desire, but God does not grant them the ability to enjoy them, and strangers enjoy them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.

3 A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4 It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded.5 Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man— 6 even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?

7 Everyone’s toil is for their mouth,
    yet their appetite is never satisfied.
8 What advantage have the wise over fools?
What do the poor gain
    by knowing how to conduct themselves before others?
9 Better what the eye sees
    than the roving of the appetite.
This too is meaningless,
    a chasing after the wind.

10 Whatever exists has already been named,
    and what humanity is has been known;
no one can contend
    with someone who is stronger.
11 The more the words,
    the less the meaning,
    and how does that profit anyone?

12 For who knows what is good for a person in life, during the few and meaningless days they pass through like a shadow? Who can tell them what will happen under the sun after they are gone?

So here we go... Verse 1- 9 really gets point blank about the accumulation of stuff in this world. That no matter who we are, how rich we are, what we have collected, it is all pointless or meaningless as someone else gets it all in the end. The worst tragedy that is pointed out though is that for some people they gain everything this world has to offer and yet don't enjoy any of it - they're actually unable to enjoy it. Solomon here says it's so bad for that to happen that it would be better if that person was a stillborn rather than live and experience that. Yikes! 

What strikes out here is that God provides it all, yet He is also the One who makes sure the person cannot enjoy it. Getting no satisfaction from it no matter how hard they try. Why? One thought is that it is so they don't depend on things to make them happy but rather focus on God and serving Him instead. They squander their resources on themselves instead of how it cam benefit God's kingdom work and so as a result God does not allow them to enjoy it. Even having a huge family didn't help this person out, it was still futile. The point is whether it is riches, fame, a large family, possessions, whatever, if a person tries to fill the God sized whole in their heart with this stuff, in the end it will all come up short and give the person no satisfaction.

It's kind of like that old Rolling Stones song "Satisfaction" that says, "I can't get no satisfaction, I can't get no satisfaction, 'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try"

Even in this song the lyrics tell of all the things that they tried and failed at having them satisfy them. From cars to advice on the radio to white shirts to cigarettes and more. None of it gave satisfaction. It never will, Nothing will except God. This is the point the author is making here I believe. And then to squander the resources on ourselves instead of seeing how we can use it for His glory is also an evil Solomon writes. Convicting stuff.

Now verse 10 - 12. In 10 it states how everything that exists already has a name. True - it was named in the garden of Eden by Adam. We may think when we as a society discover a new species that we have a new name, but really, it already had one from the time of creation. Nothing new under the sun once again rings in my ears here. In verse 11 it talks about how no one can contend with someone who is stronger. Who doesn't love the underdog right? But really when it gets right down to it, who wins in a fight? The huge hulking mass of an individual or the 90 lb shrimp? When it comes to fighting a huge adversary I think of this image from the old Buggs Bunny cartoon...

 

Funny right? Yet how many times do we try in vain to fight against an adversary that is stronger than us - namely the Devil - without God empowering us? It's a feeble attempt without God. Yet we as humans like to go in our own strength, our own wisdom, and see how we do. Silly. We need God alone to get through this world.

Verse 11 more words less meaning? Ever hear someone try and explain something and because they were so nervous or didn't want to seem dumb they used more words and more words and more words? We've all done it I'm sure at times - sometimes without realizing it. When we do that we come off as either a know-it-all, or we give the impression that we don't really know what we're taking about so we're just talking for the sake of talking. Both stem from pride. So do the other areas Solomon has mentioned so far - riches, wealth and power taking God's place in our lives, our resources squandered on ourselves, the fighting an adversary much bigger than ourselves, and now words on top of words... all of it smells of pride because all of it says "I can do this myself without God. I can be satisfied without Him, I can be strong without Him, and I don't have to use what He's given me to help out His kingdom. Prideful and shameful. This is what Solomon was saying that all of this is evil and shameful in His sight. How does it profit anyone? he asks. The answer is it doesn't. 

