Ecclesiastes

1
Ecclesiastes 7 and Wisdom
By Tim Bench 1-23-2015 False Doctrines of Man
2
Relevance of Ecclesiastes

• The book of Ecclesiastes, though deeply embedded
  in the Old Testament scriptures and an
  exceedingly ancient and curious document is, in
  many important and striking respects, fresher and
  more up-to-date than tomorrows newspaper.
  Because its themes are age-lasting, its
  principles unchanging and unchangeable, and its
  message to men as applicable and as true as when
  originally penned, it speaks to our day with an
  urgency and directness entitling it the most
  serious consideration.
• Ecclesiastes by Guy N. Woods, The Old Testament
  Books and their Messages in the Christian Age,
  Fort Worth Christian Lectureships, 1961, page 265.

3
The Power of Ecclesiastes

• The message of Ecclesiastes is timeless, eternal,
  and unchanging.
• It is one of the rare Old Testament books that
  appears in modern literature as an object lesson
  in secular literature.
• Specifically, Ecclesiastes Chapter 49-12 is used
  in John Steinbecks Grapes of Wrath.

4
Grapes of Wrath, 1939, conversation between Ma
Joad and son Tom, page 570.

• He spouted out some scripture once, an it
  didnt sound like no hell-fire scripture. He tol
  it twicet, an I remember it. Says its from the
  Preacher.
• Hows it go, Tom?
• Goes, Two are better than one, because they
  have a good reward for their labor. For if they
  fall, the one will lif up his fellow, but woe to
  him that is alone when he falleth, for he hath
  not another to help him up. Thats part of her.
• Go on, Ma said. Go on, Tom.
• Jus a little bit more. Again, if two lie
  together, then they have heat but how can one be
  warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two
  shall withstand him, and a three-fold cord is not
  quickly broken.
• An thats Scripture?
• Casy said it was. Called it the Preacher

5
Why is Ecclesiastes so difficult for modern-day
Christians?

• Qoheleths sayings are goads and more than
  goads. They torment the spirit, harass the mind,
  disturb the heart. They unsettle the complacent,
  shock the orthodox, and trouble even the wise
• Qoheleth has been labeled among other things a
  skeptic, a pessimist, a hedonist, a materialist,
  and, in recent times, the earliest
  existentialist.
• He is not any of these for the simple reason that
  he is a man of faith. He believes in the reality
  of divine providence (311, 314-15, 817, 115),
  praises divine wisdom (712, 720, 913-18), and
  expects divine judgment (317, 119, 1213-14).
• Ecclesiastes edited by Peter Steese, Critical
  Essays by Peter F. Ellis, page 190.

6
Leading up to Chapter 7

• The speaker in Ecclesiastes (Koheleth, or
  Qoholeth, translated as The Preacher)1 spends
  much of the first 6 chapters of the book
  expressing mans failures, faults, and vanity
  (the term all is vanity appears 25 times within
  the book). Qoholeth occurs nowhere else in the
  Bible except in Ecclesiastes.
• The title of the book in Hebrew, Qoholeth, is
  the word translated Preacher in chapter one,
  verse one.The Greek word Ekklesiastes, which
  means speaker of a called out assembly is
  derived from the word ekklesia, which is the New
  Testament word for church.
• Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible, AMG
  International, 1984, page 833.
• Chapter 7 begins a new section which focuses on
  true wisdom (712), more important than anything
  man typically strives to acquire.
• 1-The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia,
  James Orr, General Editor, 1939, page 896.

7
Chapter 7

• Now, Ecclesiastes focuses on what is and should
  be truly important to a Christian
• Wisdom.
• Knowledge and application of that knowledge to
  help us discern good from evil, what is important
  and what is not, what is Godly and what is of
  this world, what draws us to God v. what fulfills
  our own carnal desires, etc.

8
Chapter 7 overview

• 1..The value of a good name
• 2-5The advantages of sorrows and correction.
• 6The emptiness of a fools joy.
• 7Oppression.
• 8The ending better than the beginning.
• 9Against hastiness of spirit.
• 10Comparison of former and present times.
• 11-12Excellence of wisdom.
• 13-15Dispensations of Providence.
• 16-18Against extremes.
• 19The strength of wisdom.
• 20.Mankind is forever liable to sin.
• 21-22We should always carefully guard words that
  we use.
• 23-25Difficulty of obtaining wisdom.
• 26The dangers of a bad woman.
• 27-29.The scarcity of those who are truly
  upright.

