The door in front of you is ancient oak and black metal. The stonework of the walls towers above, worn smooth by time, and half consumed by the deep green ivy splashed across the grey colourscape. A pale mist moves slowly in the air, hanging before these portals. The forest behind you is quiet in the early morning chill, and the distant birdsong hails a sunrise yet to come. The dull yellow light of the lanterns is caught visibly in the morning air, suspended in the morning mist. This labyrinth has outlived empires.
Welcome to the door of the labyrinth, because that is what Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 really is.
This passage introduces us to the themes and questions of the entire book, and in that sense it stands before us as an ancient monolithic entryway into the maze. As we make our approach to the doorway of the labyrinth, I want you to open your imagination and try to visualize what’s before you. This maze, as we come to it, is vast. As you walk up to the entrance, on either side you see again those great stone walls spreading out in either direction. As you look at the door itself, what stands before you is a great set of twin oaken panels, closed fast. Each one of these panels represents a mystery – the twin mysteries that will be turned over in our minds and considered again and again as the book unfolds. Verse two lays out these twin enigmas before us in a single expression: “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.”
This phrase is one of the most famous and well-known verses in all of scripture, but it is also one of the most troubling. “Vanity, vanity, all is vanity!” Why in the world would a Christian, of all people, say that everything is vanity? Now to help you to understand this, I want to begin by giving you a lesson in Hebrew. I want you to forget the word vanity for a moment. Where verse two says “vanity,” I want you to insert the word: “hevel.” Hevel, heveleem, says the preacher, hevel, heveleem, all is hevel!” (that’s a rough English equivalent of the Hebrew word, by the way!). This is what I want you to do: every time you hear the word “vanity” I want you to replace it with the word “hevel.”
Now, unless you’ve studied Hebrew, chances are that this word means nothing to you, which is exactly why I want you to use it. Because the truth is that “vanity” is an unfortunately limited translation. When we say “vanity,” in English, we’re calling to mind ideas like: “pointless, meaningless, etc,” but these are not the main ideas that the Preacher is trying to convey. There are times when he does use this word with a nuance of frustration, but “meaningless” is far from the dominating concept that’s on his mind.
What is “hevel”? Literally speaking, it means: “breath.” More literally, then, you could translate verse two as saying: “A breath! A breath! Says the preacher, all things are but a breath.” “Vaporous” also captures the meaning here. All of a sudden, that expression makes a whole lot more sense doesn’t it? A Christian wouldn’t call life meaningless, but vaporous, that makes sense. And so what Solomon is primarily doing with this word is that he’s using an image to express his idea. “Vanity” represents an attempt to translate the imagery of a breath into a concept. I suggest that it’s better to keep the image. After all, we often use images ourselves to convey meaning.
You might see a powerful rugby player and say: “He’s a beast!” He’s not actually a beast, of course, but he’s strong and powerful, and plays the game hard. We might also say something like: “University is a doorway to the future,” or: “The office is a hive of activity.” We use metaphors like this to communicate something about a concept or idea, and that’s what Solomon is doing here.
Solomon is saying: “A breath! A breath! All things are but a breath!” Now when we say a man is a beast, we’re highlighting his strength and his savagery. When we say an office is a hive, we’re highlighting that it is full of activity. When Solomon describes “all things” under the sun as being a breath, he’s highlighting two things (and these two ideas form the twin doors of our labyrinth). First, he’s highlighting the temporary nature of things (a breath is gone in a moment). Secondly, he’s highlighting the lack of substance in the things of this world. As a breath is insubstantial, it cannot be grasped or held, so too is this life under the sun. We cannot hold on to it. It is short, and it is fleeting – insubstantial, impossible to grab hold of. The shortness of life, and the temporary nature of all things – these are Solomon’s key themes in this book.
So then, contrary to the “vanity” translation, the Preacher is not saying that everything is vain, or meaningless, although that sense may be conveyed inasmuch as things are fleeting and insubstantial. And, again, there are times when Solomon does use hevel to highlight that something is meaningless or frustrating, but his purpose here is certainly not to say that all things are meaningless – that is a misreading of the text, and sadly one which is very widely in vogue. After all, you only need to read further in the book to see that he doesn’t think everything is meaningless. There are plenty of times when he commends certain things as good. There is more gain in wisdom than in folly (Ecc 2:13), it is a good thing to eat, drink, and enjoy your work (Ecc 2:24). These are not the comments of a man who literally thinks everything is meaningless. The idea that everything is meaningless is likewise at theological odds with the rest of scripture, and so we must reject it on that basis as well.
