And then he walks us through all the experiences, all the pursuits, all the different ways he tried to find meaning in life. And now, after all these lessons, we come to Solomon’s Succinct Summary.
His conclusion can be remembered by dividing it into 4 “R’s”, Rejoice, Remember, Reflect and Resolve.
Rejoice – 11: 9-10
9 Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. And walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes;
but know that for all of these things God will bring you to judgment. 10 Remove sorrow from your heart, and put away pain from your flesh, because youth and the prime of life are fleeting.
He said back in 3:4 that there is, “A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.”
We tend to think of rejoicing, gladness, laughing, and dancing as usually being spontaneous, celebrations of events that aren’t necessarily planned. But that isn’t the Biblical kind of rejoicing, and not what I see Solomon calling us to. He is calling us to a more serious kind of rejoicing.
Let’s look at some verses from the New Testament.
? “You joyfully accepted the plundering of your property” (Hebrews 10:34).
? “Count it all joy . . . when you meet trials of various kinds” (James 1:2).
? “When others revile you and persecute you . . . rejoice and be glad” (Matthew 5:11–12).
? “In his joy he goes and sells all that he has” (Matthew 13:44).
? “[They rejoiced] that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name” (Acts 5:41).
? “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” (Romans 5:3–4).
? “In a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity” (2 Corinthians 8:2).
? “We are glad when we are weak and you are strong” (2 Corinthians 13:9).
? “Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad” (Philippians 2:17).
? “I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake” (Colossians 1:24).
? “You received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 1:6).
? “For the joy that was set before him [he] endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2).
? “You rejoice, though now for a little while, . . . you have been grieved” (1 Peter 1:6).
? “Rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings” (1 Peter 4:13).
? Paul summarizes it: “As grieving yet always rejoicing;” (2 Corinthians 6:10)
This is the kind of rejoicing that isn’t situation dependent, this is the serious kind of rejoicing that happens despite circumstances.
Solomon says rejoice in your youth. Next, he says we need to:
Remember – 12:1
1 So remember your Creator in the days of your youth:
This is a challenge. How many of us can remember what we had for dinner last night? The night before? How many of us struggle to remember the name of someone we just met? At work, I write the date at least five times on paperwork for every patient I take care of in the OR. How many times a day do you think I look at my watch to make sure I’m writing the correct date? About four to five times per patient.
In Psychology, memory is an organism’s ability to store, retain, and recall information and experiences.
Two middle-aged couples were enjoying friendly conversation when one of the men asked the other, "Fred, how was the memory clinic you went to last month?"
"Outstanding," Fred replied. "They taught us all the latest psychological techniques, such as visualization, association and so on. It was great. I haven’t had a problem since."
"Sounds like something I could use. What was the name of the clinic?"
Fred went blank. He thought and thought, but couldn’t remember. Then a smile broke across his face and he asked, "What do you call that flower with the long stem and thorns?"
"You mean a rose?"
"Yes, that’s it!" He turned to his wife, "Hey Rose, what was the name of that memory clinic?"
Solomon says to Remember our Creator in the days of our youth. Our youth is when we most easily make memories and retain new information. Solomon is pointing us toward our Creator at a time in our lives when we could easily ignore or forget whose we are. That’s why we have verses like Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” or Psalm 34:11 “Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Or the commendation Paul gives Timothy, talking about his education from his mom and grandma in 2 Timothy 3:15, “and how from your childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Reflect – 12:1b-7
Continue in vs 1: Before the days of adversity come, and the years approach when you will say, “I have no delight in them”; 2 before the sun and the light are darkened, and the moon and the stars, and the clouds return after the rain; 3 on the day when the guardians of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop, the women who grind cease because they are few, and the ones who watch through the windows see dimly, 4 the doors at the street are shut while the sound of the mill fades; when one rises at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song grow faint. 5 Also, they are afraid of heights and dangers on the road; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper loses its spring, and the caper berry has no effect; for man is headed to his eternal home, and mourners will walk around in the street; 6 before the silver cord is snapped, and the gold bowl is broken, and the jar is shattered at the spring, and the wheel is broken into the well; 7 and the dust returns to the earth as it once was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
Solomon is painting a word picture of getting old. As we age, we tend to discover that our bodies are not quite as infallible as we originally thought. I’m not asking for a show of hands, but I want you to consider, how many in this congregation are dealing with chronic health issues. How many are dealing with chronic pain? How many of us are seeing one infirmity chase another, just like the clouds keep coming back after the rain?
