Burunche’s Blog

Ecclesiastes 7:1-14 Don’t Take Anything for Granted

“A good reputation is better than a fat bank account. Your death date tells more than your birth date. You learn more at a funeral than at a feast—After all, that’s where we’ll end up. We might discover something from it.”

Psalm 90 tells us “So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom.” By the time Moses wrote these words, he had likely herded sheep for 40 years and had then led the Israelites for nearly 40 years as well. There must have been many times when Moses longed to be back with the sheep where the only thing they could say was “BAAAA!” The Israelites were a quarrelsome and whiny bunch, and anytime we feel we are special to God, we should remember that the Israelites were God’s chosen people and yet they behaved abominably!

Some people have pointed out that our lives occur between parentheses, for example, (….-….) What are we doing with the lives we live from birth to death? Are we living them for God of for something less? What can we learn from funerals? There are no bank trucks following hearses. Someone was watching a funeral procession for a rich man pass by and asked another onlooker “What did that fellow leave?” The second man replied, “He left all of it.” There’s a song called “Oh may those who come behind us find us faithful.” Faithfulness to God brings peace to everyone-peace to you while you live and peace to your friends and loved ones when you die.

“3-5: Crying is better than laughing. It blotches the face but it scours the heart. Sages invest themselves in hurt and grieving. Fools waste their lives in fun and games. You’ll get more from the rebuke of a sage than from the song and dance of fools.”  We might laugh for all kinds of reasons, but when we cry, we divest ourselves of pretense-that is, unless you are an extremely skilled actor or actress. We are far more likely to face our shortcomings when we are grieving than when we are rejoicing. God uses our grief to bring us to repentance.

There’s also another aspect of these verses. How can we “invest ourselves in hurt and grieving” without being morbid? We can pray for others! My Facebook feeds give me lots of reasons for prayer. There are missing children, cancer patients and those recovering from tragic accidents, those grieving the loss of friends, relatives, or beloved pets. I don’t have to know those people to pray for them, for God knows all the details. I pray for these people to be healed, comforted, and strengthened, to enjoy the fruits of the Holy Spirit. (Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control-Galatians 5:22-23.)

When traveling, I pray for the towns through which I pass, that God will sovereignly move, sending revival throughout those communities. I pray for street venders pushing carts with their wares, that God will protect them from harm and danger and that they will sell everything so they can support themselves. Prayer is an amazing thing; the more you pray, the more subjects you find for prayer.

6-7 “The giggles of fools are like the crackling of twigs under the cooking pot. And like smoke. Brutality stupefies even the wise and destroys the strongest heart.”  Proverbs 4:23 tells us, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” When computers first became popular in the 1980’s, the phrase GIGO also came in. GIGO stands for “Garbage in, garbage out.” Computers are only as good as the people who program them and they can mislead if fed wrong information. Foolishness and brutality can warp our minds and our hearts if we feed on violent video games, movies, and violent podcasts. Truly, “brutality stupefies even the wise and destroys the strongest heart.”

8-9 “Endings are better than beginnings. Sticking to it is better than standing out. Don’t be quick to fly off the handle. Anger boomerangs. You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.”

I grew up near a town that was so small that everybody knew everyone else’s business. The guys down at the feed mill could tell you which men were reliable workers and which men would go to the end of the field and loaf where nobody could see them. As for anger, we had one local farmer who was so angry and impatient that he couldn’t take the time to disengage the power takeoff on the tractor before trying to clean corn husks out of the snapping rolls. (This was in the days of corn pickers mounted on tractors. With the power takeoff engaged, you could lose a hand or even an arm!) Sadly, this man paid for his anger and his impatience by being so severely injured that he had to retire from farming.

10 “Don’t always be asking, “Where are the good old days?” Wise folks don’t ask questions like that.” Fixating your attentions on some mythical time past when things were allegedly perfect wastes energy and depresses you. We envelop our childhood memories in a rosy glow, little realizing that our parents were shielding us from harsh realities. Looking back, I realize that my mother baked bread, made butter, and sewed my school clothes to save money, not because she was simply rising trying to be Susie Homemaker.

