Eclesiastes 1
Alexander Maclaren · Citado em PreceptAustin
Eclesiastes 1
Maclaren has a helpful introduction to the book of Ecclesiastes writing "Now in reading this Book of Ecclesiastes -- which I am afraid a great many people do not read at all -- we have always to remember that the wild things and the bitter things which the Preacher is saying so abundantly through its course do not represent his ultimate convictions, but thoughts that he took up in his progress from error to truth. His first word is: 'All is vanity!' That conviction had been set vibrating in his heart, as it is set vibrating in the heart of every man who does as he did, viz., seeks for solid good away from God. That is his starting-point. It is not true. All is not vanity, except to some blase cynic, made cynical by the failure of his voluptuousness, and to whom 'all things here are out of joint,' and everything looks yellow because his own biliary system is out of order. That is the beginning of the book, and there are hosts of other things in the course of it as one-sided, as cynically bitter, and therefore superficial. But the end of it is: 'Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.' (Eccl 12:13+) (What Passes and What Abides) J Stafford Wright - Man chose to become self-centered and self-guided rather than remaining God-centered and God-guided. Thus man became earthbound and frustrated, and this book demonstrates that there is no firm foundation under the sun for earthbound man to build on so as to find meaning, satisfaction, and the key to existence. (See The Expositor's Bible Commentary - Page 239 The words of James 4:14+ sound very similar to the opening words of Solomon "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." It is worth noting that Psalm 127:1+ was also written by Solomon and he alludes to "vanity" twice (although using a different Hebrew word for vain) writing "Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain." Clearly Solomon is telling us that our human endeavors (building, guarding, etc) are "vanity of vanities" without depending on God! 🙏 THOUGHT - Let's apply this principle by asking a question. Are you trying to live the Christian life depending on your own strength, your fallen flesh? Are you frustrated with your Christian life? Could it be that you have fallen into Solomon's "trap" of all is vanity and you find yourself striving after the wind (so to speak) trying to live this supernatural life in dependence on your natural strength? In Zechariah 4:6 Jehovah says "not by might nor by power but by My Spirit." As Solomon says in Psalm 127:1, we are responsible to work (to live out our Christian life) but we must learn daily to depend on God's Spirit for the supply of supernatural strength. The pattern that will enable you to live a so-called victorious Christian life is what I like to call "100/100," which is not the best math but is my way of saying we are 100% responsible but at the same time we are 100% dependent on the Spirit. Our part. His part. See more discussion of the "Paradoxical Principle of 100% Dependent and 100% Responsible" (100/100). I pray our Father opens the eyes of your heart so that enabled by His Spirit you might enter into His rest (while doing His work) for the rest (pun intended) of your life in Christ. Amen. Michael Eaton adds a qualifier on All is vanity - It is only to one seeking satisfaction in disregard of God that the Preacher’s message stops at ‘All is vanity’. For any who adopt his total world-view he has a note of encouragement. When a perspective of faith is introduced, ‘All is vanity’ is still true, but it is not the whole picture; ‘under the sun’ it is the whole truth. When, in 2:24–3:22 and intermittently thereafter, new factors are brought in (the generosity of God, divine providence, divine judgment), the ‘vanity’ of life is not obliterated or forgotten; but the new factors transform the perspective and turn pessimism into faith. This prefigures the New Testament perspective in which the believer is ‘outwardly … wasting away’ (2 Cor. 4:16), is ‘subjected to vanity’ and ‘groans’ with creation ‘right up to the present time’ (Rom. 8:20–22). Yet he ‘knows’ what is happening (Rom. 8:22), ‘gazes’ at a different perspective (2 Cor. 4:18), ‘waits’ for something different (Rom. 8:25). The new perspective does not cancel out the old; the believer is living in an overlap. But the new perspective revolutionizes his outlook. (Borrow Ecclesiastes : an introduction and commentary page 44 and page 158) Charles Bridges points out, “This verse appears to have been intended to be a the compendium of the whole treatise. The subject opens upon us abruptly and no wonder. The preacher’s heart is so filled with it, He longs to make a forcible impression. His text is the whole world with all the pleasures and profits and honors and endeavors and business and events that are under the sun. He brings out his subject with a vast variety of illustration and then closes with emphatically repeating his judgment. He seems as if he could not give full expression to his convictions. It is not only vain, but vanity itself. He redoubles his assertion to show the certainty