May 10
Reading: Ecclesiastes 6
1 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: 2 a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil.
3 If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life’s good things, and he also has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4 For it comes in vanity and goes in darkness, and in darkness its name is covered. 5 Moreover, it has not seen the sun or known anything, yet it finds rest rather than he. 6 Even though he should live a thousand years twice over, yet enjoy no good– do not all go to the one place?
7 All the toil of man is for his mouth, yet his appetite is not satisfied. 8 For what advantage has the wise man over the fool? And what does the poor man have who knows how to conduct himself before the living? 9 Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite: this also is vanity and a striving after wind.
10 Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he. 11 The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? 12 For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?
If the reader of this book has not already realized that every sentence needs to be pondered and the imagination unleashed, Ecclesiastes 6 drives that fact home. You cannot understand the author’s point without thinking deeply about each of these efforts in life. Chapter 6 takes the futility of life in this world and rubs our faces in it.
Verses 1-2 present the futility of the wealthy man. This is the man who acquires wealth and property. Think about it. You spend your whole life working, building wealth, investing wisely. But then, when you have it, you are too old to enjoy it, and then you die and someone else gets it all.
Verses 3-6 present the futility of the ambitious man. This presents ambition in the best sense. This is the man who really wants to make something of himself, his family, and improve the world. He is never satisfied, always striving for better. But no matter how much he accomplishes, and however long he lives, he dies alone like everyone else. In the end it all did him no good.
Verses 7-9 present the futility of the man with appetites. This is the man who feeds his fine desires, choice foods, perfect vacations, nice things, good manners, more wisdom, beautiful women. Rich or poor, the desires are never satisfied. It is never enough. It is better to be content with what is right in front of your eyes than to seek to feed your wants.
Verses 10-12 present the futility of the advocate, the man with a cause. The world is full of people, strong and weak, pushing and arguing, trying to change the world. People feel like they really understand what must happen, what is good for everyone, how the world needs to be. But they don’t. Who does really know what is good for man? (vs. 12) Who really sees the future? No one.
You and I need something other than what we can find, or make, or what this world has to offer.