11-12 “Wisdom is better when it’s paired with money, especially if you get both while you’re still living. Double protection: wisdom and wealth! Plus this bonus: Wisdom energizes its owner.” Wisdom that does not energize is merely wishful thinking, no matter how wise it might seem. Wisdom is more important than money, for if you are wise, you can manage small amounts of money correctly, while if you are foolish, money will slip through your fingers.

13 “Take a good look at God’s work. Who could simplify and reduce Creation’s curves and angles to a plain straight line?”  Psalm 8:3-4 tells us, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” God is the Supreme Creator and is constantly doing new things. We can only examine and copy what God is already doing. Many times, architects and inventors have looked to nature for design inspiration. Simple example: Velcro was inspired by seeds from weeds that had hooks allowing the seeds to cling to clothing or to the fur of animals.

14 “On a good day, enjoy yourself; On a bad day, examine your conscience. God arranges for both kinds of days so that we won’t take anything for granted.” Who wants bad days? When faced with difficult times, most of us are far more ready to whine than to learn or to examine ourselves. We blindly assume that God’s will and ours are identical; meanwhile, the reverse might be the case. Suffering is the last thing any of us would choose; yet, God uses suffering to perfect us.

Tomorrow we will continue with this chapter, but for today, the question remains: How are you investing the time represented by your parentheses, the time between birth and death? Once more, we must pray with Moses, “So teach us to number our days, that we might gain hearts of wisdom.”  Guard your hearts!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to be faithful stewards of the lives You have given us. Help us to gain hearts of wisdom. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Ecclesiastes 6 Things Are Bad

6: 1-2 I looked long and hard at what goes on around here, and let me tell you, things are bad. And people feel it. There are people, for instance, on whom God showers everything—money, property, reputation—all they ever wanted or dreamed of. And then God doesn’t let them enjoy it. Some stranger comes along and has all the fun. It’s more of what I’m calling smoke. A bad business.

3-5 Say a couple have scores of children and live a long, long life but never enjoy themselves—even though they end up with a big funeral! I’d say that a stillborn baby gets the better deal. It gets its start in a mist and ends up in the dark—unnamed. It sees nothing and knows nothing, but is better off by far than anyone living.

6 Even if someone lived a thousand years—make it two thousand!—but didn’t enjoy anything, what’s the point? Doesn’t everyone end up in the same place?

7 We work to feed our appetites; Meanwhile our souls go hungry.

8-9 So what advantage has a sage over a fool, or over some poor wretch who barely gets by? Just grab whatever you can while you can; don’t assume something better might turn up by and by. All it amounts to anyway is smoke. And spitting into the wind.

10 Whatever happens, happens. Its destiny is fixed. You can’t argue with fate.

11-12 The more words that are spoken, the more smoke there is in the air. And who is any better off? And who knows what’s best for us as we live out our meager smoke-and-shadow lives? And who can tell any of us the next chapter of our lives?

Well, if you thought some of Solomon’s previous sentiments were depressing, this chapter is even worse. The wealthiest king in the world feels dejected. After all the complaints are finished, the most telling phrase is verse 7: “We work to feed our appetites; Meanwhile our souls go hungry.” Solomon has already confessed that he’s sought every kind of pleasure available. Now he’s complaining that everything is up to fate and that destiny is fixed and that nobody can tell anyone the next chapter of their lives. But is Solomon correct?

The Bible answers, “Absolutely not!” 1 Peter 1:3-5 tells us, “What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you’ll have it all—life healed and whole.” The good news of the Gospel is that God has loved us so much that He sent his son Jesus to die for our sins. No matter how difficult life is, believers can count on eternal life because of that sacrifice.

In many respects, Solomon is a tragic figure. Despite incredible wealth and knowledge, Solomon refuses to acknowledge God or to truly worship Him. Solomon’s father King David began worshiping God as a child and continued to do so throughout his life, eventually authoring at least 73 of the 150 psalms. (Some authorities say 75.) But Solomon rapidly wandered away from the One True Living God, spiritually seduced by idolatrous wives and concubines.  