of it and that all is unmixed vanity in its highest degree: “Vanity of vanities!” Nor does this belong only to a part. Everything severally, all things collectively, all is one expanse, one vast heap of numberless perishing vanities. I affirm again and again that there is nothing in this world for the great end of man’s true happiness. It only enlarges his desires in the endeavor to gratify them. But it leaves behind an aching void, a blank that it cannot fill up.” (Ecclesiastes 1 Commentary) David Hubbard points out, “Strong language the Preacher used. Everything is empty, hollow, futile. Life is not what it seems (ED: OH, I THINK IT IS IN FACT WHAT IT SEEMS => EMPTY!!!), not what we want it to be. Not only is everything vanity but it is the vainest kind of vanity, the most futile brand of futility. The expression (ED: VANITY OF VANITIES) conveys a superlative quality (ED: LIKE HOLY OF HOLIES OR SONG OF SONGS). A Song of Songs means the finest song and as King of Kings (Rev 19:16+) points to the greatest kings (ED: THE GREATEST KING SINGULAR = JESUS!), so vanity of vanities means that life is as empty as possible. It is marked by the worst sort of futility. (BORROW The Preacher's Commentary - Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon page 44) the nearest thing to zero: that is the vanity this book is about. Derek Kidner points out, “A wisp of vapor, a puff of wind, a mere breath, nothing you could get your hands on, the nearest thing to zero: that is the vanity this book is about. What makes this reading of life disturbing is that this airy nothingness is not seen as a mere flicker on the surface of things, where it might even have had a certain charm. It is the sum total. If that is really so and the rest of the book will be arguing that it is, it makes vanity a desperate word. It will no longer mean simply what is slight and passing but more ominously, what is pointless. The author doubles and redoubles this bitter word, using twice-over a phrase which might be a parody of that other superlative ‘Holy of Holies’. Utter emptiness stands here in mute contrast to utter holiness, that potent reality which gave shape and point to the traditional piety of Israel. Finally, he clenches it with the terse dismissal, ‘All is vanity’. In the terms we use today, the summing up could be, ‘Utter futility! Utter futility! The whole thing is futile.” (Borrow The message of Ecclesiastes : a time to mourn, and a time to dance page 22) J.
Eclesiastes 1
Maclaren - He looks out upon humanity, and sees that in one aspect the world is full of births, and in another full of deaths. Coffins and cradles seem the main furniture, and he hears the tramp, tramp, tramp of the generations passing over a soil honeycombed with tombs.” (from What Passes and What Abides) The apostle John gives us a key to how to break free of Solomon's pessimistic picture of the monotony and futility of life in this present world writing "The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does (present tense - as the general direction of their life, in dependence on the Spirit) the will of God lives forever." (1 John 2:17+) What is the key to breaking out of a life of vanity and striving after the wind? John says the answer is doing the will of God. The endless cycles of life are illustrated by God's declaration to Adam... By the sweat of your face you will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; For you are dust, and to dust you shall return! -- God NET NOTE on generation goes - The participle הֹלֵךְ (holekh, “to walk, to go”) emphasizes continual, durative, uninterrupted action (present universal use of participle). The root הָלַךְ (halakh) is repeated in this section (Eccl 1:4a, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 7c) to emphasize the continual action and constant motion of everything in nature. Despite the continual action of everything in nature, there is no completion, attainment or rest for anything. The first use of הָלַךְ is in reference to man; all subsequent usages are in reference to nature—illustrations of the futility of human endeavor. Note: All the key terms used in Ecc 1:4 to describe the futility of human endeavor are repeated in 1:5–11 as illustrations from nature. The literary monotony in Eccl 1:4–11 mirrors the actual monotony of human action that repeats itself with no real change. NET NOTE on generation goes - The participle בָּא (ba’, “to go”) emphasizes continual, durative, uninterrupted action (present universal use of participle). The term is repeated in 1:4–5 to compare the futility of secular human accomplishments with the futile actions in nature: everything is in motion, but there is nothing new accomplished. NET NOTE on earth remains - The participle עֹמָדֶת (’omadet, “to stand”) emphasizes a continual, durative, uninterrupted state (present universal condition). Man, despite all his secular accomplishments in all generations, makes no ultimate impact on the earth. NET NOTE on forever - The term עוֹלָם (’olam) has a wide range of meanings: (1) indefinite time: “long time, duration,” often “eternal” or “eternity”; (2) future time: “things to come”; and (3) past time: “a long time back,” that is, the dark age of prehistory (HALOT 798–99 s.v. עוֹלָם; BDB 761–63 s.v. III עלם). It may also denote an indefinite period of “continuous existence” (BDB 762 s.v. III עלם 2.b). It is used in this sense in reference to things that remain the same for long periods: the earth (Eccl 1:4), the heavens (Ps 148:6), ruined cities (Isa 25:2; 32:14), ruined lands (Jer 18:16), nations (Isa 47:7), families (Ps 49:12; Isa 14:20), the dynasty of Saul (1 Sam 13:13), the house of Eli (2 Sam 2:30), continual enmity between nations (Ezek 25:15; 35:5), the exclusion of certain nations from the assembly (Deut 23:4; Neh 13:1), a perpetual reproach (Ps 78:66). 