10 Then too, I saw the burial of the wicked who used to go in and out of the holy place, and they were praised in the city where they had done so. This too is futile. 11 When the sentence for a crime is not speedily executed, the hearts of men become fully set on doing evil.

12 Although a sinner does evil a hundred times and still lives long, yet I also know that it will go well with those who fear God, who are reverent in His presence. 13 Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.

14 There is a futility that is done on the earth: There are righteous men who get what the actions of the wicked deserve, and there are wicked men who get what the actions of the righteous deserve. I say that this too is futile.

15 So I commended the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be merry. For this joy will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.

16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe the task that one performs on the earth—though his eyes do not see sleep in the day or even in the night— 17 I saw every work of God, and that a man is unable to comprehend the work that is done under the sun. Despite his efforts to search it out, he cannot find its meaning; even if the wise man claims to know, he is unable to comprehend.

REFLECTIONS

Written by James Beck

I was watching a movie the other day with my fiancée that had a clear good guy and a clear bad guy. Normally, in movies like this, the good guy wins and saves the day while the bad guy gets what they deserve. There is always justice or a happy ending—and in the real world, that’s mostly what we want to happen in bad situations. But too often, it does not. The Teacher here in Ecclesiastes seems to have conducted an experiment on his surroundings and has discovered that, under the sun, it’s the other way around. The wicked get blessed while the righteous or blameless get nothing (verse 14). I think we still see this in our lives or around the world, and we wonder: Isn’t God just? Why hasn't he fixed this?

Sometimes, when we have those questions, God might not give us the answers straight away, or we might not fully understand what God has planned, because we are not God. But the Teacher offers some light through his investigation. He notes that the wicked and their pursuit of gain are meaningless. At the end of the day, they will face death like everyone else. But most importantly, they will have a far worse conclusion than people who put their trust in God. If they do not turn to the Lord Jesus and follow Him, they will suffer His condemnation on the Day of Judgment. While it may seem like the Lord is not at work, He still is.

There is injustice in the world, but we should be reminded that God will make things right and that His justice will prevail, when the Lord Jesus returns.

We have a God who is righteous and forgives us through His Son if we come to Him, but He is also a just God who will not let sin go unpunished. Pray and ask God to always keep you living in the wisdom of that bigger perspective.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James is one of our Student Ministers.

1 Who is like the wise man? Who knows the interpretation of a matter? A man’s wisdom brightens his face, and the sternness of his face is changed.

2 Keep the king’s command, I say, because of your oath before God. 3 Do not hasten to leave his presence, and do not persist in a bad cause, for he will do whatever he pleases. 4 For the king’s word is supreme, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?”

5 Whoever keeps his command will come to no harm, and a wise heart knows the right time and procedure. 6 For there is a right time and procedure to every purpose, though a man’s misery weighs heavily upon him. 7 Since no one knows what will happen, who can tell him what is to come?

8 As no man has power over the wind to contain it, so no one has authority over his day of death. As no one can be discharged in wartime, so wickedness will not release those who practice it. 9 All this I have seen, applying my mind to every deed that is done under the sun; there is a time when one man lords it over another to his own detriment.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Andy Rowlands

I so often hear and ask for prayers to ask for wisdom. Like the Teacher, we have this instinctive desire for the wisdom we need to act rightly and confidently in uncertain situations. The teacher has been pointing us toward this throughout Ecclesiastes. And here, he teaches us to act wisely in our relationship to authority—which, in his day, meant the king.

In Australia, we do not have a king or queen in the same way—King Charles’ power is delegated to our government to rule us. The Teacher wants to show us that it is wise to listen to those in power over us. That obeying the laws of our country is a good and wise thing to do, and takes away the burden of much uncertainty, if we are content to listen to those God has put in power over us. But even as we obey them, we need to remember the limitations of human authorities. They, like us, do not know what is going to come.

But every man sits under the power of a higher king, our Lord and Saviour Jesus. Even more than any government, he is the only one who truly has the authority to do whatever he pleases! In his hands are the life and death of every man, and he knows what is to come.  And his are trustworthy hands to hold our lives. In this world where various men lord their powers over others, to the detriment of themselves and of others, he is the one whom we can trust to use his power for not only for his good but also for ours.