He ends with... 12 For who knows what is good for a person in life, during the few and meaningless days they pass through like a shadow? Who can tell them what will happen under the sun after they are gone? Really, apart from God who knows what is good for us? No one. Our parents try, our spouses try, our kids try, our teachers try, our mentors (if we have them) try - but ultimately no one knows the future right? God does. The last line tells about our legacy. We all want to leave our mark on this world somehow, to be remembered once we're gone, but ultimately no one knows how or if we'll be remembered once we're gone. What matters is the here and now - how are we living now? Are we living with Christ as our focus and sharing what we have to help His cause, leaning on Him for strength? Or are we trying to be the lone wolf determined to do it on our own? If that's us, then we need to evaluate and see how it's working out for us. Beg for His forgiveness and seek first the kingdom of God. 

Ecclesiastes 5 - Fulfilling those vows to God, and meaningless riches

So here we are at the 5th chapter in this study on the book of Ecclesiastes, let's look at the chapter...

Ecclesiastes 5 New International Version (NIV)

Fulfill Your Vow to God

5 [a]Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

2 Do not be quick with your mouth,
    do not be hasty in your heart
    to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven
    and you are on earth,
    so let your words be few.
3 A dream comes when there are many cares,
    and many words mark the speech of a fool.

4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. 5 It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it. 6 Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? 7 Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God.

Riches Are Meaningless

8 If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still. 9 The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.

10 Whoever loves money never has enough;
    whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
    This too is meaningless.

11 As goods increase,
    so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owners
    except to feast their eyes on them?

12 The sleep of a laborer is sweet,
    whether they eat little or much,
but as for the rich, their abundance
    permits them no sleep.

13 I have seen a grievous evil under the sun:

wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,
14     or wealth lost through some misfortune,
so that when they have children
    there is nothing left for them to inherit.
15 Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb,
    and as everyone comes, so they depart.
They take nothing from their toil
    that they can carry in their hands.

16 This too is a grievous evil:

As everyone comes, so they depart,
    and what do they gain,
    since they toil for the wind?
17 All their days they eat in darkness,
    with great frustration, affliction and anger.

18 This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot.19 Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. 20 They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.

So two sections, verses 1 - 7 is all about one thing - fulfilling your vows to God. We all make those big promises to God right? "If you bless me with this job I promise I will..." "If you help me get a great grade on that exam, I promise I will..." etc... Well verse 1 says we should go to the house of God, but more ready to listen rather than speak because you never know what silliness we might say. Reminds me of James 1:19, My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, Familiar theme right? See God does repeat Himself for effect! Consistent from the Old to New Testaments. Right after that the passage says to make our words few, not uttering/saying things before God as really someone who has too much to say shows they're a fool in God's eyes. Yikes!

God actually goes so far through the writer to say that He'd rather you didn't make a vow to Him at all than make one and not fulfill it! Those who don't fulfill their vows to Him He also calls fools! Ouch! So really, watch what we say, and don't make promises to God unless you intend to keep them and and actually keep them!

Wow, tough stuff. Our next section is no easier. Verses 8 - 20 says we see the poor getting poorer and the rich getting richer, injustice in the streets and so on - and that we should not be surprised by it. Why? Well the world is a place tainted by sin right? So in a fallen world why WOULDN'T we expect that? Yes, God will clean the Earth one day and set things right, but now isn't the time - He's still letting people have a chance to come to Him first. As we continue we see, Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. Too true. I don't usually like to quote secular artists, but the passed on "The Notorious B.I.G." had this as a song, "Mo Money Mo Problems." It's true. The rich have more money yes, but also more problems. Imagine getting rich and so you buy the latest house, car, and toys, then discover you have to pay for them! Then the market crashes and you have to go bankrupt to pay for everything! Or because you're rich everyone expects you to help them out because "after all, you can afford it - you're rich!" False friends. people wanting to know your business because you're rich... yeah they can afford more, but the rich have their own problems too. How many stories do we hear of rich people who have OD'd because they couldn't take life anymore? Having riches helps, but it is not the be all and end all. If you think it is, the Bible warns that it's meaningless and your priorities are out of whack.