🙏 THOUGHT - We live in a world of constant change - babies born, elders pass, generations shift, photos fade, names on gravestones are slowly worn smooth by time. As I approach 80, I feel the passing of life in the aching of my bones and the rapid flipping of the calendar. Solomon, the wisest man of his age, stood still long enough to observe the rhythm of it all. He reigned as King for 40 years so he saw people come and go — other kings, workers, families, dynasties — and yet the earth kept turning, unbothered by our striving, unchanged by our ambition. The ground beneath our feet doesn’t pause for anyone. Solomon is not trying to make us despair, but to free us from the illusion that our meaning is rooted in permanence or even our legacy (I am passing on preceptaustin.org to my oldest son Joel). Instead, it invites us to consider what does last. The earth remains — but even it is temporary (see 2 Peter 3:10+). What truly endures is God’s Word, God’s Kingdom, and the souls of men and women. So while the world keeps turning, we are being called to live for what won’t fade - Faith in Christ, Love for God and others and Spirit enabled obedience that will echo throughout eternity. In short, even as our bodies are fading away, enabled by His Spirit, we can obey Jesus' command to store up for ourselves treasures in heaven (Mt 6:20-21+), planting seeds now that will outlast our life on earth and yield eternal fruit. Lord, teach us to number our days (Ps 90:12+), by Your Spirit supernaturally motivating our hearts (Php 2:13NLT+), loosening our grip on the temporary, and seeking to live for what lasts throughout eternity, redeeming our time (Eph 5:16KJV+) for Your Kingdom and Your glory through Christ Jesus our Redeemer and soon coming King of kings. Amen. Ray Pritchard - Something New Under the Sun THE TREADMILL Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. Ecclesiastes 1:4-8NIV Generations come and generations go." In 1517 Martin Luther ignited the Protestant Reformation when he nailed his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany. That same year Bernard Gilpin was born. He became an English church leader who worked for social reform. He died in 1583, the same year that Simon Episcopius was born. He became a leader of the Dutch church and took part in the Remonstrance of 1610. He died in 1643, the same year that Solomon Stoddard was born. He was the first librarian of Harvard College and the grandfather of Jonathan Edwards. He died in 1729, the same year that Catherine the Great was born. She was Empress of Russia and brought the ideas of the Enlightenment to the Russian Empire. She died in 1796, the same year that Horace Mann was born. We remember him as the founder of free public education in the United States. He died in 1859, the year that John Dewey was born. He became a controversial figure for theories regarding the education of children and teenagers. He died in 1952, the same year that I was born. That's seven generations spanning 435 years. And I, well, I've done nothing comparable to any of those important figures. But I have one great advantage over them. They're dead and I'm alive. But I will pass off the scene eventually, and someone (many people, to be precise) will be born on the very day I die. Life is truly short and transitory. Most of us have never heard of the first two names on the list—Gilpin and Episcopius. Theology students might know about Solomon Stoddard. Probably everyone has at least heard of Catherine the Great, Horace Mann, and John Dewey. But all the names grow fainter by the day, dusty remnants of the past. And so, sooner than I prefer, my name will join theirs, and generations will rise up and never know I existed. Surely this is the height of futility. Isaac Watts said it well: "Time, like an ever-rolling stream, bears all its sons away; they fly, forgotten, as a dream dies at the opening day." Those lines from Ό God, Our Help in Ages Past" remind us that only God can give our lives significance. Without Him we are here today, gone tomorrow, and eventually forgotten. Father, You are from everlasting to everlasting. When the earth itself passes away, You will remain forever. I believe that You are eternal and that Your Son is the light of the world. Amen. SHINING THE LIGHT How many generations can you count on your own family tree? How long do you expect to be remembered after you die? What are you doing today that will matter one hundred years from now? MORE LIGHT FROM GOD'S WORD Read Isaiah 40:7-8; John 8:58; and Ephesians 1:10-13. Warren