Jesus, the truly wise one, is the one whose commands are wise to follow not only because he is our ultimate king, but because he is the one who sets us free from wickedness and brings us into everlasting life with him.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andy is one of our Student Ministers.

15 In my futile life I have seen both of these:

A righteous man perishing in his righteousness,
and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.

16 Do not be overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Do not be excessively wicked, and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good to grasp the one and not let the other slip from your hand. For he who fears God will follow both warnings.

19 Wisdom makes the wise man
stronger than ten rulers in a city.
20 Surely there is no righteous man on earth
who does good and never sins.

21 Do not pay attention to every word that is spoken, or you may hear your servant cursing you. 22 For you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.

23 All this I tested by wisdom, saying, “I resolve to be wise.” But it was beyond me. 24 What exists is out of reach and very deep. Who can fathom it?

25 I directed my mind to understand, to explore, to search out wisdom and explanations, and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the folly of madness. 26 And I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a net, and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is ensnared.

27 “Behold,” says the Teacher, “I have discovered this by adding one thing to another to find an explanation. 28 While my soul was still searching but not finding, among a thousand I have found one upright man, but among all these I have not found one such woman. 29 Only this have I found: I have discovered that God made men upright, but they have sought out many schemes.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Matt Radloff

What does it look like to fear God? For the Teacher, in verse 18, the one who fears God will follow both warnings in verses 16-17. On the one hand, he warns that being overly righteous and making yourself too wise will result in you destroying yourself. On the other hand, he warns that foolishness results in an untimely end. As I read this passage, I find it easy to agree with the second warning, but I find it harder to understand the first. Of course we shouldn’t be foolish, of course we shouldn’t be excessively wicked! But why warn against being overly righteous? Surely that’s a good thing, right?

Righteousness is of course a very good thing. God tells us so throughout the Bible. But we’re warned here that if we chase righteousness out of an expectation in ourselves to be perfect, we are only bound for disappointment and crushing guilt. As the Teacher says in verse 20, “Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins”.

In a way, the Teacher is half-right. We ourselves can’t expect to be so perfect that we never sin. And if we get that wrong then we will only end up in despair. But there is one man who is an exception to the rule. One man, the righteous one, who never sinned. It’s by looking to Jesus that we see the one man who was perfectly righteous, and perfectly wise. And he was destroyed. Not crushed under his own guilt, but under ours.

For us, to fear God is to follow the warning of this passage. To realise that we ourselves can’t be righteous enough on our own. We instead turn to God and his solution. We turn to Jesus, the righteous one.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Matt is one of our Student Ministers.

8 The end of a matter is better than the beginning,
and a patient spirit is better than a proud one.

9 Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
for anger settles in the lap of a fool.
10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”
For it is unwise of you to ask about this.

11 Wisdom, like an inheritance, is good,
and it benefits those who see the sun.
12 For wisdom, like money, is a shelter,
and the advantage of knowledge
is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner.

13 Consider the work of God:
Who can straighten what He has bent?
14 In the day of prosperity, be joyful,
but in the day of adversity, consider this:
God has made one of these along with the other,
so that a man cannot discover
anything that will come after him.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Gus Cameron

A lot of the stress in my life comes when I feel like I can’t control the future. One of the big differences between us and God is that he controls the future and we don’t. Verses 8 and 9 describe two ways we ought to respond to our lack of control: with patience and without anger. Patience seems more obvious – when things aren’t going the way I want them to, I need to patiently trust that God will look after me and my family. But we’re also warned not to be angry too quickly, which makes sense when we realise that our angry outbursts are often a response to us feeling out of control. When I’ve raised my voice with my kids, it’s usually because I’m frustrated that I can’t make them do what I want them to do.

What’s the answer? Wisdom! The wisdom to realise that God is in control and we are not, and that’s ok! Verse 13 asks: “Consider the work of God: Who can straighten what He has bent?” If God chooses to do something, we cannot change what he has done – and that’s ok because we know that God’s plans for us are good.

