Eclesiastes 3

Eclesiastes 3

Trapp - “Many a man loseth his soul, as Saul did his kingdom, by not discerning his time. Esau came too late; so did the foolish virgins. If the gale of grace be over-past, the gate shut, the drawbridge taken up, there is no possibility of entrance.” (Trapp) Tommy Nelson - There is a time that you destroy something by throwing stones, but there's also a time that you gather stones to build something. (See A Life Well Lived: A Study of the Book of Ecclesiastes - Page 47) A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing - Embracing speaks to relationships in which there are seasons to draw close and seasons to set healthy boundaries. Is this not life? There will be a time for you to embrace, but there will also be times when you don't want anyone around. During the COVID-19 pandemic, embracing was shunned for a season to protect health. Ray Stedman There is a time when we need to embrace others, to show our support for them. But there is a time when we ought to refuse to embrace them, when our support would be misunderstood and would be tantamount to complicity with something evil. Those times come from the hand of God. QUESTION - What does it mean that there is a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them (Ecclesiastes 3:5)? GOTQUESTIONS ANSWER - “A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them” is the seventh of fourteen couplets of contrasting seasons in life listed by King Solomon in Ecclesiastes 3:1–8. Within these stanzas, Solomon compresses every human “activity under the heavens” (verse 1), concluding that there is a God-ordained time for each moment and that God is the ultimate authority over them all. The meaning of “a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them” (Ecclesiastes 3:5) is probably the most difficult to decipher of all the pairings. A season of scattering stones most likely refers to the Old Testament practice of a conquering army to throw stones on the enemy’s field to render it unproductive. In 2 Kings 3:25, when the Israelites advanced on Moab, they “destroyed the towns, and each man threw a stone on every good field until it was covered. They stopped up all the springs and cut down every good tree.” Soldiers used slingshots to launch stones as weapons of war. King Uzziah invented engines for Israel’s defense towers, enabling his warriors to hurl great stones at their enemies (2 Chronicles 26:11–15). Perhaps the most famous stone-throwing victory in the Bible was when “David prevailed over the Philistines with a sling and a stone” (1 Samuel 17:49–50). A season of gathering stones might indicate the clearing of fields to cultivate them, as in Isaiah 5:2, or the preparation of highways for the advance of victorious soldiers, as in Isaiah 62:10. In the Bible, stones were collected to build altars (Exodus 20:25), monuments (Genesis 31:45–46), and temples (1 Kings 5:17). One commentator interprets the scattering and gathering stanza to suggest the harmful distribution of stones to destroy crops and soil versus the useful and profitable arranging of stones, as in building a fence or a memorial to God. Another scholar mentions an ancient practice of tossing stones into a grave at the time of burial as opposed to the arranging of stones to build a house for the living. The Aramaic version of Ecclesiastes perceived “scattering stones” as tearing down an old building and “gathering stones” as preparing to build a new one. One possible explanation for “scattering stones” and “gathering them” may be a simple allusion to demonstrating hostility versus friendship. This interpretation seems to agree with the associated stanza, “a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing” (Ecclesiastes 3:5). While it may be challenging to pinpoint Solomon’s specific application of “a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,” we can be confident of its general connotation. There are appropriate times in life to damage and destroy, to conquer enemies and bring about their ruin. Alternatively, there are proper seasons for clearing out harmful and useless things to cultivate, grow, build, and protect. Looking back on his life, Solomon had come to understand that God has a good purpose in everything. Whether we demolish an enemy or work to build and protect, “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28, ESV). QUESTION - What does it mean that there is a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing (Ecclesiastes 3:5)? GOTQUESTIONS.ORG ANSWER - In Ecclesiastes 3:1–8, King Solomon observes that God has a plan for all people at all times and in every season. Through the ongoing cycles of life—through beginnings and endings, joys and sorrows, highs and lows—God is always with us, working out His good purposes (see Romans 8:28). If we learn to trust Him, we’ll grow to appreciate