Solomon’s mistakes can easily become ours if we do not guard our hearts. May God help us, so we will continue to be true to Him. Otherwise, we will become as soured on life as Solomon.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to remember that we always have an eternal hope in You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

In 1977 the musical group Kansas popularized a song that expresses Solomon’s sentiments in this chapter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbEf0MbkSv8&t=30s

[Verse 1]
I close my eyes
Only for a moment and the moment’s gone
All my dreams
Pass before my eyes, a curiosity

[Refrain]
Dust in the wind
All they are is dust in the wind

[Verse 2]
Same old song
Just a drop of water in an endless sea
All we do
Crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see

[Refrain]
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

[Bridge]
Ohh-oh-ah

[Instrumental Break]

[Verse 3]
Now, don’t hang on
Nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky
It slips away
And all your money won’t another minute buy

Ecclesiastes 5: Fulfill Your Vow to God

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. 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.

“A dream comes when there are many cares, and many words mark the speech of a fool. When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it. 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? Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God.”

Make no mistake-God takes our vows very seriously, much more seriously than many of us do. It’s easy to make promises to God when we are in a pinch, only to conveniently forget about those vows later. Meanwhile, God continues to wait for us to fulfill our promises. Make rash vows and you might find yourself struggling with nightmares. Far better not to make ridiculous vows in the first place. In Solomon’s day, vows made to the temple would be enforced by temple messengers, who would come to collect, hence the statement “And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.”

God takes vows so seriously that He has given strict laws concerning them. Numbers 30:1-16 outlines several different kinds of vows and the divine regulations governing them. V. 2 says, “When a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.” The remainder of that passage outlines regulations for women who make vows, depending on their marital status and whether their fathers or husbands agree or choose to invalidate the vow. Even in Moses’ day, ladies couldn’t beg off if a father or husband allowed their vow to stand.

Deuteronomy 23:21-23 tells us, “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin. But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth.”

Riches Are Meaningless

“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. The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.”

If you think corrupt politics is a recent phenomenon, you’re wrong! Even in Solomon’s day, the corruption might extend all the way up to the king. But such practices exactly contravene God’s Word, for God orders us to care for the poor.

“Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them? The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether they eat little or much, but as for the rich, their abundance permits them no sleep.”

One of the challenges of wealth is caring for it without becoming greedy, obsessed, or selfish. And it’s true that the more wealth, the more people appear to demand part of that wealth. Are rich people happier than poor people? Here are the results of an internet search:

Research indicates that happiness does not strictly correlate with wealth. Various studies suggest that:

Key Findings:

• Basic Needs Matter: People with sufficient resources to meet their basic needs tend to report higher levels of happiness.
• Social Connections: Strong relationships and community ties often contribute more to happiness than financial status.
• Life Satisfaction: Some studies show that individuals in lower-income brackets can experience high life satisfaction, particularly if they have supportive social networks.

Cultural Factors:

• Happiness can vary significantly across cultures. In some societies, communal values and relationships may outweigh material wealth in contributing to overall happiness.

“I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners, or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when they have children there is nothing left for them to inherit. 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. This too is a grievous evil: As everyone comes, so they depart, and what do they gain, since they toil for the wind? All their days they eat in darkness, with great frustration, affliction, and anger.”

What if your family was previously wealthy but lost their wealth? Shortly before the Great Depression, my mother’s family was considered one of the wealthiest families in their small town. The family owned a car agency, the local movie theater, and the local bank. But a series of business reverses forced the family to liquidate their assets, paying off bank customers, and moving to a large farm inherited by my great-grandmother. That farm was half tillable ground and half forest, with a stream running through the property. As a place to sit out the Depression, it was actually an excellent location. Although the family suffered a loss of status, they actually lived comfortably. My grandfather hunted and fished in addition to farming, the family maintained a large garden, and my mother even ran a trap line, selling the pelts of the animals she caught.

What about “eating in darkness, with great frustration, affliction, and anger?” Someone once said that people are just about as happy as they want to be. Part of the family felt the loss of status keenly while the rest of the family coped with the challenges and enjoyed life as much as possible.

“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. 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. They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.”