9
Verse 1.the importance of a good name.

• Riches and other material wants may come and go,
  but the importance of a good name cannot be
  overstated (i.e. better than precious
  ointment). See also Proverbs 221.
• A celebrated name, a good reputation,
  respect/esteem of ones acquaintances.
• That good name is compared to fragrant oil which
  was very precious in the ancient world. Perfumed
  oil was profusely employed to overcome the odor
  of perspiration. It was considered a great
  luxury. Such oil was abundantly dispensed at
  joyous occasions (see Amos 66). A mans most
  cherished ambition was to leave a good
  reputation, and hand down to future generations
  an honorable remembrance.
• The Wisdom Literature and Psalms, James E. Smith,
  1996, page 758.

10
A good name v. wealth?

• Wealth and riches may be left to someone who is
  foolish (Ecclesiastes 218-19).
• Riches typically draw people away from God and
  towards their own desires.
• A good reputation/name finds honor before both
  God and man, and benefits us even after death
  (such as with the elders of the OT see also
  Hebrews 112).

11
Better than

• In verses 1-10, the term better (or better
  than) appears 8 times.
• The writer here uses the often-overlooked (or
  even neglected) aspects of life to illustrate the
  temporal nature of that which man often desires.
• For example, a good name is better than precious
  ointment (verse 1). The day of death is better
  than the day of ones birth (see also Revelation
  210). A house of mourning is better than a
  house of feasting (verse 2). Sorrow is better
  than laughter (Verse 3). The rebuke of the wise
  is better than the song of fools. The end is
  better than the beginning (verse 8). The patient
  in spirit is better than the proud in spirit
  (verse 8). The good old days were not better
  than the here and now (verse 10).

12
How is the day of ones death better than the day
of ones birth?

• The day of ones birth is the beginning of many
  sorrows to be endured. Job even observed this and
  cursed the day of his own birth (see Job 141,
  Job 31-3). Jeremiah did likewise (see Jeremiah
  2014-18).
• For the righteous, the day of ones death is the
  beginning of eternal bliss and reward (see Isaiah
  571-2, Philippians 121-22, Revelation 1413).

13
How is attending a house of mourning (i.e. a
funeral) better than a party?

• All of us will ultimately face death and judgment
  day. We cannot escape (or even delay) this
  inevitability. We will all die and face the
  afterlife, prepared or not (see Hebrews 927).
• A party typically focuses on fun, frivolity, and
  satisfying one's physical wants. A funeral
  reminds us of the brevity of life and the
  importance of preparing for that day.

14
How is sorrow better than laughter?

• Laughter has its placeit provides a temporal
  reprieve from the burdens of life. Sorrow,
  however, is superior in making the heart of man
  better in the eyes of God (see Hebrews 1211).
• Sorrow at a funeral can force us to analyze our
  own hearts, actions, and commitment to God and
  make appropriate changes.

15
How is the rebuke of the wise better than the
song of fools?

• A wise man loves those occasions from which he
  can derive spiritual advantageBut the fool-the
  gay, thoughtless, and giddy-prefers places and
  times of diversion and amusement. Here he is
  prevented from seriously considering either
  himself or his latter end.
• Clarkes Commentary, Volume 3 by Adam Clarke,
  page 824.

16
How is patience better than pride?

• Pride is an evil of man and is not of this world
  (see Mark 721-23, 1 John 216).
• Patience, on the other hand, is a virtue to be
  pursued by the followers of God (see 1 Timothy
  611, Titus 22).
• Pride leads to contention and destruction
  (Proverbs 1310, 1618).
• Pride often leads to anger which resides in the
  hearts of the foolish.
• Patience is indicative of wisdom and is necessary
  to salvation (see Proverbs 1429, Romans 27,
  Hebrews 1036).

17
Were bygone days better than the current day?

• People often reminisce in this way, forgetting g
  the times of suffering and loss, while focusing
  on the good.
• Even while experiencing trials in the present, we
  need to constantly remind ourselves that
  correction by God is proof of Gods love for us.
  It is unavoidable and makes us stronger
  Christians.
• Dwelling on the past might cause us to miss
  opportunities to do good in the present.