that the Lord’s timing and intentions are perfect. “There is a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,” says Solomon in Ecclesiastes 3:5. This couplet is the ninth of fourteen contrasting seasons in which Solomon catalogs and condenses all human activity in its myriad forms. The word for “embrace” in the original Hebrew means “to grasp or hold (something or someone) tightly in your arms, usually with fondness.” Thus, the focus of this stanza seems to include friendships, family interactions, and sexual relations between husbands and wives. The same verb for “embrace” is used often in Scripture to describe two people greeting one another. We find it in Genesis 29:13, when Laban enthusiastically welcomes his nephew Jacob, and in Genesis 33:4, when brothers Esau and Jacob have their emotional reunion. In the New Testament, believers regularly embrace and greet one another with “a holy kiss” (2 Corinthians 13:12; Romans 16:16; Galatians 2:9; Acts 20:10, 37). A time to embrace can also be used as a euphemism for sexual unions, as in Song of Solomon 2:6 and Proverbs 5:20. The law detailed specific “times to refrain from embracing” in Leviticus 15. Sexual relations and touching of any kind were expressly forbidden if either the man or the woman had a bodily discharge. A seven-day purification process was required before sexual relations could resume. With the hope of holding off a dreadful judgment of sin, God called the people of Israel to consecrate themselves in solemn acts of repentance: “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning” (Joel 2:12, NLT). This season of repentance also involved a time to refrain from embracing. The crisis was so devastating that every occasion for joy and personal enjoyment had to be put aside. All the people were to gather in a sacred assembly to mourn and to plead with God for deliverance: “Gather all the people—the elders, the children, and even the babies. Call the bridegroom from his quarters and the bride from her private room” (Joel 2:16, NLT). The apostle Paul also alludes to a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing in his teaching about principles for marriage: “The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs. . . . Do not deprive each other of sexual relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control” (1 Corinthians 7:3–5, NLT). Christian couples are not to deprive one another sexually except by mutual consent. There is an appropriate “time to refrain from embracing,” but only for an agreed-upon period and purpose—to devote themselves to prayer. Once the dedicated season of prayer is over, Paul urged couples to get back to “embracing” so that Satan could not tempt them into immoral sexual relations. Ecclesiastes 3:6 A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away. time to seek, Ge 30:30-43 31:18 Ex 12:35,36 De 8:17,18 2Ki 5:26 8:9, an a time to lose, Mt 16:25,26 19:29 Mk 8:35-37 10:28-30 Lu 9:24,25 time to throw away: Ec 11:1 2Ki 7:15 Ps 112:9 Isa 2:20 Jon 1:5 Ac 27:19,38 Php 3:7,8 Heb 10:34,35 See over 50 translations SEASONS OF SEEKING AND KEEPING A time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to search (baqas; Lxx - zeteo) and a time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to give up as lost - These seem to deal primarily with possessions. Sometimes you just need to give up looking for a lost item! I remember one day I lost my retainer and searched the entire house without success. And then I prayed and checked the garbage that was ready to be set out to be picked up. You guessed it - I found my retainer in the garbage! If I hadn't, I would have given it up as lost. Search (בָּקַשׁ – baqas) means to seek diligently. Give up as lost (אָבַד – ’āḇaḏ) means being willing to accept loss. And remember that God often grows us more in what we lose than in what we find. In Luke 15, the shepherd searches for the lost sheep until he finds it illustrating the importance of seeking when it’s right. Ray Stedman feels that "The last six of these opposites relate to the spirit, to the inner decisions, the deep commitments. There is "a time to seek [work, marriage, new friends], and a time to lose," (Ecclesiastes 3:6a RSV). There comes a time in life when we should curtail certain friendships, or change our jobs, for instance, and lose what we had in the past. It is proper and appropriate that these times should come." Tommy Nelson - There will come a time that you will be full of hope and will want to search. There will also be a time when you will be hopeless and want to give up. (See A Life Well Lived: A Study of the Book of Ecclesiastes - Page 47) A time to keep (shamar) and a time to throw away - Solomon describes the seasons of keeping and casting. Keep (שָׁמַר – shamar) means to guard, protect, preserve carefully. Throw away (הִשְׁלִיךְ – hišl) means