Wealth can be a gift from God to be enjoyed; however, it will be more enjoyable if shared. It begs the question to blame God for keeping the wealthy “occupied with gladness of heart.” Why does God give us wealth? Each of us lives in a different situation; however, the poor area always there, although not always visible. If we will only look around us, we will realize that there are plenty of opportunities to help others-students who lack proper clothes or who go hungry for lack of money to pay for school lunches, workers depending on public transportation who need bus passes. The possibilities are endless.

May God help us so that we will use the resources He gives us to help rather than spending them on ourselves!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to fulfill our vows and to be generous with the resources You have given us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Ecclesiastes 4 The Evil of Oppression

“Again I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter. So I admired the dead, who had already died, above the living, who are still alive. But better than both is he who has not yet existed, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.”

Wait just an all-fired minute, Solomon! You are the richest and wisest king-and one of the most powerful-in the entire earth. How dare you merely sit there in your palace and whine when you have the power to change things?

If you know Solomon’s story, you remember that Solomon had 700 hundred wives and 300 concubines. Most of these women were idolaters and demanded Solomon build places of worship for the demons they followed. There’s an old saying: “You lie down with dogs; you get up with fleas.” In Solomon’s case, it can be modified to “You have sex with idolaters and you wind up with demons.”

Yes, demons can transfer from one person to another through sex. Witches’ covens have been using that strategy to seduce new members for centuries. Sadly, Solomon has been influenced by these demons rather than by the One True Living God, even though he has dedicated a magnificent temple in Jerusalem. The tragedy of Solomon’s life illustrates the fact that faith is not a one-time affair, but a continual walk with the Lord. Only an idolater can refuse to correct problems and then whine that unborn souls are better off than anybody else.

“I saw that all labor and success spring from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.” Speak for yourself, Solomon! Many people work for the joy of doing a job well and to support themselves and their families. Yes, there are those who envy others, but the vast majority of us are too busy to waste time in envy.

“The fool folds his hands and consumes his own flesh.” This is true. When we fold our hands and refuse to work, we are inviting disaster.  

“Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and pursuit of the wind.” Tranquility is vastly under-rated. Proverbs 16:7 tells us, “When a person’s ways please the Lord, He makes even their enemies to be at peace with them.” The mark of the Holy Spirit is peace, a peace that passes all understanding. There’s also the question of the nature of the toil. Are we pursuing God’s will for our lives or are we speeding off in some other direction and begging God to bless our misguided efforts?  

“Again, I saw futility under the sun. There is a man all alone, without even a son or brother. And though there is no end to his labor, his eyes are still not content with his wealth: “For whom do I toil and bereave my soul of enjoyment?” This too is futile—a miserable task.”

I once read an interview with a Chinese billionaire who had no family. The man spoke of the wonderful philanthropic things he wanted to do….just as soon as he had enough. But he couldn’t tell the interviewer how much more he needed before he would reach that point. Sadly, this man would fit Solomon’s description.  

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. For if one falls down, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to help him up! Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one keep warm alone? And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”

For centuries, people have braided all kinds of fibers into ropes with at least three strands. The more strands a rope has, the stronger it will be and the more it will resist breaking. The same thing is true for fellow workers and for friends. In a country where a poor man might be forced to shiver in the cold, two or three huddling together could mean the difference between life and death. The story is told of two prisoners in an open box car on their way to a concentration camp during World War II. The one man was a bit stronger and feared for his companion, so all night long, he kept chafing the other man’s hands and feet. In the morning, only those two men were still alive; all the others in the box car had frozen to death in the night. When we help others, we are also helping ourselves.

The Futility of Power

“Better is a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take a warning. For the youth has come from the prison to the kingship, though he was born poor in his own kingdom. I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed this second one, the youth who succeeded the king. There is no limit to all the people who were before them. Yet the successor will not be celebrated by those who come even later. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.”

This is a fascinating observation. Is Solomon referring to the story of Joseph, who came from the prison to become the second most powerful man in Egypt? Has Solomon caught wind of some kind of palace intrigue and is now giving a veiled threat to an ambitious young man? Or has Solomon been studying Rehoboam who will succeed him? Does Solomon already realize that Rehoboam is a foolish young man who will make disastrous decisions?