The writer wrote how he saw the wealth hoarded to the person and not shared even with family, kids and so on so that they still suffer while the rich person spends it all on themselves, and I have heard of myself of rich people spending so much that when they die instead of being able to pay all debts at once, their families have to try and pay off their debts for them because they kept their failings a secret. 16 This too is a grievous evil: God uses this phrases a number of time in different wordings but it still remains the same, As everyone comes, so they depart so we see that no one can bring it with them. Everything stays when we die. Billy Graham once said, "There is nothing wrong with men possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess men." So no matter whether we're rich or poor it all stays, and how we have let it control our lives or not will be the testimony of where our hearts were. How have we spent our resources God has given us? At times I have spent perhaps recklessly, but usually pretty responsibly. This is a lesson for all of us to not depend on our riches to get us through life, but God alone who (as Psalm 50:10 says), the cattle on a thousand hills.

Ecclesiastes 4 - Oppression, Achievement, and other meaningless things

Hi there, back again with chapter 4 of the 12 BLOG study of Eccesiastes 4. Today we're on chapter 4, here's the passage:

Oppression, Toil, Friendlessness

4 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:

I saw the tears of the oppressed—
    and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
    and they have no comforter.
2 And I declared that the dead,
    who had already died,
are happier than the living,
    who are still alive.
3 But better than both
    is the one who has never been born,
who has not seen the evil
    that is done under the sun.

4 And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

5 Fools fold their hands
    and ruin themselves.
6 Better one handful with tranquillity
    than two handfuls with toil
    and chasing after the wind.

7 Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

8 There was a man all alone;
    he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
    yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
    “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”
This too is meaningless—
    a miserable business!

9 Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Advancement Is Meaningless

13 Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning. 14 The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom. 15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. 16 There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

So let's break it down...

Verses 1 - 3 talks about how life is really oppressing and that in that time there was no comforter. Unlike the believers from Jesus' time and following, these people did not have the presence of the Holy Spirit living in them. They would have times where the power of the Holy Spirit "came upon" them, but not the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. I am so glad that for us we have the Comforter living in us to help us through the struggles of life. I can't imagine life without God in my life, living within me to help me through the struggles I have faced over my lifetime.

Verses 4 - 12 talks about how the rat race this world is obsessed with is meaningless. How many people get to the end of their lives and say, "I wish I had worked less and spent more time with family and friends, enjoying life. I have yet to hear of someone who said they wished they spent more time working. Verse 8 shows how the more things change, the more they stay the same. A man worked so hard he had no family and even though he was wealthy, there was no one to share it with or to leave it to. How sad. Too many people today do that as well. Solomon was right, it's meaningless. He continues from verses 9 - 12 talking about how it's good to have someone else working with you, striving with you, and is a support as one person can easily be broken in body, mind and spirit. This is why the church is such an important part of the believer's life. Yes we will have squabbles at times - what family doesn't? And we're the family of God, so yes in our imperfect state we will argue from time to time and get things wrong. BUT... having the family of God universal is an amazing thing. You can travel anywhere in the world, and if you're alone, all you have to do is find someone who is a believer and suddenly you're not alone anymore! Solomon went to great lengths to share the importance of having someone ready to be there for you. Maybe we need to work on that more?

Lastly the passage from verses 13 - 16 Solomon focuses on how you could have the world's riches but if you're foolish it's meaningless. He got personal in verse 15, 15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. Solomon had it all. He had the wealth, and he had wisdom, but he didn't always use it. He tried it all and saw the meaningless pursuits of life and once he evaluated it all, he decided it was worthless. King David's successor, the wisest of all men, seeing life as fruitless, vain, worthless, and meaningless outside of God. Wow. We're not even half way through the book yet, and lots to identify with, and lots to learn from.