to hurl, cast off, discard completely. This implies decisive, forceful action, not passive letting go but deliberate throwing away. Every few years, you realize some clothes must stay, but others are no longer useful. Keeping everything leads to clutter; throwing away wisely leads to order and freshness. In a storm, a captain may throw heavy cargo overboard to save the ship. Some things, though once precious, must be discarded to preserve life. Nothing in this world is ours forever. -- Duane Garrett Tommy Nelson -The things you own will be useful for a while, and you will want to keep them and implies intentional protection. But one day you will take your stuff to Goodwill; it's time to throw it away. (See A Life Well Lived: A Study of the Book of Ecclesiastes - Page 47) Ray Stedman is a bit more applicational in his interpretation of this verse - There is "a time to keep and a time to cast away," (Ecclesiastes 3:6b RSV). There are values and standards which must never be surrendered, while there are other times when we need to throw away things -- clean out the attic, the garage, throw away the old clothes, etc. This is true of habits and attitudes at times. Resentments need to be thrown away. Grudges and long-standing hurts need to be forgiven and forgotten. THOUGHT- "The Wisdom to Let Go" "A time to keep and a time to throw away." — Ecclesiastes 3:6 Life with God is not just about gathering blessings. It’s also about releasing weights that no longer serve His purpose for you. Sometimes you must keep memories, relationships, godly commitments. Sometimes (I would add this is always best) you must throw away bitterness, pride, unhealthy patterns, idols of the heart. The enemy wants you cluttered. God wants you clear and free. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us…" — Hebrews 12:1+ Ask the Spirit today: What do I need to hold tightly? What do I need to throw into the sea of God’s forgetfulness? QUESTION - What does it mean that there is a time to search and a time to give up (Ecclesiastes 3:6)? GOTQUESTIONS.ORG ANSWER - Through fourteen diverging events listed in Ecclesiastes 3:1–8, King Solomon illustrates that God has an appointed time and purpose for every activity and season of human existence. There is “a time to search and a time to give up,” he contends in Ecclesiastes 3:6. This couplet seems to address the times and seasons of life that are beyond our control. The Bible says there is a time to search for wisdom, knowledge, and understanding (Proverbs 2:4–6). We are to seek the Lord, His strength, and His presence with all of our hearts (1 Chronicles 16:11; Isaiah 55:6; Jeremiah 29:13). There are appropriate times to search for answers to prayer persistently and earnestly: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:7–8). But there is also a time to give up seeking and be content despite our losses (1 Timothy 6:6; Hebrews 13:5). The apostle Paul told the Philippians, “Whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ” (Philippians 3:7). He had “learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11–13). When we consider “a time to search and a time to give up,” as it relates to our material possessions and the things we try to hold onto in this life, we can’t help but think of Jesus’ challenge in Matthew 10:39: “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (ESV). The faithful follower of Christ will give up His search for anything and everything that might distract him from his real treasure (Matthew 6:19–21). Like Paul, he will “consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8). In “giving up” our earthly search, we find our true worth and purpose; we gain everlasting joy and eternal reward (Isaiah 35:10). In Luke 15, Jesus presents the parables of the Lost Sheep (see also Matthew 18:12–14), the Lost Coin, and the Lost Son, revealing the relentless love in God’s heart and His steadfast mission to seek and save lost souls. God wants no one to die and be lost for all eternity without Him (Luke 19:10). He desires everyone to repent and be saved (2 Peter 3:9). Yet the sobering truth is, there are times when even God must give up His search. When Judah stubbornly persisted in idolatry, the Lord told His prophet, “Pray no more for these people, Jeremiah. Do not weep or pray for them, and don’t beg me to help them, for I will not listen to you” (Jeremiah 7:16, NLT; see also Jeremiah 11:14). “A time to search and a time to give up” reminds us that some things in life are within our control while others are not. We may work hard, scraping and saving to buy a home, only to lose it when the housing market crashes. We may wait years to find the love of our life and then lose that person in a tragic accident. Indeed there are times to seek, but there are also times to give up and lose. We must remember to hold everything in