"THE PREACHER"
Ecc. 1:1-3 INTRODUCTION
Rev. Julio González
"Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?"
"What is life all about? What is the point of living? Why should we work so hard to gain things that we will eventually loose or leave to others? What really matters in life?" These are just a few of the questions that Solomon tries to answer in the Book now before us. Ecclesiastes may seem, at first, like a hard book to understand, but it is a very worthwhile and important book to study for our own personal spiritual growth. Unfortunately, most Christians give the Book very little thought. In fact, many of us would have to agree with the following testimony.
"For years I had a Bible with two books missing [Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon]. They had been printed all right, but I never read them. I could not make head nor tail of them, and so ignored them. For all practical purposes, they did not exist. Not unnaturally, my spiritual life was stunted, for my Lord declared, ’Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God’ (Matt. 4:4)."
Ecclesiastes was written for us and we cannot ignore it without impoverishing ourselves. Its style is not quite what we are used to, but its message is plain. It tells us what kind of living is worthwhile. This it does by a process of reasonings, reflections, observations and conclusions, all encapsulated in pithy [deep and meaningful] and brief lines of poetry." ...S. Olyott
However, there are certain things about the Book you will need to know if you are going to understand its message.
I. The Messenger Ecc. 1:1-2
A. Who wrote the Book?
There is almost no question as to the author of the Book of Ecclesiastes. The "Preacher" as he calls himself, is obviously King Solomon. "This we should have thought had been a matter placed beyond controversy. ’The words... of the Son of David - King of Jerusalem’ - seem to point with absolute precision to Solomon - the only ’Son of David,’ who was the possessor of that royalty,(1:1,12)." ...C. Bridges
B. When did he write the Book?
It also seems obvious that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes later in his life. It is a book where we see him looking back and contemplating how his life has been spent and asking himself, "What was the meaning of it all?"
“Solomon began his reign as a humble servant of the Lord, seeking God’s wisdom and help (I Kings 3:5-15). As he grew older, his heart turned away from Jehovah to the false gods of the many wives he had taken from foreign lands (I Kings 11:1). The kings later years were miserable because God removed His hand of blessing (I Kings 11:1) and maintained Solomon’s throne only because of His promise to David.
Ecclesiastes appears to be the kind of book a person would write near the close of life, reflecting on life’s experiences and the lessons learned. Solomon probably wrote Proverbs (Prov. 1:1, I Kings 4:32) and the Song of Solomon (1:1) during the years he faithfully walked with God; and near the end of his life, he wrote Ecclesiastes. There is no record that King Solomon repented and turned to the Lord, but his message in Ecclesiastes suggests that the did.” ...W. W. Wiersbe
II. The Method of Delivery Ecc. 1:3
"In this book Solomon looks at life from two viewpoints. First of all he stands in one position, and then in the other, and does this alternately throughout the book. He sees the same issues from two perspectives. It is virtually impossible to make sense of Ecclesiastes unless this simple fact has been grasped first." ...S. Olyott
A. "Solomon’s first viewpoint is that of a natural man. He sees life through the
eyes of a person who is still unconverted. Such a person tackles life’s problems
without the light of God’s revelation. He leaves God out of the picture, and never ponders His Word. The only conclusion he can come to is that
‘All is vanity’ (1:2)." ... S. Olyott
In other words, "the man of the world... has stumbled at the very
threshold [at the very beginning]. He has placed the world before God -
the body before the soul - time before eternity." ... C. Bridges
B. "Solomon’s other viewpoint is radically different. He now looks at life
through the eyes of a man to whom God has revealed Himself. Such a person
sees everything in a new light. Life has meaning after all, but only if we
worship and serve God. When he stands in this position, Solomon’s words ring
with assurance and hope.
The dark beginning of the book sees Solomon occupying the first
perspective; the bright conclusion sees him enjoying the other." ...S. Olyott
III. The Many Words and Phrases Ecc. 1:2-3
A. "Vanity of Vanities"
The word "vanity" appears 33 times in 28 separate verses in the Book and
is one of the key words we must understand if we are to understand Solomon’s
message. Vanity means “something without substance, which quickly passes
away. ‘Vanity’ is as solid and as enduring as the morning mist.” ...S. Olyott
“Whatever disappears quickly, leaves nothing behind, and does not
satisfy is ...vanity. One of my language professors at seminary defined [vanity] as ‘whatever is left after you break a soap bubble.’” ...W. W. Wiersbe
“Solomon... tried what satisfaction might be found in the wealth of the world and the pleasures of sense, and at last pronounced ‘all vanity and vexation;’ yet multitudes will not take his word, but will make the same dangerous experiment, and it proves fatal to them. He shows the vanity of those things in which men commonly look for happiness, as human learning and policy, sensual delight, honour and power, riches and great possessions.” ... M. Henry
B. "Under the Sun"
The phrase "under the sun" appears 29 times in 27 verses. This phrase
“defines the outlook of the writer as he looks at life from a human perspective
and not necessarily from heaven’s point of view.” ...W. W. Wiersbe
When Solomon uses this term he is looking at life strictly from a human
perspective without God. From that point of view, life will always seem hopeless
and vain.