This section finishes by reminding us that we don’t know the future like God does. But God has given us a sneak peek into the future. He has shown us that in Christ Jesus we have a wonderful future with him. True wisdom is knowing that we are safe and secure in Jesus. It is resisting the pride of believing we can change our destiny, and waiting patiently for his return.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gus is our Senior Assisant Minister.

1 A good name is better than fine perfume,
and one’s day of death is better than his day of birth.
2 It is better to enter a house of mourning
than a house of feasting,
since death is the end of every man,
and the living should take this to heart.

3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
for a sad countenance is good for the heart.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

5 It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke
than to listen to the song of fools.
6 For like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of the fool. This too is futile.

7 Surely extortion turns a wise man into a fool,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.

REFLECTIONS

Written by James Davidson

Verse 2 says, ‘It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, since death is the end of every man, and the living should take this to heart.’ This sounds counter-intuitive to me! I would certainly rather go to a wedding reception than a funeral. So what point is being made here? While a wedding reception is enjoyable – and there’s nothing wrong with that – going to a funeral will teach me an important lesson that I won’t learn at a wedding reception. Going to a funeral will remind me that, like everybody else, I will die – unless Jesus returns first, but let’s leave that joyous prospect aside for the moment. Being reminded that I will die is good for me, because it reminds me that I need to be ready for that day. I need to be trusting Christ each day for my salvation so that I’m ready to meet him when I die.

It also spurs me on to make the most of each day. My days on this earth are limited, and I don’t know how many I’ve got left. So I need to make the most of each day to do the things that God has called me to do. My days are like water – a precious but limited resource. I don’t want to waste them away.

To live in denial of death is a great foolishness. Because it means you will not be prepared for death and you will be inclined to waste your precious days on earth.

Many old churches were surrounded by graveyards. Imagine if every week when you went to church, you walked through a graveyard. The message you received as you entered and as you left would be just as powerful as the one you heard in the church. I love the way Psalm 90:12 puts that message: ‘So teach us to number our days, that we may present a heart of wisdom.’

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James is one of our Assisant Ministers.

1 There is another evil I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily upon mankind: 2 God gives a man riches, wealth, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires; but God does not allow him to enjoy them. Instead, a stranger will enjoy them. This is futile and a grievous affliction.

3 A man may father a hundred children and live for many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he is unsatisfied with his prosperity and does not even receive a proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4 For a stillborn child enters in futility and departs in darkness, and his name is shrouded in obscurity. 5 The child, though neither seeing the sun nor knowing anything, has more rest than that man, 6 even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?

7 All a man’s labor is for his mouth,
yet his appetite is never satisfied.

8 What advantage, then, has the wise man over the fool? What gain comes to the poor man who knows how to conduct himself before others? 9 Better what the eye can see than the wandering of desire. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

10 Whatever exists was named long ago, and what happens to a man is foreknown; but he cannot contend with one stronger than he. 11 For the more words, the more futility—and how does that profit anyone? 12 For who knows what is good for a man during the few days in which he passes through his fleeting life like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will come after him under the sun?

REFLECTIONS

Written by James Davidson

Verse 9 is thought-provoking: ‘Better what the eye can see than the wandering of desire.’ I take it that means that it’s better to be thankful for and enjoy what you do have rather than to be continually wanting what you don’t have.

I can see the application to friendships. Far better to be thankful for and enjoy the friendships I do have rather than always wishing for friendships I don’t have. 

For the married, I can see the application to marriage. Far better for to be thankful for and enjoy the spouse you do have rather than be wishing for other romantic relationships.

I can see the application to possessions. Far better to be thankful for and enjoy what I have than to be continually striving for and wanting what I don’t have – that is a recipe for frustration.

And I can see the application to my spiritual life. Far better to be thankful for and enjoy all the blessings I have in Christ than to desire the fleeting pleasures of sin.

No wonder the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 6:6, ‘But godliness with contentment is great gain.’ O Lord, give us the priceless gift of contentment. Help us to appreciate and be thankful for and enjoy all you have generously given us. Take from us the greed in our hearts that is never satisfied with what it has, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James is one of our Assisant Ministers.

