● History.
○ Solomon was the second son of King David
and Bathsheba. King Solomon was the
third King of Israel; after Solomon died, the Kingdom of Israel was divided
into 2. The tribes of Judah and
Benjamin comprised the Southern Kingdom, the kingdom which was of the lineage
of David.
○ Yedidia (‘Friend of GOD’) was the name
given to King Solomon when he was born in 983 BC by Nathan the prophet.
○ Solomon had built the first temple in
Jerusalem in 959 BC.
○ Solomon had 300 concubines and 700
wives. He also had 3 children;
Rehoboam, Bashemath, and Tefat.
○ Solomon was blessed by GOD with unique
wisdom and he has been believed to be the wisest man that ever lived. Solomon has written 3 of the books of the
Bible: the Book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Songs of Song. This book was written in 935.
○ Solomon became King in 970 BC and reigned
for 40 years. Solomon died at 53 years
of age in 930 BC.
○ Solomon was a man of prayer. (Psalm 72)
○ Solomon was promised great wisdom and
wealth. (I Kings 3;3-15)
○ Solomon carried out many costly building
projects, including living in luxury himself.
He also managed all the national splendor in Israel while israel was one
united kingdom. He also devised twelve
tax districts (I Kings 4:7-19); a system that became oppressive and corrupt
which the people begged for relief after Solomon’s death. Solomon’s heart turned to the false gods of
the many foreign wives he had married (I Kings 11:1). These marriages were more for politics than
love as he sought alliances with other nations.
○ Even though GOD removed his hand of
blessing from Solomon, GOD maintained his promised to David, that David’s
family will rule upon the throne forever.
● Key verses.
○ Ecclesiastes 1:1-13 and Ecclesiastes
12:13-14.
● Key words.
○ Vanities: used 38 times - emptiness,
futility, a vapor, meaninglessness, blah-ness.
○ Under the Sun: used 29 times - looking at life from a human
perspective; not GOD’s perspective,looking at life horizontally instead of
vertically.
○ Profit: used 10 times - that which is
left over, surplus, advantage, gain, the opposite of ‘vanity’.
○ Labor: used 23 times - to toil to the
point of exhaustion and experience little or no fulfillment in your works,
grief, misery, frustration, weariness.
○ Man: used 42 times - man as made from the
earth
○ Evil: used 31 times - sore, hurt,
mischievous, greveous, adversity, wickedness and misery, the opposite of good.
○ Joy: enjoy, rejoice
○ Wisdom: used 54 times - opposite of
‘fools’ and ‘folly’ (fools and folly are used 32 times)
○ GOD: used 42 times - referenced as
Elohim, the mighty GOD, the glorious GOD of creation who is sovereign.
● Overview.
○ Solomon gives a brief explanation on why
he writes Chapter 1 in Ecclesiastes 12:8-12.
○ Solomon’s kingdom was in its golden
age. Solomon wanted the people to
understand that success and prosperity do not last long. (Psalm 103:14-16, Isaiah 40:6-8, James 4:14) All human accomplishments will one day
disappear. We should keep this in mind
in order to live wisely. If we do not,
we will become proud and self-sufficient when we succeed or disappointed when
we fail. Solomon states that earthly
possessions are ultimately meaningless; only the pursuit of GOD brings real
satisfaction.
○ The Book of Ecclesiastes is claimed to be
the most quoted by Atheists and Agnostics.
○ The Book of Ecclesiastes should help
re-sensitive Christians. This book
tells of the aches of the unbeliever and it warns us about what we pursue in
our life. This book is about all
mankind, not just the Jewish people.
○ Solomon emphasizes the certainty of
death. During Solomon’s time, he was
frightened by the shadow of death; not having the knowledge of a savior in
Jesus Christ; which gives us hope.
○ Solomon knew he had been blessed by GOD,
yet he turned his own way.
■ He was looking at life from the wrong
perspective.
■ A summary of Solomon’s warning can be
found in the reading of Psalm 90:12.
● Verses.