There is no leader who will live forever; at the same time, successors to famous leaders are frequently swiftly forgotten. All any leader can aspire to do is to seek God’s help and do the best he/she can with the time given. May God help us, so that we will trust in Him and do our best, refusing to lose hope, no matter how difficult things might be.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to remember that You call us to do Your Will, not to be successful or to compete with others. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Ecclesiastes 3: A Time for Everything

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

These verses are some of the most encouraging and comforting in all of Scripture. But many of us aren’t interested in God’s time table; we try to demand God work by our time tables instead. The problem is that as long as we fight God’s timing, we accomplish nothing but exhaustion and frustration. Relax and allow God to work; the results are much better.

“What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him. Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.”

Many times, we demand results far too early. It’s very difficult to remember that God will make everything beautiful in its time. Only we relinquish control can God begin to work. Many times, our attempts at fixing things interfere with God’s perfect will.

What does it mean that God has put eternity in the human heart? Centuries ago, Blaise Pascal pointed out the fact that people have a God-sized hole in their hearts that can only be filled by God and nothing less. But many of us try to fill that hole with all kinds of things-possessions, food, success, entertainments-the list is endless but futile. St. Augustine of Hippo said in his Confessions “Thou movest us to delight in praising Thee; for Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee.” Augustine was a wild young man who tried to fill that God-sized hole with pleasure until committing his life to Christ.

“And I saw something else under the sun: In the place of judgment—wickedness was there, in the place of justice—wickedness was there. I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”

There have always been unjust judges. The Law of Moses warned against unjust judgments centuries earlier while later Jesus told a story about such a man in Luke 18:1-5. Obviously, there were still corrupt judges in Solomon’s day, even though Solomon might have appointed the best men he could. How frustrating to be a king striving for righteousness, only to find the men you have put in positions of trust have failed. Solomon can only hope that God will bring the final judgment. Sometimes, that’s all any of us can do, no matter how much we might want things to be different.

“I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

“So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?”

OUCH!! Really, Solomon? Is that all there is to life? At this point, we need to return to St. Augustine for a reply: “Lord, teach me to know and understand which of these should be first, to call on Thee, or to praise Thee; and likewise to know Thee, or to call upon Thee… Behold, Lord, the ears of my heart are before Thee; open Thou them, and “say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.” When I hear, may I run and lay hold on Thee. Hide not Thy face from me. Let me die, lest I die, if only I may see Thy face.”

The Westminster Shorter Catechism Shorter Catechism tells us that the chief end of man is “to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.” May we strive to glorify God in everything we do so that we might enjoy Him forever!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to truly glorify You and to enjoy You forever. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

In an earlier generation, the Byrds popularized a song taken from Ecclesiastes 3. Here is the YouTube connection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKP4cfU28vM&list=RDpKP4cfU28vM&start_radio=1

Ecclesiastes 2:1-3 I said to myself, “Let’s go for it—experiment with pleasure, have a good time!” But there was nothing to it, nothing but smoke. What do I think of the fun-filled life? Insane! Inane! My verdict on the pursuit of happiness? Who needs it? With the help of a bottle of wine and all the wisdom I could muster, I tried my level best to penetrate the absurdity of life. I wanted to get a handle on anything useful we mortals might do during the years we spend on this earth.

I Never Said No to Myself

4-8 Oh, I did great things: built houses, planted vineyards, designed gardens and parks and planted a variety of fruit trees in them, made pools of water to irrigate the groves of trees. I bought slaves, male and female, who had children, giving me even more slaves; then I acquired large herds and flocks, larger than any before me in Jerusalem. I piled up silver and gold, loot from kings and kingdoms. I gathered a chorus of singers to entertain me with song, and—most exquisite of all pleasures—voluptuous maidens for my bed.

9-10 Oh, how I prospered! I left all my predecessors in Jerusalem far behind, left them behind in the dust. What’s more, I kept a clear head through it all. Everything I wanted I took—I never said no to myself. I gave in to every impulse, held back nothing. I sucked the marrow of pleasure out of every task—my reward to myself for a hard day’s work!

I Hate Life

11 Then I took a good look at everything I’d done, looked at all the sweat and hard work. But when I looked, I saw nothing but smoke. Smoke and spitting into the wind. There was nothing to any of it. Nothing.