Again, to be sure, there is a certain frustration that comes with the temporary nature of life in a fallen world – particularly in a life where one does not fear God. We may indeed struggle with a sense of meaninglessness in life at times, and the Preacher is candid about that struggle at different points. Nonetheless, he does not say that all things are vain or meaningless. It is a very limited and misleading translation of hevel. Again – Solomon’s point is not to say life is meaningless, his point is to highlight how quickly life passes, and how insubstantial the things of this life really are.
And so we have the two doors to this labyrinth of Ecclesiastes: the first door is the recognition that life is short, and the second door is the recognition that the things of this life are insubstantial, transient, or passing – impossible to hold on to. The doors now stand open before us – we’ve unlocked their mystery!
As we step inside, we then see Solomon develop these themes further in verses three and four. We see in verse four that he wants us to know how short life really is, how quickly it passes: “A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.” And he also wants us to see that there is a certain lack of substance in the things that we do in our lives under the sun in verse 3: “What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?”
You see the frustration there don’t you? A man might work his whole life, and yet he himself disappears and no longer gains anything from his work. It’s as though a man breathes a puff of smoke on a cold morning, and he tries to take hold of it. It simply disappears in his fingers, it is a chasing after the wind.
Life is a short and insubstantial thing – these are the twin realities that Solomon calls us to consider. I’m emphasizing this and repeating myself here because it’s so important that you get this – many commentators don’t. And, as you think about it on a personal level, these observations are true aren’t they? Life is short. Things quickly change. And the things of this world, however hard we may work, we cannot hold on to them. You could spend your whole life working, and you get to the end – and what have you gained? We pass away, and money won’t do us any good. Degrees, successful businesses, possessions – we can’t hold on to them, and so what have gained from all our toil?
And it’s short too. Verse 11 says: “There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of later things yet to be.” It’s so true. Within just a few generations, our lives are nothing but a few words on www.ancestry.com. Let me put it this way: what do you know about your great, great grandparents? Most of us wouldn’t even know their names. And even if you know their names, what do you know about their lives? Their struggles? Their desires? Achievements? Failures? The truth of the matter is that within just a few short years, each one of us will be in the same position. Our great-great grandchildren will not know our names. And so the Preacher’s purpose is to bring our attention to just how short and insubstantial life really is, to show us how insubstantial our labours in this world really are.
And the truth is that we need this reality check, because we tend to think of things as permanent and lasting, don’t we? The world around us, our homes, our church buildings, the earth beneath our feet, they all feel very solid don’t they? And yet time will surely wear them away. Riches similarly give people a sense of security. Our jobs, our health, our insurance policies. All of these things are walls in our self-made fortresses of security in this world. We build them up, and surround ourselves with them, and as we sit upon our self-made thrones, we think we are secure. But any one of these things could disappear in a moment. When your doctor tells you that you have cancer. When stock markets fail. When fires destroy homes. When car crashes take lives. We have no guarantee whatsoever that we will be alive tomorrow. And – what’s more – we have no guarantee whatsoever that things today will be the same tomorrow. Our money, our homes, possessions, they could all disappear at a moment’s notice. That is the nature of life under the sun.
Now the culture around us seeks to ignore or alleviate these troubling realities, but the fact is that to fear God is to embrace this reality. Because it is in embracing the uncertainty, the impermanency of life, that we come to see that only God is worthy of our fear and trust.
We have begun our journey in Ecclesiastes. We have walked through the twin doors, we have entered the labyrinth. And as we walked through those doors, we have been confronted with the shortness of life, and the way that our toil and work under the sun so quickly pass away. Now I want to draw these threads together, and apply what we have learned. How do these things help us to grow in the fear of God?
Knowing that life is short, and that the things of the present world are insubstantial, what we see very clearly is this: life without God truly is futile. If you don’t have God, who stands above this fleeting world, then all you have is what’s here in this world. And if that’s all you have, then what you really have is a breath. You have something that will pass quickly, and something that you can’t hold on to. If you don’t have God, then this is what you can expect: a short life, 80 years if you are blessed (though it may well be less), and a life where everything you work for is stripped away from you. You can expect a life where nothing you can possibly do amounts to anything of lasting benefit to you. You can’t benefit from it, because you will be lying in a grave! And you will almost certainly be forgotten by those who come after you. Without God, life is a short, insubstantial, and futile affair.