18
How can wisdom possibly be more important than
wealth?

• Money can serve as a defense in life
  (Ecclesiastes 712 and Proverbs 1015) and will
  also attract many friends (see Proverbs 1420).
• However, riches and wealth do not profit a man
  one iota on the day of wrath (Proverbs 114).
• Wisdom helps a man/woman to use their wealth
  appropriately, not for their own enjoyment.
• Knowledge without wisdom is life without
  meaning. There is no advantage without wisdom.
• Ecclesiastes, by Dayton Keesee, Sunset School of
  Preaching, 1968, page 14.

19
How can wisdom possibly be more important than
wealth?

• In exploring the values of life Koheleth seeks
  after wisdom-but this seems to increase sorrow
  (112-18). Looking for satisfaction in a varied
  and balanced life he continues his quest. As a
  cultured man he seeks to blend pleasure,
  laughter, the enjoyment of gardens, mansions,
  wine, and music into one harmonious pattern of
  living, but this also is futile (21-11)
• The Old Testament Speaks by Samuel Schultz, 1960,
  page 293.

20
Solomons misguided pursuit of wisdom

• He vainly expected to find happiness in
  knowledge itself apart from its use as a means to
  conduct one to the source of all knowledge and
  wisdom. He imbibed deeply of the fountains of
  science without following their course to their
  head.
• He knew much about the works of God, but forgot
  God himself2
• 2-Ecclesiastes by Guy N. Woods, Fort Worth
  Christian Lectureship, 1961, page 269.

21
Resignation v. indignation

• God has his purposes, which we cannot change or
  understand (see Isaiah 4313, Daniel 435,
  Ecclesiastes 713).
• Gods ultimate purposes will provide for each of
  us days of prosperity, as well as days of
  adversity (Ecclesiastes 714).

22
Ecclesiastes 726 and his warning about the
woman

• This verse expresses the writers woes regarding
  the woman who is more bitter than death.
• The Preacher states that her heart is snares and
  nets and that the sinner shall be taken by
  her.
• Verses 26-28 seem to strongly suggest that the
  Preacher himself has fallen victim to this
  temptation, and he thus issues this warning based
  on experience.
• Similar warnings about evil women can be found
  in Proverbs 53-5, Proverbs 726-27, Proverbs
  2214, etc.

23
Ecclesiastes 726 and his warning about the
woman

• This is NOT a generalized statement regarding ALL
  women.
• The reference here is not to women in general
  nor is it to a particular woman, but to the
  woman. The verse echoes the language of the
  temptress described in detail in Proverbs
  1-9Throughout the rest of Ecclesiastes, there is
  no attack on an individual woman.
• The College Press NIV Commentary Proverbs,
  Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs by Dave L. Bland,
  2002, page 360.

24
Ecclesiastes 726 and his warning about the
woman

• Searching for a good man, The Preacher was able
  to find only one in a thousand (as per 727-28).
• A good woman was even more rarehe was able to
  find none in a sample of a thousand (728). King
  Lemuel likewise believed that a good woman was
  hard to find (see Proverbs 3110).
• Some suggest that this may have been indicative
  of poor experiences with his 700 wives and 300
  concubines (1 Kings 111-3).3
• 3-www.executableoutlines.com/ec/ec_07.htm

25
What did The Preacher try to fill the void
inside himself with?

• Science (Ecclesiastes 14-11).
• Philosophy (112-18).
• Pleasure (21-11), specifically mirth (verse 1),
  drinking (verse 3), building (verse 4), wealth
  (verses 5-7), music (verse 8).
• Fatalism (31-15).
• Wealth (59-612).
• All proved empty and fruitless.
• Solomons conclusion was that we must know and
  serve God. Fear God and keep his commandments
  for this is the whole duty of man.
• DeHoffs Bible Handbook by George DeHoff, 1964,
  page 127.

26
Conclusions from Chapter 7

• Honor is preferable to luxury.
• Your day of death is better than your birthday.
• A funeral is better than a party.
• The end is better than the beginning.
• Patience is better than pride.
• The present is better than the past.
• Wisdom is better than wealth.
• Resignation is better than indignation.

27
The Preacher

• We need to keep in mind that the advice offered
  throughout Chapter 7 is from a man who has
  experienced everything that life has to
  offer.and has still found it to be hollow and
  meaningless. In short, life under the sun
  (which appears 28 times in book)4 was lacking.
• Wisdom and inspiration allow us to focus on the
  one and only meaning to our lives, our reason for
  our very existence..and that is to serve God
  completely.
• 4-DeHoff commentary.