Solomon says, “the guardians of the house tremble “– I relate this to trembling hands. “Strong men stoop,” when your back starts to bow. “The women who grind” are your teeth, “they cease because they are few,” because most of them have fallen out. “The ones who watch through the window are your eyes,” but age dims our vision. “The doors at the street are shut while the sound of the mill fades” refers to our hearing worsening. “One arises at the sound of a bird,” in other words, you can’t sleep late, and any little disturbance will wake you. “All the daughters of song grow faint.” Our enjoyment of the niceties of life fade because we can’t perceive them like we used to. We become more cautious, realizing that we don’t bounce like we used to. We are “afraid of heights and dangers on the road.” “The almond tree blossoms” refer to the white color showing up on our heads. “The grasshopper loses its spring” or “shall be a burden.” This refers to the loss of our strength and vigor. Even our tastebuds become less sensitive. A caper berry is the berry of the plant that we get capers from. According to Tasteessence, the plant was believed to have been used by the ancient Greeks and Romans medicinally. It was used to make herbal tea to treat rheumatism (arthritis). The capers were used to prevent gas formation. Capers and Caper berries can have a strong taste, but even strong tastes fade as we get old.
And then Solomon gives us all these euphemisms: Man is headed to his eternal home, the mourners walks around in the street; the silver cord is snapped, the gold bowl is broken, the jar is shattered, the wheel is broken.”
Today, we still use euphemisms. We don’t say someone died. We say, they passed on or passed away. They aren’t with us anymore. They are departed, or they gave up the ghost.
Apparently saying someone died was just as uncomfortable when Solomon was writing as it is for most of us today.
He says, when we see these changes happening, we need to reflect on the fact that life isn’t a guarantee. We aren’t promised tomorrow. We need to reflect on our final destination when we get these reminders that time is passing. And, we need to:
Resolve – vss 8-14
8 “Absolute futility,” says the Teacher. “Everything is futile.” 9 In addition to the Teacher being a wise man, he constantly taught the people knowledge; he weighed, explored, and arranged many proverbs. 10 The Teacher sought to find delightful sayings and write words of truth accurately. 11 The sayings of the wise are like goads, and those from masters of collections are like firmly embedded nails. The sayings are given by one Shepherd. 12 But beyond these, my son, be warned: there is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body.
13 When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. 14 For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
Solomon goes back to his opening statement from chapter 1, verse 1. Everything is futile. Solomon points out that when he lived just for himself, it was all futility. He changed his attitude, changed his focus, and it all became worthwhile. He resolved to make his life about others. He resolved to make a difference.
George Bernard Shaw put it this way. “This is the true joy in life, being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one. Being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.”
Solomon says wisdom wasn’t enough. He shared it. Vs 9 says, “he constantly taught the people knowledge.” In verse 10, he wasn’t content to pass along his wisdom as he knew it, but worked to improve how he presented his message. Why? Vs 11 – He recognized the value of good advice. Goads are spiked sticks used for driving cattle. A little momentary pain that points us in the right direction. Firmly embedded nails makes me think of horseshoes. You want the nails firmly embedded, or the shoe is more of a hindrance than a help. A firmly embedded nail holds the horseshoe on, protecting the horse’s hoof, making it able to handle rough terrain so much easier. Goads and nails are short-term pain for long-term gain.
It's interesting that Solomon puts this phrase in at the end of verse 11, “The sayings are given by one Shepherd.” Solomon wasn’t a shepherd. He is instead pointing out that his wisdom, his sayings, come from THE shepherd. Even in the Old Testament, even after living a worldly, sinful life, Solomon points us back to Jesus, the Good Shepherd. And that’s how he concludes.
13 When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. 14 For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
Resolve to live your life with these thoughts in mind. Reflect on the life circumstances that have brought you to today. Remember God in all things, and at all times, especially the really busy times. Rejoice at all times, especially in times of trial. This is Solomon’s Succinct Summary of everything he learned, and this is the invitation to us tonight. If you have a need, please come forward while we stand and sing.