With God, however, we know for certain that – although our life is short, and although the things that we have are passing quickly away – our labour is not in vain. Because we know and serve the One who is beyond even time itself. The Apostle Paul says in 1 Cor 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labour is not in vain.” As we come to God, through Christ, we have the promise that this life will not be futile. And even though it is short, eternal life awaits us. And rather than us being stripped of our possessions, death will be stripped of its power over us. As mist clears when the sun rises, so the hevel of Ecclesiastes will dissipate for those who trust in Christ. Without God, life truly is futile. With God, life now finds meaning, and the life to come awaits.
Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 also teaches us to embrace the impermanence of this life. Not to fear it, not to lament it, but to embrace it. Because this book of Ecclesiastes, if it is anything, is a reality check. It speaks truth about what it means to live life in a fallen world. And so we need to realise that life is short, we need to realise that all the things that we do in this life under the sun are passing away, and in facing up to that reality in the fear of God, we can freely embrace it rather than fear it.
Now what do I mean by embracing the impermanence of life? That sounds kind of spiritual doesn’t it? But what does that actually mean? What I mean by embracing life’s impermanency is that we must consistently pursue a mindset that is aware of life’s shortness. We must be always aware of how short our time is, and then live accordingly. It means we will know, at all times, how quickly we might lose what we now have, because as you live life aware of its impermanency, the way that you live your life will change.
In this sense, the way that we view life defines how we live it. If you live with no sense of your own mortality, no sense that you will get old or die, then you will not sense the preciousness of time. And by extension you will then waste plenty of time. By contrast, if we live with a sense of life’s shortness, we will be inclined – by the grace of God – to use our time well. Let me give you an illustration on this. If you’re going on a holiday for 2 weeks in Europe, you’re going plan very carefully and try to get the absolute most out of your trip. You’re probably not going to plan to spend three days sitting in a hotel reading a book. You’re going to plan trips to see the sights, you know that your time is limited, and you want to use it well. You want to make the most of what you have. Now what we do for a holiday, we ought to do for life, we ought to live with an awareness of how short our time really is.
The problem for us here is that we are constantly tempted to believe in lies, the lie that things will not change, the illusion of permanency. So often we live life as though the things we now have will always be there. But things do change. Children grow up and move away, our bodies age and decline. And this message is all the more timely in our generation because we live in a time where our culture idolizes youth, and constantly looks backwards at what’s disappearing – at extending our fleeting strength, and beauty, and youth. Don’t do this! the preacher warns. Instead, be aware of your own mortality, your own frailty. Be aware that we live in a fallen world, a world that is under God’s judgment for sin. What is now will not always be, even the stage of life that you’re in, it’s like a vapour. It rises, shifts in shape, and then disappears. In James 4:14 the Apostle says: “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes”
Your goal on a holiday is to be refreshed, to see and experience new things, the wonders and goodness of God’s creation. Your goal in life ought to be to fear God and please him. As a pastor friend of mine likes to say: “Live for an audience of one.” Fear God. Part of what it means to fear God is to realise the shortness and impermanency of life. It is to live in the reality of the fact that death and sin are powerful realities in this age. It is to see the reality of our predicament, and thus to be driven toward God who alone can help us.
This passage also teaches us to cease working for that which is impermanent. It’s so easy to pour the best of our lives, our effort, our time, into the things of this life. Whether it’s working toward a new house, working hard to save money, or simply being consumed by the pursuit of the pleasures of this life. And the preacher isn’t saying don’t work hard, or enjoy life, but he wants us to make a paradigm shift in how we view these things. And so in examining ourselves, we need to question our motivations.
As I work in this world, as I pursue certain things in my life, why am I doing it? As I work towards getting a new house, am I making that decision in the fear of God? Is God part of my thinking process? As I save money, am I doing it with eternity in mind? With the kingdom in view? Or are money and possessions themselves dominating my thinking? As I enjoy life…is my mind increasingly filled only with thoughts of the pleasures that I may experience? Or is it moving beyond those pleasures to praise and thanksgiving towards the God who gave those things? These are the sorts of questions we might ask. How do I view my work? My leisure? And, above all, where is God in my thinking? Is my God an abstract God, or a God I can taste and worship in life’s pleasures? A God whose beauty motivates me to forego certain other sinful pleasures? A God who is so real to me, that I come to see my home and possessions for what they really are: passing and temporary?
