[Linux4christians] Wednesday - Ecclesiastes 6 – 7:14

Tue Jun 14 23:06:36 EDT 2011

    Wednesday

      Ecclesiastes 6 – 7:14

Not Everyone Enjoys Life

6:1 Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs 
heavily on people:

6:2 God gives a man riches, property, and wealth so that he lacks 
nothing that his heart desires, yet God does not enable him to enjoy the 
fruit of his labor – instead, someone else enjoys it! This is fruitless 
and a grave misfortune.

6:3 Even if a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years – even 
if he lives a long, long time, but cannot enjoy his prosperity – even if 
he were to live forever – I would say, “A stillborn child is better off 
than he is!”

6:4 Though the stillborn child came into the world for no reason and 
departed into darkness, though its name is shrouded in darkness,

6:5 though it never saw the light of day nor knew anything, yet it has 
more rest than that man –

6:6 if he should live a thousand years twice, yet does not enjoy his 
prosperity. For both of them die!

6:7 All of man’s labor is for nothing more than to fill his stomach – 
yet his appetite is never satisfied!

6:8 So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool?

And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?

6:9 It is better to be content with what the eyes can see than for one’s 
heart always to crave more.

This continual longing is futile – like chasing the wind.

The Futile Way Life Works

6:10 Whatever has happened was foreordained, and what happens to a 
person was also foreknown. It is useless for him to argue with God about 
his fate because God is more powerful than he is.

6:11 The more one argues with words, the less he accomplishes. How does 
that benefit him?

6:12 For no one knows what is best for a person during his life – during 
the few days of his fleeting life – for they pass away like a shadow. 
Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth.

Life is Brief and Death is Certain!

7:1 A good reputation is better than precious perfume; likewise, the day 
of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth.

7:2 It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the 
destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart.

7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter, because sober reflection is good for 
the heart.

7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of 
fools is in the house of merrymaking.

Frivolous Living Versus Wisdom

7:5 It is better for a person to receive a rebuke from those who are 
wise than to listen to the song of fools.

7:6 For like the crackling of quick-burning thorns under a cooking pot, 
so is the laughter of the fool. This kind of folly also is useless.

Human Wisdom Overturned by Adversity

7:7 Surely oppression can turn a wise person into a fool; likewise, a 
bribe corrupts the heart.

7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning; likewise, patience 
is better than pride.

7:9 Do not let yourself be quickly provoked, for anger resides in the 
lap of fools.

7:10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these days?” for it 
is not wise to ask that.

Wisdom Can Lengthen One’s Life

7:11 Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing; it benefits those who 
see the light of day.

7:12 For wisdom provides protection, just as money provides protection. 
But the advantage of knowledge is this:

Wisdom preserves the life of its owner.

Wisdom Acknowledges God’s Orchestration of Life

7:13 Consider the work of God: For who can make straight what he has bent?

7:14 In times of prosperity be joyful, but in times of adversity 
consider this: God has made one as well as the other, so that no one can 
discover what the future holds.

      Prayer

Lord, Your message is consistent and simple – if we look toward Your 
perfect will for our lives and live through the wisdom that You provide 
we may expect a better result than if we disobey and foolishly disregard 
Your perfect wisdom. May my heart be submitted to You, no matter what.

      Commentary

Solomon argued that a man may have given to him, by the Lord God, 
everything that his heart desires but may also be denied of the joy of 
it – passing it on to others – therefore, his life is worse than one 
never born. [The text does not clearly explain but it seems that the man 
was irresponsible and/or ungrateful with what he had been given. The 
text following suggests that the problem was an absence of being content 
with that he had and therefore obsessed with the acquisition of more.]

He then argued that it was pointless for the man to argue with the Lord 
God about his fate because everything was “... foreordained, and what 
happens to a person was also foreknown.” This sounds like fatalism but 
really represents covenant or conditional-related outcomes based upon 
choices. If the man is ungrateful and obsessed with the endless pursuit 
of wealth then he has no expectation of the Lord God's blessing. If the 
man is grateful and content with has been given him by the Lord then he 
will be blessed.

Solomon taught that “A good reputation is better than precious 
perfume;”, which means that an ethical lifestyle was very important, and 
“...likewise, the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s 
birth.”, because one no longer had to strive to keep a good reputation.

He declared “It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is 
the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart 
...Sorrow is better than laughter, because sober reflection is good for 
the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the 
heart of fools is in the house of merrymaking.” because the ones left 
behind could find value in the study of the life of the recently 
deceased and in the recognition that they would not live forever to 
bring closure to everything they had left undone and/or unsaid and/or 
unreconciled.

Solomon returned to a theme of Proverbs, warning that one who lived a 
shallow and meaningless life wasted his or her life.

He then warned that one who appeared wise, based on mere human knowledge 
and philosophy, would abandon their prideful-certainty in times of 
trouble. He also warned that looking back upon human achievements and 
worldly history and declaring the “old days” better than today was foolish.

Solomon taught that wisdom preserved life, because it protected one from 
foolish choices, and wisdom also acknowledged God’s involvement in life 
based upon man's heat-centered choices to obey or disobey – and the 
consequences of those choices.

He concluded that one must at all times be joyful that one belongs to 
the Lord God, good or difficult, because you neither know what things 
lie ahead nor why, and you cannot change them, so trust the Lord to get 
you through.

      Interaction

Consider

Accepting that the Lord God has the big-picture under control and that 
He does all things for His good purpose, makes the dealing with worldly 
imperfections more bearable.

        Discuss

Why did Solomon repeat the phrase that deal was often better than life?

        Reflect

As is the teaching throughout the Bible, the Lord God knows our hearts, 
so He know why we do what we do – not matter if we appear to be wise or 
foolish to fellow human beings.

        Share

When have you observed someone with many blessings from the Lord God 
wasting their life because they were never satisfied?

      Faith in Action

Prayer:

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an opportunity to celebrate the 
promise of Heaven and the many gifts of the Lord God in the midst of 
difficulty.

        Action:

Today I will rake the time to remember all that the Lord God has done 
for me and praise Him, I will also seek what I may learn from the 
present difficulty and praise Him for maturing me, and finally I will 
allow Him to be my comfort and strength and I will praise Him for that.

        Be Specific ______________________________________________________

    Thursday's text will be:

      Ecclesiastes 7:15 - 8

-- 

Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you,
Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day!
David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo
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Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com
Bible Resources: http://bible.org
Teacher's Verse: John 7:16
Defend free speech or lose your freedom.
I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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