8 If you see the oppression of the poor and the denial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be astonished at the matter; for one official is watched by a superior, and others higher still are over them. 9 The produce of the earth is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.

10 He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile. 11 When good things increase, so do those who consume them; what then is the profit to the owner, except to behold them with his eyes?

12 The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep.

13 There is a grievous evil I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner, 14 or wealth lost in a failed venture, so when that man has a son there is nothing to pass on.

15 As a man came from his mother’s womb, so he will depart again, naked as he arrived. He takes nothing for his labor to carry in his hands. 16 This too is a grievous evil: Exactly as a man is born, so he will depart. What does he gain as he toils for the wind? 17 Moreover, all his days he eats in darkness, with much sorrow, sickness, and anger.

18 Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of life that God has given him—for this is his lot.

19 Furthermore, God has given riches and wealth to every man, and He has enabled him to enjoy them, to accept his lot, and to rejoice in his labor. This is a gift from God. 20 For a man seldom considers the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with the joy of his heart.

REFLECTIONS

Written by James Davidson

Despite the harsh realities of life in this world which is under God’s curse, there is a route to satisfaction and joy. Verses 8-17 mention some of those harsh realities:

• The powerful take from the poor.

• If we love money, it never satisfies.

• More wealth brings more worries and less sleep.

• If we hoard wealth, it harms us.

• Wealth is easily lost.

• No matter how hard we work, we leave this world with absolutely nothing.

We need to accept these harsh realities if we are going to find the route to satisfaction and joy in verses 18-20. But how do we find that route? The Teacher says in verse 19, ‘Furthermore, God has given riches and wealth to every man.’ This is more than material riches and wealth, for not everyone has those. This is the wealth of knowing God and his love and his Word. This is the wealth of his creation. We can all enjoy a cool breeze, a sunset and a tasty meal.

The Teacher goes on to say that God has enabled us to enjoy these riches and wealth he has given us. God wants us to enjoy his creation. But he also says we need to accept our lot. We need to accept that we serve God in a world under his curse so life will be difficult. But we can still rejoice in our labour. We can rejoice that in our labour we are looking after God’s creation and serving those God has given us to love.

And as New Covenant believers we can rejoice that none of our work done in serving the gospel will be in vain, as we have seen in our key verse from the Apostle Paul: ‘Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain’ (1 Corinthians 15:58). So let’s thank God for today. Thank him for our work, no matter how frustrating it is, and thank him that our efforts in the gospel are never in vain.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James is one of our Assisant Ministers.

1 Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. 2 Do not be quick to speak, and do not be hasty in your heart to utter a word before God. After all, God is in heaven and you are on earth. So let your words be few.3 As a dream comes through many cares,
so the speech of a fool comes with many words.

4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow. 5 It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.

6 Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, and do not tell the messenger that your vow was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands? 7 For as many dreams bring futility, so do many words. Therefore, fear God.

REFLECTIONS

Written by James Davidson

Did you notice the change of tone at the beginning of chapter 5? In chapters 1 to 4, the Teacher has been observing how difficult life is in this world which is under God’s curse because of our rebellion. Work is frustrating. Nothing lasts. Death reigns. So much seems meaningless. But in chapter 5 he moves to wise instruction. In this fallen world where nothing lasts what’s important is how we relate to the everlasting God.

And how should we relate to the everlasting God? By listening to him and then listening some more. ‘Draw near to listen’ says the Teacher. God speaks to us by his Holy Spirit as we read his word or listen to it being read or preached. But are we listening? Are we paying attention? If not, our prayers could actually be offensive to God. The teacher says, ‘Draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.’ What is the sacrifice of fools? One example is long prayers that are not based on God’s Word but based only on our selfish desires.

The Teacher says, ‘Do not be quick to speak, and do not be hasty in your heart to utter a word before God.’ He is not discouraging us from praying, he’s saying to listen carefully to God’s word before you pray. Pray in the light of God’s word. Then your prayers will be pleasing to God.