this life loosely. After Job had lost everything, he still trusted God. Of the Lord, Job said, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him” (Job 13:15). As an old man, Joseph looked back on all his losses and saw that not one of them, including the evil done to him, had prevented God’s purpose from being accomplished. While others had meant to harm Joseph, God had used every season of loss to fulfill His good plan (Genesis 50:15–21). QUESTION - What does it mean that there is a time to keep and a time to throw away (Ecclesiastes 3:6)? GOTQUESTIONS.ORG ANSWER - If you’ve ever sorted through your belongings for a garage sale or yard sale, you can probably relate to King Solomon’s observation in Ecclesiastes 3:6 that “there is a time to keep and a time to throw away.” This statement is part of an extended passage (Ecclesiastes 3:1–8) in which Solomon parallels fourteen positive and negative times and seasons of life. Together they represent the sum of human existence. Ultimately, Solomon concludes that God controls each moment and works out His good purposes through every experience. “A time to keep and a time to throw away” almost certainly applies to how we deal with our personal possessions. Scripture states that nothing in this life is ours to keep forever: “For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it” (1 Timothy 6:7; see also Ecclesiastes 5:15; Job 1:21). Since we can’t take anything with us when we die, the focus of our existence ought not to be on acquiring things (Psalm 49:17). The Bible reveals that everything we have comes from God (John 3:27; Romans 11:36; 1 Corinthians 11:12). Our heavenly Father is generous and blesses His children when they are charitable, too (Proverbs 22:9). Jesus taught this principle of giving: “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back” (Luke 6:38, NLT). The same rule is applied in Proverbs 11:24–25: “Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything. The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed” (NLT). Even though generosity is the rule, the apostle Paul spoke of an appropriate “time to keep” and not give to one in need. Believers are not obligated to provide for those who are lazy, idle, and unwilling to work. Within God’s family, there should be no freeloading or expecting handouts (1 Thessalonians 4:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:10–12). “A time to keep and a time to throw away” also reminds us of Jesus’ challenge in Matthew 10:39: “If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it” (Matthew 10:39, NLT). There are times and occasions when getting rid of our possessions is better than keeping them. Sometimes we cling too tightly to our stuff. For this reason, Jesus warned, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). Instead, Jesus instructed, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be” (Matthew 6:19–21, NLT). According to Paul, our heavenly assets are the only ones worth keeping in the bank: “Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life” (1 Timothy 6:17–19, NLT). Just as sailors throw their cargo overboard to save a ship (Jonah 1:5; Acts 27:18, 19, 38), so must we jettison any sinful baggage that might keep us from eternal salvation (Matthew 5:29–30; Matthew 18:8–9; Mark 9:43–47). The devoted follower of Christ will give up anything and everything that might distract him from his real treasure. Like Paul, he will “consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8). Recognizing there is “a time to keep and a time to throw away” means living with an eternal perspective. We may acquire things while on earth, but we must always be prepared to let them go. Ray Pritchard - Something New Under the Sun A TIME FOR WAR 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. Ecclesiastes 3:6-8 For generations Christians have struggled to reconcile their faith with the terrible demands of war. The biblical perspective seems to be that war is sometimes in the will of God. I realize that to say that war may sometimes be in the will of God is to jump into a firestorm of controversy. Such a view is not popular today. I ate lunch with several fellow pastors and heard one of them say emphatically that war is always a sin. Let me say that I think my pastoral friend is partly right and partly wrong. War is terrible in all its aspects, and I would never want to be known as someone who is "for" war. I'm not even sure what a statement like that would mean. I don't know any sane person who is for war. I think my friend is right to this degree: Wars come about because of the sinfulness of the human race. Warfare comes from the fallen nature of man. Whenever two nations go to war, sin is never absent. There may be sins of pride and oppression, or there may be sins of brutality and naked aggression, but sin is always part of the