"Round and Round We Go"
Eccl. 1:4-18
Rev. Julio González
The older we get, the more we begin to see life as an endless cycle. Babies are born, then they grow older and then they die. Then more babies are born. It rains, the sun shines for a while and then it rains again. We work, we eat, we sleep and then we get up the next day and do it all again. Spring comes, summer follows, then fall, then winter, and finally it is spring again. Everything goes round in circles. If we look at life only from the viewpoint of the natural physical man, it can get very discouraging. Life is nothing more than one big “rat race.” That is what Solomon is seeing in this first chapter of Ecclesiastes. He is contemplating these cycles of life and asking himself the question, "What does it all mean?" "What’s the point of it all?"
"If life is only part of a great cycle over which we have no control, is life worth living? If this cycle is repeated season after season, century after century, why are we unable to understand it and explain it? Solomon pondered these questions as he looked at the cycle of life ’under the sun,’ and he came to three bleak conclusions: nothing is changed (1:4-7), nothing is new (1:8-11), and nothing is understood (1:12-18). " ...W. W. Wiersbe
I. Nothing Ever Really Changes Ecc. 1:4-7
A. The Earth Essentially Remains the Same 1:4
Today we walk on the same earth and on the same ground where our ancestors walked. The planet really has not changed much since creation, (actually since the flood). Men still live, have children, and die. Generation passes into generation and time marches on, but for the most part, the earth remains a constant. Compared to the age of the trees man does not stay around long, and compared to the age of the rocks, the life of a man is short indeed.
"The earthly stage remains, but different actors are constantly passing across it." ...S. Olyott
"Fathers are going; children are coming after. None stayeth. The house abideth, but the tenants are continually changing." ...C. Bridges
B. The Sun Still Shines 1:5
Even on cloudy days, the sun still shines. It has done so for thousands of years and will continue to do so until the Lord no longer has need of it. As long as man can remember, there has always been night and day. The earth continues to revolve around the sun in a continuous, seemingly endless cycle. Days have past, and are passing, and will continue to pass, until God moves us all into eternity. One day quickly dissolves into another. Without God, “What’s the point of it all?”
“The sun rises in the morning and sets at evening in our hemisphere,according to the appearance of things; and then it makes haste to go round the other hemisphere in the night: it "pants", as the word [hastens] signifies; the same figure is used by other writers; like a man out of breath with running; so this glorious body, which rejoiceth as a strong man to run his race, and whose circuit is from one end of the heavens to the other, Ps 19:5,6; is in haste to get to the place where he rose in the morning, and there he makes no stop, but pursues his course in the same track again. By this instance is exemplified the succession of the generations of men one after another, as the rising and setting of the sun continually follows each other; and also sets forth the restless state of things in the world, which, like the sun, are never at a stand, but always moving, and swiftly taking their course.” ...J. Gill
C. The Wind Always Blows 1:6
Where does the wind go and where does it come from? What makes it blow harder on one day than on the other? Like the earth and the sun, it too runs in a continuous cycle.
“Today we know that the wind follows certain patterns. The weatherman tells us that there is a low pressure here and a high pressure there. There is movement; winds are blowing. It is obeying certain laws as it is blowing. How did Solomon know that? The whole process follows certain definite, specific laws. In verses 4-7, we have four remarkable statements concerning the laws of nature that make sense and fit right into what men know today. Compare this with other writings that come from one thousand years before Christ. You will find a great deal of false conclusions and superstitions in contrast to the accuracy you find in the Word of God.” ...J. V. McGee
D. The Waters Continue to Cycle 1:7
It rains and fills the creeks, which drain into the rivers. The rivers run into the ocean and the moisture from the oceans evaporate into the sky. The weight of the moisture in the clouds produce rain and the cycle continues as it has since the days of Noah’s flood.
“It is a curious fact that Solomon should use language entirely consistent with discoveries such as evaporation and storm currents (vv. 6-7). Who taught Solomon to use terms that readily accommodate facts that the movement of winds which seem to be so lawless and uncertain, are ruled by laws as positive as those which rule the growth of the plant; and that evaporation, the waters that fall on the earth are continually rising again, so that the sea never overflows?” ...J. V. McGee
II. Nothing is Actually New Ecc. 1:8-11
A. Man Has Not Changed 1:8
Societies change, civilizations change, governments change, but mankind never really changes. We are basically the same as the men who have gone before us. We work and labor for the things we desire. We have the same feelings and the same emotions, and we even have the same problems. Nothing has really changed.
1. “All things are full of labour.” They worked to survive - We work to survive.
2. “The eye is not satisfied with seeing.” They were never satisfied and always wanted more - We are never satisfied and always want more.
3. “The ear [is not] filled with hearing.” They were curious - We are curious. The more a man learns, the more he sees how much there is to learn. The more educated he is the less satisfied he will become.
“Our senses are unsatisfied, and the objects of them unsatisfying. He specifies those senses that perform their office with least toil, and are most capable of being pleased: ‘The eye is not satisfied with seeing,’ but is weary of seeing always the same sight, and covets novelty and variety.‘The ear’ is fond, at first, of a pleasant song or tune, but soon nauseates it, and must have another; both are surfeited, but neither satiated, and what was most grateful becomes ungrateful. Curiosity is still inquisitive, because still unsatisfied, and the more it is humoured the more nice and peevish it grows, crying, Give, give.” ...M. Henry
B. Things Have Not Changed 1:9-10
Everything new is actually just a recreation of something old. Man can invent something out of things that exist, but only God can create.