This passage teaches us to fear God by embracing the seeming futility of our lives. When things change in life, friends come and go, people die, plans and purposes fail, it’s easy for us to become disillusioned isn’t it? We feel alarmed as that which we relied upon is taken away from us. It’s easy for us then to loose hope, to live in anxiety and question what is to be gained by everything we’ve done in life. And, in a sense, there are no easy answers to these questions. God does not promise us that he will tell us why certain things happen in our lives. We lose loved ones, houses, possessions, and we do not know why, nor can we in most cases. But as we embrace the outlook of Ecclesiastes, we learn to see that this sense of futility or meaninglessness only grows and prospers when we treat the impermanent as permanent. We grieve, but not as those who have no hope.
For when we see the passing nature of all things, that all is in the hands of God, we will be enabled to embrace the sense of futility in the sure knowledge that it isn’t at all futile. In this we will find a pearl of great price, as we grow in the fear of God, and trust Him, our security and sense of purpose will come not from the things or even the people of this life, but from the giver of life Himself. And so when things then change, when people change, when circumstances test us and our plans come to nothing, we need not despair, for our security was never in those things to begin with. Our help is in the name of the LORD, Maker of heaven and earth. And armed with the fear of God, we can embrace the mystery of life in all its uncertainty.
Finally, this passage teaches us to fear God by showing us that nothing in this world can satisfy. You see we live in a culture where pretenders are legion. There are people and companies promising us that satisfaction is just one purchase away, you’ll get constant messages that fulfillment is just around the corner. You’ll find it on a 28 day cruise in the Bahamas. You’ll find it in a bigger house and a better car. You’ll find it after the next pay rise. You’ll bask in it when you retire. We must realise, however, that it’s full of lies, the whole thing, the whole fallen world system. The things of this life will not satisfy, for they are impermanent and changing. There is no satisfaction to be found in stuff. You will not find contentment by filling your world with appliances, holidays, and entertainments, it is all passing – a breath, a breath, all is but a breath! If you try to find your fulfillment in the things under the sun, they will disappear from your grasp like a breath on a cold morning, nothing in all this world can satisfy. And so let me ask you: Is that where you’ve been looking?
Now the Preacher shows us these things so starkly, not to cause us to lose hope, but to cause us to look up through the mist of life and set the eyes of faith on him who is above, to fear God. In the bigger picture of God’s revelation, one of the big things that this passage is really saying is that only Christ can satisfy.
We all want to be satisfied don’t we? Believers and unbelievers alike are on a constant search for happiness and fulfillment. Now here’s the thing, that longing for satisfaction can indeed be met. One of the most basic lessons of theology is the difference between us and God. God is infinite, we are not. And yet… that is not strictly true, because God has placed in our hearts an infinite desire for satisfaction. There is a sense in which we are infinite after all! Ecclesiastes 3:11 makes this very clear when it says that he has put eternity into our hearts. You see, there is a craving that drives humanity – generation after generation – to look for satisfaction, for peace, and for joy. And yet not all the world can fill this gaping hole in our hearts. Every pleasure, all the money in the world, none of it will lastingly or fully satisfy. Here is a key lesson of Ecclesiastes: only God can satisfy the eternal longing of our hearts. There is only one thing in this life that matters, only one thing that will satisfy. Only Christ.
So stop believing the lies of materialism. Instead, seek after God. With all that is within you, seek him. Seek after him with all your soul, strength, heart, and mind. Let everything you do in this short life be aimed at this one goal: to know God, and to be known by him.
Come to God. The doors are open you know. No, this is not just an evangelistic call here, though it is that. These doors are open to all of us. Is your spirit dry and withered? Is your walk with God a collection of platitudes that means nothing to your heart? Christ is the revealer of heaven, and full satisfaction in him is there for all who will seek and believe. You will not find God through eastern meditation or world religions, but nor will you find him through church attendance or getting involved in church life, activities and service. Live life to please Christ, and to be pleased by him. This is wisdom: fear the Lord. As we continue in this book, Solomon will lead us on these paths. Prepare to be uncomfortable. Prepare to have your eyes opened to joy unspeakable. Prepare to weep, prepare to laugh, prepare to make love, and prepare to make war – for there is a time for each of these things. I hope you will join me, there is much more to be seen in the labyrinth… SDG.
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