“Let’s keep in mind this ‘under the sun’ is man’s viewpoint. God is not giving His viewpoint here. The ‘man under the sun’ is a great deal different from the child of God who has been blessed ‘...with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ’ (Eph. 1:3).” ..J. V. McGee
C. "Profit"
"The Hebrew word usually translated ’profit,’ is used ten times in Ecclesiastes (1:3, 2:11, 13[excelleth]; 3:9, 5:9, 16, 7:12[excellency]: 10:10, 11 [better]). It is used nowhere else in the Old Testament, and its basic meaning is ’that which is left over.’ It may be translated ’surplus, advantage, gain.’ The word ’profit’ is just the opposite of ’vanity.’ Solomon asks, ’In light of all the puzzles and problems of life, what is the advantage of living? Is there any gain?" ...W. W. Wiersbe
D. "Labour"
The word "labour" is mentioned 23 times in 21 different verses. The word
means “to toil to the point of exhaustion and yet experience little or no
fulfillment in your work. It carries with it the ideas of grief, misery, frustration,
and weariness. Of course, looked at only ‘under the sun,’ a person’s daily work
might seem to be futile and burdensome, but the Christian believer can always
claim I Cor. 15:58 and labor gladly in the will of God, knowing his labor is
‘not in vain in the Lord.’” ...W. W. Wiersbe
E. "Heart"
The word "heart" is mentioned 40 times in 32 verses. The word ‘heart’ is “not closely associated with either one viewpoint or the other, but is worth [considering in our study]. The unconverted man is in turmoil because of the apparent futility of life. The frustration of it strikes him to the very heart - precisely the place where the converted person senses peace, purpose and fulfillment.” ...S. Olyott
F. "Evil"
This word is used thirty-one times and in the King James Version is also translated ’sore’ (1:13; 4:8), ’hurt’ (5:13; 8:9), ’mischievous’ (10:13), ’grievous’ (2:17), ’adversity’ (7:14), ’wickedness’ (7:15), and ’misery’ (8:6). It is the opposite of ’good’ [22 times in 21 verses] and covers a multitude of things: pain, sorrow, hard circumstances, and distress. It is one of King Solomon’s favorite words for describing life as he sees it ’under the sun’" ... W. W. Wiersbe
G. "Joy"
“In spite of his painful encounters with the world and its problems, Solomon does not recommend either pessimism or cynicism. Rather he admonishes us to be realistic about life, accept God’s gifts and enjoy them (2:24, 3:12-15, 22, 5:18-20, 8:15, 9:7-10. 11:9-10). Solomon does not say, ‘Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow you die!’ Instead, he advises us to trust God and enjoy what we do have rather than complain about what we don’t have.”...W. W. Wiersbe
H. "Wisdom"
“The important word ‘wisdom’ which, with its related words ‘wise’ and
‘wisely’, occurs fifty times. This, too, is not strictly associated with either of
Solomon’s viewpoints, although two-thirds of its occurrences are in those
passages where he is looking at life through the eyes of the unconverted.”
...S. Olyott
“King Solomon was the wisest of men (I Kings 4:31) and he applied this wisdom as he sought to understand the purpose of life ‘under the sun.’ The Preacher sought to be a philosopher, but in the end, he had to conclude, ‘Fear God, and keep His
commandments.’ (12:13).” ...W. W. Wiersbe
IV. The Main Message Ecc. 12:13
The message of the Book of Ecclesiastes is still a practical and valuable message for us today. “After all, the society which Solomon investigated a millennium before the birth of Christ was not too different from our world today. Solomon saw injustice to the poor (4:1-3), crooked politics (5:8), incompetent leaders (10:6-7), guilty people allowed to commit more crime (8:11), materialism (5:10), and a desire for the ‘good old days’ (7:10). It sounds up to date, doesn’t it?” ...W. W. Wiersbe
A. The message for the Unsaved Man
“In Ecclesiastes we learn that without Christ we cannot be satisfied - even if we possess the whole world and all the things that men consider necessary to make their heart content. The world cannot satisfy the heart.” ...J. V. McGee
B. The message for the Christian
"Life is ’not in vain’ if it is lived according to the will of God, and that is what Solomon teaches in this neglected and often misunderstood book." ... W. W. Wiersbe
“The book then comes to its conclusion, which is little more than a summary of everything that has gone before. If God is not the centre of our existence, life is vanity (12:8). The thing to do, then, is to live for Him, never forgetting that it is to Him that we will finally be answerable (12:9-14).” ...S. Olyott