○ Verses 1: 1 - 3 The Search
■ Preacher comes from the Greek word
Qoheleth, which translates the one who gathers, assembles, or collect things
■ Near the end of Solomon’s life, he looks
back over everything he has done and most of it seemed meaningless. A common belief was only good people
prospered and that only wicked people suffered, but that was not true in his
experiences. This book was written
after he tried everything, and achieved much; only to find nothing apart from
GOD made him happy. He warns his readers
to avoid these same pursuits. If we try
to find meaning in life from our accomplishments instead of GOD, we will never
be satisfied and everything we pursue will become wearisome.
■ Solomon had everything in life: wisdom,
power, riches, honor, reputation, and GOD’s favor. Solomon claims nothing in itself will
satisfy the desires of man. Solomon
found no thing, no pleasure, no relationship, and nothing with an enduring
value when we view life through the eyes of man; ignoring GOD. Solomon is concluding there is nothing more
emptier than life itself alone.
■ The ultimate question Solomon is asking
is ‘Is there anything that will minister continually to his needs, and if he
does find it, he will not have to look any further.
○ Verses 1: 4 - 8 Living in Circles
■ In these verses, Solomon concludes Nature
is permanent, where man is not. Nature
has its cycles; the cycle of the seasons for example. Since man has no control of life’s cycles,
is life worth living? Nature does not
change, it continues regardless of man.
People die as the Earth keeps going like a machine.
● The Sun continues in a circulation
motion, rising in the east; setting in the west. As the Earth is permanent and durable; its
rotation around the Sun is predictable.
Man can be certain that the night will follow the day and the sun moves
from east to west.
● The winds and clouds move in circles over
the Earth. The wind is in constant motion.
Man does not understand how the wind flows; where it comes from; where
it goes. The wind may change directions,
but it still stays in motion. We can
hear and feel the wind. The wind also
continues where man does not.
● Water also maintains its cycle as
well. going from the sea to evaporation;
rising to the sky and clouds; then returning back to the seas as rain. The sea helps to sustain our lives. The oceans contain about 97% of the water on
Earth. The atmosphere only contains
.0001%, which is only enough water for 10 days of rain. The sun and the wind help water to evaporate
into the air. The rivers and rains pour
water into the seas, but the seas still remain the same.
● The next generation of man starts over;
learning from beginning until death.
● Solomon concludes this is wrong that
Nature continues while man does not.
He also concludes that life on Earth does not reward you.
■ The world becomes a closed system if you
view life as “under the Sun”; leaving GOD out of the picture. The world looks uniform, predictable, and
unchangeable. It appears nothing can
break the cycle of life. When GOD is in
the picture, he can do all things, things that are great and wonderful.
● GOD held the Sun in place for Joshua. (Joshua 10:6-14)
● GOD moved the Sun back as a sign to
Hezekiah (Isaiah 38:1-8)
● GOD opened the Red Sea and the Jordan
River for the Israelites (Exodus 14,
Joshua 3 and 4).
● GOD turned the rain off for Elijah (I Kings 17)
● Jesus calmed the Wind for the
disciples (Mark 4:356-41)
● GOD promises to meet our every need (Matthew 6:25-34)
■ Solomon views this cycle as
monotony. He claims the universe is
predictable, organized, and continues on and on.
● Jeremiah, the prophet saw this as a sign
of GOD’s dependability.
● We have a perfect balance of oxygen and
nitrogen here on Earth, which is need to maintain life.
● The Earth has 365-⅓
revolutions around the Sun every year.
The Earth is tilted 22-½ degrees.
○ Verses 1:8-18 The Restless Life
■ Solomon concludes in these verses that
all things are restless. The human
desire is never satisfied.
● The ear is never satisfied with
hearing. If it hears juicy gossip, it
wants to hear more.
● Nothing new never shows up in life. Life is a repeat of what has already
happened. Life is old as it is played
over and over again, repeating itself.
It may look new to man, but this has been done before in the past. Solomon asks, is life an empty pursuit of
that which never satisfies? Can no breakthrough
be made where by something can be found that will continually meet the hunger
of the human heart? Is there something
to give an understanding, a sense of delight, or satisfaction? This is the Heart of Solomon’s search.
○ Changes have brought about many modern
conveniences: cell phones, pacemakers, medicines, Neil Armstrong walking upon
the moon, microwaves
■ The modern advancements that have created
a new set of problems: het planes, computers, insecticides, television.