equation. I would go a step further and say that there is rarely a war so "pure" or "clean" that one side is totally right and the other side is totally wrong. Even where such a case exists, there will almost always be some wrong motives on both sides. But is going to war always and in every case sinful? I think not. Just before the Persian Gulf conflict started, Billy Graham said, "There come times when we have to fight for peace. Unfortunately, that's been true of the whole history of the human race." That doesn't make every war right, but it does mean that some wars are indeed justified in the eyes of God. Better days are coming. In the last days God's kingdom will finally be established on the earth and all the nations will be at peace. The law of the Lord will go forth from Jerusalem and the Lord Jesus Himself will settle the disputes that today end in war. So wise will be His rule that weapons of war will become obsolete. People will take their tanks and turn them into combines; their cruise missiles will become tractors; B-52 bombers will be melted down and transformed into solar-powered water purifiers. Bullets will become obsolete. All the gas masks will be thrown away. They won't be needed in the kingdom Jesus will establish. Best of all, the nations will not take up swords against one another. The old spiritual says it very well: "Gonna lay down my sword and shield, down by the riverside. Ain't gonna study war no more." That's how God intended it to be. Between now and then, nations will still go to war, but let us keep our eyes on the goal and let us work and pray for that day of lasting peace to come. Prince of Peace, show me what it means to be a peacemaker in a world filled with war. Amen. SHINING THE LIGHT Do you agree that God has a place in His plan for everything—even war, sorrow, hatred, and death? Do you believe that war may sometimes be justified in the will of God? Under what circumstances would you as a Christian refuse to go to war? MORE LIGHT FROM GOD'S WORD Read Joshua 23:9-10; Isaiah 2:2-4; and Romans 13:3-4. Ecclesiastes 3:7 A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to be silent and a time to speak. A time to tear apart : Ge 37:29,34 2Sa 1:11 3:31 1Ki 21:27 2Ki 5:7 6:30 Jer 36:24 Joe 2:13 Ac 9:39 a time to sew together: Job 2:13 Ps 39:2 Isa 36:21 Jer 8:14 La 3:28 Am 5:13 8:3 Mic 7:5 and a time to speak: Ge 44:18,34 1Sa 19:4,5 25:24-44 Es 4:13,14 7:4 Job 32:4-37:24 Pr 24:11,12 31:8,9 Lu 19:37-40 Ac 4:20 See over 50 translations SEASONS OF TEARING AND SEWING A time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to tear apart and a time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to sew together - In ancient culture, tearing garments symbolized grief, mourning, or anger (e.g., Genesis 37:34, Job 1:20). There is a time to tear clothing which was part of the Jewish ritual of mourning but then there is a time to sew together that which was torn. Some commentators write that sewing together garments symbolized the end of mourning, healing, and moving on. GOTQUESTIONS has a wonderful example of a time to tear that had eternal consequences writing that "When Jesus Christ died on the cross, the temple veil was torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51+). Through this divine tearing, God in His justice and mercy opened the way for us to experience “a time to mend.”" Tommy Nelson - There will be a time for agony. You will hurt so bad, you will want to tear your clothes. And then there will be a time to sew up the tears because the pain is gone. (See A Life Well Lived: A Study of the Book of Ecclesiastes - Page 47) A time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to be silent and a time (et/eth; Lxx - kairos) to speak. - Even human speech is under the control of divinely arranged times. There are seasons when silence is wiser than speaking, times of mourning, listening, or reverent waiting. Other seasons call for speaking boldly — proclaiming truth, offering comfort, taking a stand. Gilbrant writes "A time of sorrow also must be mentioned as a time of restraint. Precious words are often wasted at this season. The time of silence is more soothing. We had better restrain our words till the waters have somewhat assuaged. A talkative comforter adds to the trouble he professes to heal. He is rather a sore than a balm. Great wisdom is required to know when, as well as what, to speak. The wise improvement of the time to speak brings a diversified and fruitful blessing. The fool is restrained (Prov. 26:5). The afflicted is comforted (2 Thess. 4:18; 5:14). Christian rebuke is rightly and lovingly administered. The ignorant is instructed (Prov. 10:21; Isa. 50:4). Succor is given in the time of extremity (Est. 7:4; Prov. 31:8f). Sound knowledge is dispersed in our respective spheres (Prov. 15:7). (Complete Biblical Library) Ray