I don’t know if there is another book in the whole Bible that details the day and the society in which we live as well as the book of Ecclesiastes. It reveals a man who was so obsessed with gaining knowledge that the search practically became his god and produced disappointment. Many in our day are similarly obsessed. Those who are “smart” or well educated are presumed to know more about life and have a greater wisdom about life than others. Some believe mere human knowledge will lead them to know how this universe originated. (Godly, biblical knowledge would do that but not human wisdom.) Still others are staking their future on “science,” believing that it has all of the answers for defeating disease (COVID) and death. Today our world seeks wisdom and knowledge apart from God, and, sadly, churches are not immune to it either. And, there are those who have adopted the same approach that Solomon did in chapter 2, seeking the meaning of life in pleasure, in projects, in possessions, and in prominence. Again, in our day education and knowledge are equated with wisdom. There is nothing wrong with education and knowledge. However, we can fill our heads with knowledge and still act unwisely and have lives that lack true meaning and purpose. One of my favorite lines by Jerry Clower is, “Some people are educated beyond their own intelligence.” You must be able to use the knowledge and education you have! Years ago people were coming out of college with master’s and doctor’s degrees who could only find jobs in fast food restaurants making hamburgers, etc. If they were depending upon their degrees to give them purpose in life, they were disappointed. Wisdom is not knowledge, and mere knowledge is not wisdom. True, godly wisdom (which is what we need today) is the right, or godly use of the knowledge we have. In these last few verses of chapter one we see that Solomon says he gave his heart “to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven . . . ” He wanted to learn as much as he could about as much as he could. But in vs. 14 he calls it “sore travail,” and his conclusion of the matter in vs. 18 is that “in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.” Before we get into these verses, remember this: God had promised to make Solomon wise. I believe God gave Solomon the wisdom to lead Israel as well as the capacity for the accumulation of knowledge. He didn’t just drop it on him suddenly. Solomon had to apply himself to the pursuit of knowledge. Now we see in these verses Solomon expecting to find meaning, purpose, joy, and hope for life in the mere accumulation of human “wisdom” and knowledge. So, Solomon declares his position (vs. 12) and as we come to vs. 13 we see:

I. HIS DEDICATION TO WISDOM - VS. 13.

II. HIS DISCOVERY ABOUT WISDOM - VV. 14-15.

III. HIS DISAPPOINTMENT CONCERNING WISDOM - VV. 16-18.