More Word to the World

Eccl 12:8 Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

Eccl 12:8 Everything is useless!
The Teacher says that everything is useless. NCV

Before we move to the concluding topics of the Book of Ecclesiastes, consider this verse once more. Evangelist Felix Crowder preached at my home church Sunday morning and asked an intriguing question: “Have you ever woke up in the morning and just felt dirty in your spirit? You didn’t do anything wrong but just felt like you had something dirty on you.” He mentioned that because of these perverted times, there is filth in the air. This world has experienced spiritual decay and we can feel the effects of it. Solomon was not depressed about aging when he spoke of the vanity (“vanity” appears 33 times in Ecclesiastes) of life under the sun, but just faced the reality of the human experience apart from God. It is filthy here. It is vanity. It is painful. It is discouraging, disappointing, despairing, depressing…and many other “d” words. But what Solomon makes so clear in his journal is that men were created with a great emptiness inside of them that cries out—no, it SCREAMS out—for fulfillment. Until man cries out for God to fill his soul, he will continue to cry out, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” We can try 10,000 different things to satisfy that cry of our soul but we must REMEMBER NOW thy Creator. Take decisive action in God’s direction. Only then can vanity transform into sanity for humanity.

Eccl 5:10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.

Eccl 5:10 Whoever loves money never has money enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income.
This too is meaningless. NIV

The subject of this verse is not possessing money, but loving money—there is a difference. We can possess money or money can possess us. The Apostle Paul also echoed this statement in 1 Tim 6:10: “For the love of money is the root of all evil.” Materialism is a meaningless, empty, and endless pursuit. It is a rare event when someone makes this statement about his money: “I have enough, thank you, and do not need any more.” That is because the more we have, the more we want to gain. Six figure athletes and administrators need just a little more. Oh, and it is not just the wealthy who are this way either. A poor fellow who wins $10 from his lottery ticket often buys more tickets with those winnings. Why? Because just a little more is what we want. Solomon was a wealthy man and knew this subject well. If you love money, you will never be satisfied.

Eccl 2:1 I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity.

Eccl 2:1 I SAID in my mind, Come now, I will prove you with mirth and test you with pleasure; so have a good time [enjoy pleasure]. But this also was vanity (emptiness, falsity, and futility)! [Luke 12:19, 20.] AMP

In chapter one, Solomon provided a general overview of his activities and conclusions, but now as we move into chapter two, he will list some specific things that he sought after in his pursuit of the purpose of life. At the start of this chapter he restates the self-centered approach that he undertook in his search for happiness: “I said to myself” (TLB). Rather than looking into his own family history—like for instance, the story of adultery between his mother, Bathsheba, and King David and the lies and murder that followed; or the story of his uncle who raped his aunt and the revengeful murder and exile that followed—instead of considering these lessons from the family tree, he decided to re-invent the wheel and try it all for himself. However, in his journal, Solomon leaves a word for the wise, his judgment of all the pleasure he tried: “it is empty!” If porn pushers would only put that disclaimer on their products: “SURGEON GENERAL’S WARNING: this product will lead to emptiness, falsity, and futility.”

Eccl 1:14, 18
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.

Eccl 1:14, 18
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief,
And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow. NKJV

The last time we mentioned that the last few verses of chapter one are a like a summary of the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon stated his objective, methods of research and the difficulty of the task before him. Today we read his conclusions. Remember that we are reading the journal of one who by extensive experimentation tried every pleasure that money could buy. Since most of us do not have the money to try that for ourselves, listen and learn from his conclusions. Paraphrasing these verses and the details that we will cover later, it is something like this: “I tried drugs/alcohol, sex, corporate and real estate success, and athletic prowess, yet in the end, nothing satisfied or brought lasting happiness. The more I tried and discovered, the more sorrowful the pursuit became.” Like most people who try to gain happiness and satisfaction from things, they discover it is like trying to grasp the wind. Any pursuit that focuses only “under the sun” (v. 14) ends with frustration.

Eccl 1:1-3
1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
3 What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?

(Intro 3 of 5) The preacher/speaker steps up to the podium and begins his sermon: “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” The NIV uses the word, “meaningless.” Solomon points out that after a long search through all of life’s activities that nothing was meaningful; nothing satisfied; everything was as empty as a puff of air. How could a man who started with such wealth and wisdom come to such a conclusion? We know from the books of Kings and Chronicles that Solomon fell into idolatry in his later years. And here in Ecclesiastes, we see that his pursuits took on perspective that was mostly “under the sun,” in other words, a naturalistic and earthly, horizontal point of view. That insightful phrase (“”under the sun”) is actually the key to understanding Ecclesiastes. We will enlarge on that idea next time.

Eccl 1:1-3
1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
3 What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?

INTRODUCTION:
(Intro 1 of 5) For the next few weeks we are going to seek the lessons of wisdom from Solomon’s second major writing, the book that immediately follows Proverbs in the Bible, the Book of Ecclesiastes. To get the most out of this book, an introduction will be helpful so we will take a few days for that purpose before we get into the substantial lessons of wisdom found in the book. Do not worry about the cynical attitude you find scattered through the book. The dedicated student will still find many gems of useful wisdom.

“Ecclesiastes” is translated as “preacher” in verse one and it means “speaker in the assembly.” The speaker is identified as the son of David, king in Jerusalem and is commonly attributed to Solomon.