Ecclesiastes 7:1-15
A good name is better than precious ointment,
and the day of death than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will lay it to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
than to hear the song of fools.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fools;
this also is vanity.
7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,
and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry,
for anger lodges in the heart of fools.
10 Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”
For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.
11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance,
an advantage to those who see the sun.
12 For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money,
and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.
13 Consider the work of God:
who can make straight what he has made crooked? 14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him. 15 In my vain] life I have seen everything. There is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his evildoing.
Some time ago I looked at a list of the top 50 dead rock musicians. The category, ‘rock’ musicians is a bit broad, they had people on there like Jimmy Hendrix as well as Johnny Cash…but nonetheless. I didn’t add it up but the greatest cause of death within that group was suicide and drug overdose. Under the sun, life is vanity and death gives no answers either.
Think about what Solomon is saying…this is not what the evangelical church wants to hear, and it is not what the evangelical church is being taught. In verse 3 we are told that sorrow is better than laughter, and that by a sad countenance the heart is made better. Let me ask it this way; do YOU know what is meant to say that sadness is not only replaced by joy, but is in itself a preparation for the truest form of joy? Does that make any sense to you? Isn’t that what Jesus is telling his disciples right before his death?
“Most assuredly I say to you that you will weep and lament but the world will rejoice and you will be sorrowful, buy your sorrow will be turned into joy. A woman when she is in labor has sorrow because her hour has come but as soon as see has given birth to the child she no longer remembers the anguish…therefore you now have sorrow, but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice and your joy no one will take from you.”
Isn’t this the Christian life? Isn’t this the spirituality of the Bible? It is in giving life away that we get life…it is in death that we find resurrection…it is first humiliation, then exaltation…it is in the deep sorrow of true and abiding repentance that we get to the springs of eternal joy…Only in understanding these things will life start to make a bit more sense to us.
Verses 5-6 speak of another kind of adversity, a rebuke. But it is better to have the wise rebuke us, than to be caught up and taken with the songs of fools. Maybe in popular language we would say that it is better to have the wise rebuke us than to spend our time in the celebrations of this world. This too requires wisdom. We know that our God loves celebrations, and He loves His people to celebrate, rejoice and enjoy the life that He has given. But there is a time for celebration and a time for contemplation and when the wise man rebukes us it is for our good…it is for the purpose of setting our eyes more firmly upon the unseen realities of heaven.
Psalm 141:5
“Let the righteous strike me
It shall be a kindness
And let him rebuke me
It shall be as excellent oil
Let my head not refuse it.
9:8
“…Rebuke a wise man and he will love you for it.”
Is that the way Christians look at it when someone rebukes us or admonishes us? Do we receive it as an excellent oil and a kindness? Most often the answer is no, we get all offended! Who is he after all to correct me! Who does she think she is, she isn’t perfect! People rebuke us and we start criticizing the WAY it was done, the demeanor of HOW it was done, and we do this so that we don’t have to listen to what was said!
But then we are warned that we should not start thinking we have all this figured out. Verse 7 tells us that wisdom is NOT unassailable, it will be attacked and here is another mind bender. We have been looking at the possibility that affliction or oppression might not always be a bad thing and then we read that oppression and temptations to sin, in this case bribery, can weaken wisdom. Wisdom can degenerate…just ask Solomon.
Haven’t you wondered about all that he had been given, the wisdom and the greatness…all that he had seen and experienced with the Lord…and then been puzzled at how he could have ended so poorly? How do we explain that? How can so many people start well and end so poorly? Verse 8 has Solomon sounding a warning that he should have listened to himself!
The beginning and the end of something are different and many there are who make a good start, who boast at the front end, but do not persevere, do not see it through. Fools do not understand patience or perseverance…and the text does not say that the righteous never get angry, only that they don’t get angry quickly.
Solomon warns us about ever thinking we have everything figured out…beware of the temptation to coast, to get spiritually dull and sleepy. You must stay diligent…you must set your eyes to the end, to the prize, as Paul says, and press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus has taken hold of you.
Then verse 10 speaks to the foolishness of yearning for the good old days. Oh, that things would return to what they were…Well, they are not going to…the Lord has brought you what you have right here, right now.
And what is the conclusion? For all of this, where are we left in light of all these mild rebukes? Consider the work of God.
Think about the God who takes things that are straight enough and bends them all out of shape. Think about the God who sends both prosperity and adversity.
Think about the God who says to you, don’t be so short-sighted, don’t make judgments based only on what you see…Don’t think or judge faithlessly…Your name is better than riches and the funeral has much more to say to life than does the birthday. Mourning and sorrow set things to reality much more than feasting and laughter. Set your eyes to consider God…to KNOW God, and you will rejoice in His crooked ways and affliction will not steal your joy. Do we have such faith?
Prayer: Father, I ask you for the wisdom to receive from Your hand with understanding, that I might know Your purpose and behind each trial or sorrow know that it is Your hand that places it in mine. Give me a holy discontentment, that I might not coast in my spiritual life but ever want more of You, through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.
Hymn: Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me?