Eclesiastes 1
Maclaren asks "What is the difference between a squirrel in a cage who only makes his prison go round the faster by his swift race, and the man who lives toilsome days for transitory objects which he may never attain?” (Two views of Life) Michael Eaton - The argument is taken a step further. Despite the fact that creation is active to the point of inexpressible exhaustion, it is incapable of providing secular man with any lasting satisfaction.....The Preacher’s point is that all this (ED: CREATION MANIFESTING THE GLORY OF GOD) is lost in an ‘under the sun’ viewpoint; all that is left is nature in a state of exhaustion. (Borrow Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – Ecclesiastes. page 58) NET NOTE on things - Heb “the things.” The Hebrew term דְּבָרִים (dévarim, masculine plural noun from דָּבָר, davar) is often used to denote “words,” but it can also refer to actions and events (HALOT 211 s.v. דָּבָר 3.a; BDB 183 s.v. דָּבָר IV.4). Here, it means “things,” as is clear from the context: “What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done” (Ec 1:9). Here דְּבָרִים can be nuanced “occurrences” or even “[natural] phenomena.” Man is not able to tell it - NET - "no one can bear to describe it" It’s too much to even explain — words fail to express the depth of weariness we experience. Solomon is saying, “Even if I tried to describe it, I couldn’t do it justice.” NET NOTE says "The statement no one can bear to describe it probably means that Qoheleth could have multiplied examples (beyond the sun, the wind, and the streams) of the endless cycle of futile events in nature. However, no tongue could ever tell, no eye could ever see, no ear could ever hear all the examples of this continual and futile activity. The eye is not satisfied with seeing - NLT = "No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied." Humans are never fully satisfied. We constantly seek new sights, new sounds, new experiences. This is an observation of our restless consumption and deep longing for fulfillment that created things cannot satisfy. Nor is the ear filled (male) with hearing. - NET - 'nor is the ear ever content with hearing" NLT = "No matter how much we hear, we are not content." John Stevenson Notice the three activities of man mentioned here. Telling. Seeing. Hearing. The point is that you always want more. Have you seen a good movie? Read a good book? Watched a magnificent sunset? Enjoyed a restful vacation? Delight in a special experience? It is never enough. It never satisfies, for ultimately you want MORE. 🙏 THOUGHT - We live in a world that never stops offering — more screens, more views, more voices, more noise. But our hearts stay hungry. We scroll past beauty. We binge on entertainment. We listen endlessly. But somehow, we’re still empty. Solomon isn’t being cynical. He’s being honest and in that honesty, he’s doing us a favor. He is saying: “Your exhaustion makes sense. You're not broken, the world (without God) is!” In chapter 3 Solomon will tell us that we were made for eternity (Ecc 3:11+). Only when we reconnect with the eternal God can our eyes be satisfied, our ears be content, and our soul find true rest. Christ does not just silence the noise. He (and He Alone) satisfies the soul. May God grant each of us (we are all caught up to some degree in this "mad [godless] monotony") to obey His call (the first time so that we are born again [Jn 3:3-5+] and then every day) to "Come (command - see our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 “Take (aorist imperative) My yoke upon you and learn (aorist imperative) from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. 30 “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Mt 11:28-30+) NET NOTE on filled - The term מָלֵא (male’, “to be filled, to be satisfied”) is repeated in Ec 1:7–8 to draw a comparison between the futility in the cycle of nature and human secular accomplishments: lots of action, but no lasting effects. In Ec 1:7 אֵינֶנּוּ מָלֵא (’enennu male’, “it is never filled”) describes the futility of the water cycle: “All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is never filled.” (male’,) In Ec 1:8 וְלֹא־תִמָּלֵא (vélo-timmale’, “it is never satisfied”) describes the futility of human labor: “the ear is never satisfied with hearing." Wearisome (03023) yagea from the verb yagea which means to work until one is tired and exhausted, emphasizing the toil of work and weariness that results from that toil. Thus yagea is an adjective meaning weary, tired, describing a state of weakness or exhaustion from physical exertion and oppression (Dt. 25:18; 2Sa 17:2). In Eccl. 1:8 yagea refers in general to the weariness, exhaustion, and monotony of the endless cycle of repetitiveness in the world. Complete Biblical Library In Deut. 25:18, God urges Israel to remember the misdeeds of the Amalekites, who attacked the particularly weak and weary members of their group who lagged behind the main company in the desert after their escape from Egypt. These atrocities were to be remembered when Israel entered Canaan to serve as motivation for the