The reason we should do this is, according to the Teacher, is that God is in heaven and we are on earth, that is, God is King and we are his subjects. Would you barge into the boss’s office and let fly with all your complaints before you’ve tried to understand the boss’s perspective? How much more should we listen to God before we speak to him.

So, having just listened to God, keep his word in mind as you speak to him now.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James is one of our Assisant Ministers.

4 I saw that all labor and success spring from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

5 The fool folds his hands
and consumes his own flesh.
6 Better one handful with tranquility
than two handfuls with toil and pursuit of the wind.

7 Again, I saw futility under the sun. 8 There is a man all alone, without even a son or brother. And though there is no end to his labor, his eyes are still not content with his wealth: “For whom do I toil and bereave my soul of enjoyment?” This too is futile—a miserable task.

9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. 10 For if one falls down, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to help him up! 11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one keep warm alone? 12 And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

13 Better is a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take a warning. 14 For the youth has come from the prison to the kingship, though he was born poor in his own kingdom.

15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed this second one, the youth who succeeded the king. 16 There is no limit to all the people who were before them. Yet the successor will not be celebrated by those who come even later. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Tim Mitry

Have you seen those ads that say, “Do this to retire at 40,” or “Do these 5 simple steps to make your money work for you”? You know – the ad that promises never having to work again? At the same time, have you ever noticed that in Australia we subtly boast about doing extra hours or overtime? Our culture has a foot in two camps – we love the idea of never working another day in our life, but we also love to proudly show off how hard we work. We like to make sure we “keep up with the Joneses,” after all.

I’ve felt the pull of both of these. I’ve yearned to have 5 investment properties and be able to tell my boss, “Hey I’m not coming in tomorrow…or ever again,”, but I’ve also heard that voice inside me say, “Keep grinding the billable hours, my mates have been to Japan twice and I’ve only gone once.”

Verses 4-6 of today’s passage are pointing out that working to keep pace with the rest of society is just as empty as refusing to work at all – both are like chasing the wind. The “grind life” is nothing to brag about, but neither is disengaging from “the grind” altogether.

Many of my friends are building businesses, travelling overseas regularly, buying homes and investment properties, and filling their lives with bigger and shinier things. The author of Ecclesiastes reminds me that a peaceful life with enough is better than a life driven by endless striving for more. I am challenged to see that God created me to work – it is good for me to work! But if I worship work, or worship what it can do for me, I’ll be enslaved to it. Praise God for Jesus who offers true, lasting satisfaction, and frees me to work faithfully and contentedly.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tim is one of our ministry apprentices.

16 Furthermore, I saw under the sun that in the place of judgment there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness. 17 I said in my heart, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every deed.”

18 I said to myself, “As for the sons of men, God tests them so that they may see for themselves that they are but beasts.” 19 For the fates of both men and beasts are the same: As one dies, so dies the other—they all have the same breath. Man has no advantage over the animals, since everything is futile. 20 All go to one place; all come from dust, and all return to dust.

21 Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward and the spirit of the animal descends into the earth? 22 I have seen that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will come after him?

Chapter Four

1 Again I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter. 2 So I admired the dead, who had already died, above the living, who are still alive. 3 But better than both is he who has not yet existed, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Gus Cameron

As I read this passage, it made me think about what life would be like without God and without knowing the Lord Jesus.

First, it describes us as no better than the animals. We live and we die. We come from the dust and we’ll be buried in the ground. I remember as a child saying to my mum that we are just animals – smart animals, but just animals all the same. Except that’s not true! We are made in the image of God, we belong to him, we are precious to him – so precious that he sent his Son to die for us so that we might live with him forever. How sad is it for those who don’t know Christ Jesus, who live believing that we are nothing.

Second, it describes the injustice of this life. We know that evil and wickedness go unpunished all too often. Imagine believing that there is no justice, that evil people will get away with their evil. But we know that Christ Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead. We know that there will be comfort for the oppressed when every tear will be wiped away.

This passage shows us the despair of life without Christ. It makes me so much more thankful for Christ Jesus. Give thanks for Jesus, and pray for someone who doesn’t know him, that he would rescue them from that despair.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gus is our Senior Assisant Minister.