○ Are we being historians instead of
scientists?
○ The nature of man is too long for new
things. something to deliver or distract us.
Man is still dissatisfied with life and he will do anything to find some
escape.
■ Entertainment (Ecclesiastes 3:11, matthew 11:28)
○ Man is the creature, not the
creator. GOD can create a new creature
from a sinner (2 Corinthians 5:17), and GOD can make a new Heaven and a new
Earth (Revelations 21:1-5).
■ Solomon is testing our faith, he is
challenging us to find true and everlasting meaning in GOD alone. Many people become dissatisfied with life
and ask:
● If I am in GOD’s will, why am I so tired
and unfilled?
● What is the meaning of life?
● When I look back at it all, will I be
happy with my accomplishments in life?
● Why do I feel disillusioned and burnt
out?
● What is to become of me?
■ “What is twisted cannot be straightened”
refers to the ultimate perplexity and confusion that come to us because of all
the unanswered questions in life.
Solomon discovered in his own life that neither his accomplishments nor
his wisdom could make him truly happy.
True wisdom comes only from GOD.
● The past cannot be changed and it is
foolish to worry over it. What is wrong
cannot be corrected, it is water over the damn, and there is no use thinking of
what might have been. GOD can
straighten out what has been twisted and GOD can supply what is lacking. GOD does not change the past, but GOD can
change the way the past affects us
(Luke 13:11-17, Matthew 12:10-13, John 6:1-13, Luke 1:37).
■ The more we understand, the more pain and
difficulty we experience. The more we
know, the more we can see the imperfection around us. We need to be ready to feel more, to think
more, to question more, to hurt more, and to do more. Wisdom does come at a price.
● Life is tough at times, but it is a gift
from GOD. Since the fall of man, the
whole creation groans and labors in pain.
The world was not cursed until after sin entered the world.
● Life does not get easier if we try to run
away from it. We run away from reality
through addictions. We only make life
harder with these escapes from reality.
The ultimate escape in life would be suicide.
■ Solomon suggest there are two types of
wisdom.
● Human knowledge, reasoning, or
philosophy.
● Wisdom that comes from GOD.
■ Wisdom and experience will not solve
every problem.
● Making an explanation for everything in
life will only leave us unhappy.
○ Some things are unexplainable and GOD is
not obligated to explain these things or events.
○ GOD wants us to live by promises and not
by explanations.
● Conclusion.
○ Life is short; life is difficult, so make
the most of it while you can. Life is
not in vain if lived according to GOD’s will.
○ Solomon is trying to destroy people’s
confidence in their own efforts, abilities, and righteousness; while directing
people to a commitment to GOD as the only reason for living.
○ Why am I here? What is the purpose and point of life? Where will I be after I leave here?
○ When we look at the Earth and Nature, it
never changes. There is never any
change. There is always motion.
○ Solomon is referring to human wisdom in
this chapter. Human wisdom only
highlights our problems because it cannot provide answers without GOD’s eternal
perspective and solution.
○ Solomon’s society was no different than
ours: injustice to the poor, crooked politics, incompetent leaders, guilty
people allowed to commit more crimes, materialism, and a desire for the “good
old days”.
○ This book should be an encouragement for
the believer as well as the unbeliever.
■ We can have wealth, education, or social
prestige; life without GOD is futile
(Mark 8:36)
■ Solomon experimented with life and he had
everything, but his life felt empty. We
can learn from Solomon and accept the conclusions he made to avoid the same
heartache and headaches he had experienced.
These experiments can be costly and prove fatal.
○ A life is not monotonous if we are a
member of GOD’s family through our faith in Jesus Christ. Our adventure builds character and it
enables us to serve others to the glory of GOD’s name.
○ GOD’s wisdom is available to us (James 1:5).
○ Turn from the futility of sin and the
world; put your faith in Jesus Christ.
○ Why do we think things are new?
■ We have bad memories and we ‘do not read
the minutes of the previous meeting’.
■ Methods are many, principles are few; but
methods always change but principles do not.
○ For a Christian, life is an open door and
not a closed circle; there are blessings through our lives.
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