“If nothing changes, then it is reasonable to conclude that nothing in this world is new. This ‘logical conclusion’ might have satisfied people in Solomon’s day, but it startles us today. After all, we are surrounded by, and dependent on, a multitude of marvels that modern science has provided for us. How could anybody agree with Solomon that nothing is new under the sun?
The world provides nothing new. Whatever is new is simply a recombination of the old. Man cannot ‘create’ anything new because man is the creature, not the Creator. Thomas Alva Edison, one of the world’s greatest inventors, said that his inventions were only ‘bringing out the secrets of nature and applying them for the happiness of man.’ Only God can create new things.” ...W. W. Wiersbe
C. We Really Don’t Learn Much From History 1:11
1. We Don’t Remember
Someone once said, “The only thing men learn from history is that men don’t learn from history.” Unfortunately, this is true. If we honestly learned from history, we would be able to end all wars, feed all peoples, have peace in every nation, and serve God universally. However, our memories are short and we do not learn nearly as much from our mistakes as we should. In fact, if we were honest, most of us would have to admit to making the same mistakes over and over again. With humans,“there is no remembrance of former things.”
2. We are not Remembered.
We all have short memories. Even the best memory fades and becomes hard to recall. Do you remember your Great Grandfather? Your Great-great Grandfather? If you cannot remember them, do you think your Great grandchildren will remember you? Most people are not remembered for more than two generations, and at the best, for more than three generations.
“If you think you are going to make an indelible mark on the sands of time, you are going to be very disappointed. Any footprints or impressions you make have already been made by others - but the tide has washed them away, just as it will wash away yours, too. The memory of your efforts will soon be forgotten. We do not live long in the remembrances of others.” ...S. Olyott
III. Nothing is Completely Understood Ecc. 1:12-18
A. The Answer Is Not Found By Sincere Desire 1:12-13
“I gave my heart to seek and search out...”
Some men are under the impression that their sincere desire to understand
life is all that is necessary for them to “figure it out.” The truth is, that no human
can fully understand why everything happens the way it does. We must trust God
and believe that He knows what is best, especially when we can’t “figure it out.”
That is the true essence of Biblical faith.
“At this stage, what Solomon sought more than anything else was knowledge. But, like millions of others who have stretched their minds to the limit, he found no lasting satisfaction in this quest. The world remained full of problems that could not be solved, [even by one as wise as Solomon].
The quest for life’s meaning is frustrating, because it is unattainable [outside of God]. When a person gets wiser, and sees that he is no nearer to his goal than before, how much greater is his disappointment! Who can describe his bitterness and grief?” ...S. Olyott
B. The Answer Is Not Found By Doing Great Works 1:14
“I have seen all the works done under the sun.” Solomon’s works were
great and many, including the building of the tabernacle, but they did not satisfy.
The meaning of life is not found by being wrapped up work.
C. The Answer Is Not Found By Worrying About the Past 1:15
“In short, Solomon is saying, ‘The past can’t always be changed, and it
is foolish to fret over what you might have done.’ What is wrong cannot be
righted; it is water over the dam; and there is no use thinking of what might
have been.” ...W. W. Wiersbe
Or as someone has put it, Worry is like a rocking chair, it gives you
something to do, but it doesn’t get you any where.”
D. The Answer Is Not Found By Obtaining Power 1:16
“I have come to great estate.” Not only was Solomon a king, but he was also a wise king. People greatly respected him and he held the highest place of honor in his nation, but this too, did not satisfy him. It is almost humorous to think that a man could have such greatness and still be searching for the answers to life’s questions.
E. The Answer Is Not Found By Trying to Escape 1:17
“I gave my heart to... know madness and folly.”
Some people think the answer is to play the fool. They simply give up hope and claim they do not care. They live by the philosophy, “No Worries, Mate!” or “Be Happy.” In other words, “Don’t think about your troubles or about the deeper things of life. Eat, Drink, and be happy, for tomorrow you die.” This is the conclusion of a natural man and it was Solomon’s conclusion about life “under the sun” without God.
F. The Answer Is Not Found By Obtaining Wisdom, Experience, or Knowledge 1:16-18
This is no simple, average, or ordinary man speaking here. This is Solomon, the wisest man (and possibly the richest man) that ever lived.
“I believe that Solomon was led to a certain amount of arrogance, a certain amount of conceit, since he was wiser than others. Paul writes that ‘Knowledge puffeth up...’ (I Cor. 8:1). Remember that education is based on experience, and experience cannot be trusted. Experience must be tested by the Word of God. Unfortunately, many folk today are testing the Word of God by their experience. My friend, if your experience is contrary to the Bible, then it is your experience, not the Word of God, which is wrong.” ...J. V. McGee
“If anybody was equipped to solve the difficult problems of life and tell us what life is all about, Solomon was that person. He was the wisest man, and people came from all over to hear his wisdom (I Kings 4:29-34). His wealth was beyond calculation so that he had the resources available to do just about anything he wanted to do. He even experienced ‘madness and folly’ (the absurd, the opposite of wisdom) in his quest for the right answers he was seeking. In fact, his great wisdom only added to his difficulties; for wisdom and knowledge increase sorrow and grief. The more we seek knowledge and wisdom, the more ignorant we know we are.
For some people, life may be monotonous and meaningless, but it doesn’t have to be For the Christian believer, life is an open door, not a closed circle; there are daily experiences of new blessings from the Lord. True, we can’t explain everything; but life is not built on explanations; it’s built on promises - and we have plenty of promises in God’s Word.
If you are ‘living in circles,’ then turn your life over to Him.”...W. W. Wiersbe
