| Spending time in the Scriptures Ecclesiastes | by A. Kimber | |||||
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This month we take time to look at the book of Ecclesiastes described by itself in the first verse as being ‘the words of the preacher’. Here is a book written by Solomon which again shows us, his wisdom; there are also a couple of themes that seemed to arise as I read this book, the first being wisdom and the second being the vanity of much which mankind seeks to achieve. On many occasions Solomon describes to us the continuing nature of life, nothing is new, things which we have now are things which have been before, and there is a time to plant and a time to reap. Even when he had achieved many great and wonderful things in his life he still realised that it was all ‘vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.’ Each one of us is born, we have our lives which we struggle and fight through and at the end we return to the dust again. Solomon makes it very clear that we can gain every thing in the world and still have nothing, as riches perish and things pass away. People are lost without wisdom but wisdom itself can just lead to problems. All-in-all this book can make quite gloomy reading but it does remind us, as New Testament Christians, that we should be laying up treasure in heaven. As I mentioned at the start of this article Solomon once again expounds his wisdom to us. He reminds us of many lessons that we would do very well to listen to. Friendship is important; he explains that two standing shoulder to shoulder are stronger than one and that a threefold cord is not easily broken. He also reminds us to not hurry into things and to not be self righteous; amongst others. We are told not to be rash to speak, as the words of a wise man's mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow himself up. We need to be careful to take the time to ensure that our words are truly gracious and kind and that they do not identify us as fools. Perhaps one of the most interesting statements is when he suggests that people shouldn’t go listening to everything that is going on around them as you may hear someone say something against you. You may think that this is strange; surely you want to know that someone is saying things about you? Solomon however makes the point that we all occasionally moan about someone else and after a few minutes things calm down again, all is forgotten and no-one else really needs to know. If we were all to start reacting to everything that was said about us the world would be a much worse place to be. Solomon’s main conclusion in this book is that the best satisfaction in someone's life comes from firstly doing something they enjoy and secondly doing it well. Solomon comments on the slothful man who turns on his pillow and makes other references to those who do not work as they should. So as we finish looking at this book lets aim to speak a bit less, listen a bit more and work harder whether we are serving the Lord or earthly masters. Key Verses
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.
Ecclesiastes 2:24
There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.
Ecclesiastes 4:12
And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 5:10
He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.
Ecclesiastes 8:15
Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 9:2
All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.
Ecclesiastes 12:14
For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
As always we welcome comments and suggestions, would you have selected different verses? Which PRoverb means most to you? Let me know what you think, it’s always good to get some feedback. You can e-mail me at a.kimber@assemblyyouth.net
All quotes are from the King James version of the Bible unless otherwise specified. | ||||||
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