12-14 And then I took a hard look at what’s smart and what’s stupid. What’s left to do after you’ve been king? That’s a hard act to follow. You just do what you can, and that’s it. But I did see that it’s better to be smart than stupid, just as light is better than darkness. Even so, though the smart ones see where they’re going and the stupid ones grope in the dark, they’re all the same in the end. One fate for all—and that’s it.

15-16 When I realized that my fate’s the same as the fool’s, I had to ask myself, “So why bother being wise?” It’s all smoke, nothing but smoke. The smart and the stupid both disappear out of sight. In a day or two they’re both forgotten. Yes, both the smart and the stupid die, and that’s it.

17 I hate life. As far as I can see, what happens on earth is a bad business. It’s smoke—and spitting into the wind.

18-19 And I hated everything I’d accomplished and accumulated on this earth. I can’t take it with me—no, I have to leave it to whoever comes after me. Whether they’re worthy or worthless—and who’s to tell?—they’ll take over the earthly results of my intense thinking and hard work. Smoke.

20-23 That’s when I called it quits, gave up on anything that could be hoped for on this earth. What’s the point of working your fingers to the bone if you hand over what you worked for to someone who never lifted a finger for it? Smoke, that’s what it is. A bad business from start to finish. So what do you get from a life of hard labor? Pain and grief from dawn to dusk. Never a decent night’s rest. Nothing but smoke.

24-26 The best you can do with your life is have a good time and get by the best you can. The way I see it, that’s it—divine fate. Whether we feast or fast, it’s up to God. God may give wisdom and knowledge and joy to his favorites, but sinners are assigned a life of hard labor, and end up turning their wages over to God’s favorites. Nothing but smoke—and spitting into the wind.

“My verdict on the pursuit of happiness? Who needs it?” Well, hello, Mr. Gloomypants! Now poor bored King Solomon is going to give us all the details of his pursuit of happiness. Drinking! Carousing! Wealth! Expanding the palace grounds! Tumbling into bed with voluptuous maidens! “Oh, how I prospered! I left all my predecessors in Jerusalem far behind, left them behind in the dust. What’s more, I kept a clear head through it all. Everything I wanted I took—I never said no to myself. I gave in to every impulse, held back nothing. I sucked the marrow of pleasure out of every task—my reward to myself for a hard day’s work!”

At this point, many of Solomon’s servants would undoubtedly like to speak up about what actually constitutes real work. Certainly, Solomon wasn’t out there building all these things and digging those lakes and canals, etc. And at the end of all this alleged suffering, Solomon concludes: “So what do you get from a life of hard labor? Pain and grief from dawn to dusk. Never a decent night’s rest. Nothing but smoke.

24-26 The best you can do with your life is have a good time and get by the best you can. The way I see it, that’s it—divine fate. Whether we feast or fast, it’s up to God. God may give wisdom and knowledge and joy to his favorites, but sinners are assigned a life of hard labor, and end up turning their wages over to God’s favorites. Nothing but smoke—and spitting into the wind.”

J.D. Rockefeller was the first true American billionaire with a fortune that defied description. But he found his real purpose in his last 40 years when he endowed universities and foundations that advanced medicine, science, and other avenues of learning.

Rockefeller spent much of the last 40 years of his life in retirement at Kykuit, his estate in Westchester County, New York, defining the structure of modern philanthropy, along with other key industrialists such as Andrew Carnegie.^[10] His fortune was used chiefly to create the modern systematic approach of targeted philanthropy through the creation of foundations that supported medicine, education, and scientific research.^[11] His foundations pioneered developments in medical research and were instrumental in the near-eradication of hookworm in the American South,^[12] and yellow fever^[13] in the United States. He and Carnegie gave form and impetus through their charities to the work of Abraham Flexner, who in his essay “Medical Education in America” emphatically endowed empiricism as the basis for the US medical system of the 20th century.^[14](Wikipedia)