total annihilation of Amalek (see 1 Sam. 15:1ff). In 2 Sam. 17:2, Absalom is encouraged by the wise counselor Ahithophel to attack David and his men when they are weary and weak. This plan was frustrated by alternative advice from David's friend, Hushai the Arkite. The author of Ecclesiastes explores the possibility of finding true happiness through wisdom, wealth and work, only to discover that if God is left out of life, all is meaningless and wearisome (literally, "full of labor," Ecc. 1:8). The last two verses of the Book make it clear that fearing God and keeping his commandments are essential to life (Eccl 12:13-14). YAGEA - 3V - Deut. 25:18; 2 Sam. 17:2; Eccl. 1:8 Ecclesiastes 1:8 Never Enough The eye never has enough of seeing. Ecclesiastes 1:8 Today's Scripture & Insight : Ecclesiastes 1:1–11 Frank Borman commanded the first space mission that circled the moon. He wasn’t impressed. The trip took two days both ways. Frank got motion sickness and threw up. He said being weightless was cool—for thirty seconds. Then he got used to it. Up close he found the moon drab and pockmarked with craters. His crew took pictures of the gray wasteland, then became bored. Frank went where no one had gone before. It wasn’t enough. If he quickly tired of an experience that was out of this world, perhaps we should lower our expectations for what lies in this one. The teacher of Ecclesiastes observed that no earthly experience delivers ultimate joy. “The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing” (1:8). We may feel moments of ecstasy, but our elation soon wears off and we seek the next thrill. When have you felt the most joy? Why didn’t it last? What can you learn from its fleeting nature? Jesus, shine the light of Your love on me. Ecclesiastes 1:9 That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun. KJV Ecclesiastes 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. BGT Ecclesiastes 1:9 τί τὸ γεγονός αὐτὸ τὸ γενησόμενον καὶ τί τὸ πεποιημένον αὐτὸ τὸ ποιηθησόμενον καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν πᾶν πρόσφατον ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον LXE Ecclesiastes 1:9 What is that which has been? the very thing which shall be: and what is that which has been done? the very thing which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. NET Ecclesiastes 1:9 What exists now is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing truly new on earth. CSB Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun. ESV Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. NIV Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. NLT Ecclesiastes 1:9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. YLT Ecclesiastes 1:9 What is that which hath been? it is that which is, and what is that which hath been done? it is that which is done, and there is not an entirely new thing under the sun. NJB Ecclesiastes 1:9 What was, will be again, what has been done, will be done again, and there is nothing new under the sun! NRS Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun. NAB Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun. GWN Ecclesiastes 1:9 Whatever has happened before will happen again. Whatever has been done before will be done again. There is nothing new under the sun. that: Ec 3:15 7:10 2Pe 2:1 there: Isa 43:19 Jer 31:22 Rev 21:1,5 ROUND AND ROUND WE GO... SAME STORY, DIFFERENT NAMES That which has been is that which will be And that which has been done is that which will be done. - NLT = "History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before." Solomon expresses the repetitive and cyclical nature of life under the sun. What has already happened in the past is likely to happen again in the future. In effect, the human story is often less like a line and more like a circle. NET NOTE on has been - Heb “what is.” The Hebrew verbal form is a perfect. Another option is to translate, “What has been.” See the next line, which speaks of the past and the future. So there is nothing new under the sun - Remember that this phrase under the sun views all things without allowing God into the picture. It views life apart from God, confined to the temporal, ignoring the eternal. While technologies and tools evolve, the core experiences of humanity remain the same - Longing, envy, injustice, joy, toil, love, mortality. The appearance of newness is deceptive but at the root, it’s a repetition of old patterns. Have you ever noticed how things you buy new are stimulating for a while but soon they grow old and then you want another "new" thing? While Solomon does not say it here, from the rest of Scripture we learn that you cannot escape the cycle of “what has been” unless you connect with the God Who makes all things new in time (2Co 5:17) and eternity (Rev. 21:5). Michael Eaton remarks that "If God is left aside, and life viewed ‘under the sun’, there can be nothing new; history is a closed circuit."....(ED: BUT THE TRUTH IS THAT ) History is travelling to a goal, the Day of the Lord, when he will complete his purpose, redeem his people and judge his enemies. (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – Ecclesiastes page ) David