Study Notes: Ecclesiastes
Main theme: “The Meaning of Life.” A book of philosophy, 3,000 years old.
King David, and King Solomon, lived most immoral lives:
Three hundred concubines and seven hundred wives!
But then, as each grew older, they began to have some qualms –
One of them wrote Proverbs, the other one the Psalms!
(James Ball Naylor (1860-1945))
Activity Idea:
1. View the introductory video at www.goldhill.org/ecclesiastes
2. Enjoy Solomon’s song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zx6j4vI8lE
Question: How does Ecclesiastes compare with The Alpha Course? Or Job?
Context:
Ecclesiastes is one of the three “Wisdom” books attributed to King Solomon due to Ch 1 v
12: I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
We saw at the beginning of 1 Kings that when Solomon became king, about 30 years old, he
prayed for wisdom.
God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight … Solomon's wisdom was greater than the
wisdom of all the men of the East, and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt… And his fame spread to
all the surrounding nations. He spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand
and five… (1 Kings 4:29-32)
This was early in the life of Solomon, before he built the Temple and his own palace. So far,
so good, but what happened after that?
When Solomon had finished building the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved
all he had desired to do, the LORD appeared to him a second time…
"I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you
have built, by putting my Name there for ever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
"As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did,
and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne over Israel
for ever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the
throne of Israel.'
"But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have
given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I
have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a
byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. And though this temple is now imposing, all who
pass by will be appalled and will scoff and say, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and
to this temple?' People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the LORD their God, who brought
their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshipping and serving them—that is
why the LORD brought all this disaster on them.' " (1 Kings 9:1-9)
The warning could not be more clear. Yahweh appeared directly to Solomon, he did not
speak through a prophet. And what did Solomon do?
King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter—Moabites,
Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the LORD had
told the Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts
after their gods." (Exodus 34:15f, Deut 7 3f, remember?!) Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in
love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led
him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not
fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth
the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil
in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done. On a
hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for
Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned
incense and offered sacrifices to their gods. (1 Kings 11:1-8)
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Questions:
Q 1. What specific commandments did Solomon fail to remember?
(Exodus 34:16, Deuteronomy 7:3 ?)
Q 2. Did he obey Deuteronomy 17:14-20? What did he not do?
Q 4. Similarly, Yahweh said to Joshua just a few weeks later: … Do not let this Book of the Law
depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night … (Josh 1:8) Do you think Solomon
learned the lesson from Moses and Joshua?
Q 5. Solomon had enormous Wisdom, Wives and Worldly possessions.
Would you regard him as a successful man?
Would the world have regarded him as successful?
WHY would God warn us all through scripture if it was impossible to fall away?
Substance of Ecclesiastes
“The Meaning of Life” is a question that is as relevant today as it was 3,000 years ago. It is
a slogan for the Alpha Course. Ecclesiastes can be a very good place to start if you are
looking for the meaning of life. In those days there was very little philosophy of this kind.
Solomon summarizes his conclusion at the beginning and at the end of his monologue, in
Ch 1 v 2 and Ch 12 v 8: “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Everything is
meaningless.” In other words, all this philosophy and reasoning gets him absolutely
nowhere, because he finishes up exactly where he started, none the wiser.
Solomon believed in God, but he said in 11 v 5:
As you do not know the path of the wind,
or how the body is formed in a mother's womb,
so you cannot understand the work of God,
the Maker of all things.
“Cannot understand.” Paul used that phrase in 1 Cor 2 when trying to describe the secret
things of God, the mystery of Christ and the Holy Spirit: these things are “spiritually
discerned,” and the man without the Spirit “cannot understand” them. As for “The path of the
wind,” Jesus said something about this - John 3:8. But back to our reasoning. It is not that
God is unreasonable, it is that God is beyond reason. If God was within reason, then we
could reason our way to God. But we cannot. He is not so small that our minds can
understand him. Philosophy cannot lead us to God. Really, it is actually God who leads us
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to God, for Jesus said, “Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me.”
John 6:45.
Conclusions
Solomon worked his way through Wisdom, Pleasures, Toil, Time, Oppression,
Advancement, Riches, Wisdom again, and he finished exactly where he started, see ch 12:8,
“Meaningless! … Everything is meaningless!” Then he concluded with words that are
profound, yet simple:
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The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails—given by
one Shepherd. 12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.
Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.
13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
Jesus, “one Shepherd” indeed, must have known this. Nothing is hidden from Jesus! He
said: For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be
known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17
This is very Jewish, like Job, with much debate and, finally, a powerful punch-line.
will bring every deed into judgment. Paul echoed this in Athens:
God
“… now he (God) commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will
judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by
raising him from the dead." Acts 17:30-31
LAST WORD: Fear God, and love God. Fear Jesus, and love Jesus. He knows every hidden
thing about you. This book is a huge warning against falling away. Keep on spending time
with him and his word. Draw near to listen, not to speak (Ecc 5). Let your words be few!
Write down 2 or 3 verses if the Spirit prompts you to remember them. Share them if you
wish, and close by blessing one another. Amen!
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