The Book of Ecclesiastes gives us a clear picture of the tragedy of Solomon. Incredibly gifted and wealthy beyond belief, Solomon tried to satisfy himself with things rather than God. Millions of others have made the same mistake; however, only God can truly satisfy.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to find our fulfillment and purpose in You and nothing else. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Ecclesiastes 1 The Quester

1 These are the words of the Quester, David’s son and king in Jerusalem:

2-11 Smoke, nothing but smoke. [That’s what the Quester says.]
    There’s nothing to anything—it’s all smoke. What’s there to show for a lifetime of work, a lifetime of working your fingers to the bone?
One generation goes its way, the next one arrives, but nothing changes—it’s business as usual for old planet earth. The sun comes up and the sun goes down, then does it again, and again—the same old round. The wind blows south, the wind blows north.
    Around and around and around it blows, blowing this way, then that—the whirling, erratic wind. All the rivers flow into the sea, but the sea never fills up. The rivers keep flowing to the same old place, and then start all over and do it again. Everything’s boring, utterly boring—no one can find any meaning in it. Boring to the eye, boring to the ear.

What was will be again, what happened will happen again. There’s nothing new on this earth. Year after year it’s the same old thing.

Does someone call out, “Hey, this is new”? Don’t get excited—it’s the same old story.
Nobody remembers what happened yesterday. And the things that will happen tomorrow? Nobody’ll remember them either. Don’t count on being remembered.

I’ve Seen It All

12-14 Call me “the Quester.” I’ve been king over Israel in Jerusalem. I looked most carefully into everything, searched out all that is done on this earth. And let me tell you, there’s not much to write home about. God hasn’t made it easy for us. I’ve seen it all and it’s nothing but smoke—smoke, and spitting into the wind.

15 Life’s a corkscrew that can’t be straightened, a minus that won’t add up.

16-17 I said to myself, “I know more and I’m wiser than anyone before me in Jerusalem. I’ve stockpiled wisdom and knowledge.” What I’ve finally concluded is that so-called wisdom and knowledge are mindless and witless—nothing but spitting into the wind.

18 Much learning earns you much trouble. The more you know, the more you hurt.

Well! If you were looking for uplifting inspiration this morning, don’t read the first chapter of Ecclesiastes! Here’s King Solomon, the richest and wisest king who ever lived, courted by rulers from the ends of the earth, living in unimaginable splendor, and he’s BORED OUT OF HIS MIND!!! AND FRUSTRATED!!! Did I say frustrated?

Here’s a guy who literally has it all, and now he’s finding that it’s not enough. Look at some of these statements:

There’s nothing to anything—it’s all smoke. What’s there to show for a lifetime of work, a lifetime of working your fingers to the bone?

Everything’s boring, utterly boring—no one can find any meaning in it. Boring to the eye, boring to the ear.

Life’s a corkscrew that can’t be straightened, a minus that won’t add up.

What I’ve finally concluded is that so-called wisdom and knowledge are mindless and witless—nothing but spitting into the wind.

What’s wrong with this guy? He has everything others envy and he’s not satisfied. The big problem is that Solomon is looking for meaning and satisfaction in the wrong places. As we continue through this book, Solomon will give us more details, but it’s simple: Solomon needs God and he’s trying to fill a God-sized hole in his heart with something less.

Solomon’s complaints are eerily echoed in a poem by Edgar Arlington Robinson.

Richard Cory

By Edwin Arlington Robinson

Whenever Richard Cory went down town,

We people on the pavement looked at him:

He was a gentleman from sole to crown,

Clean favored, and imperially slim.

And he was always quietly arrayed,

And he was always human when he talked;

But still he fluttered pulses when he said,

“Good-morning,” and he glittered when he walked.

And he was rich—yes, richer than a king—

And admirably schooled in every grace:

In fine, we thought that he was everything

To make us wish that we were in his place.

So on we worked, and waited for the light,

And went without the meat, and cursed the bread;

And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,

Went home and put a bullet through his head.

It’s been said that “A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package.” Forget the bling, the palaces, the entertainers, the wealth, and the learning. Solomon is wrapped up in himself. And we can make similar mistakes!! May God help us to seek Him above everything else.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to realize that You are our greatest treasure. Help us to realize that our hearts will always be restless until they find their rest in You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.