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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
