Ecclesiastes 7:1-14 Christian Standard Bible Wise Sayings 7 A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth. 2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, since that is the end of all mankind, and the living should take it to heart. 3 Grief is better than laughter, for when a face is sad, a heart may be glad. 4 The heart of the wise is in a house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in a house of pleasure. 5 It is better to listen to rebuke from a wise person than to listen to the song of fools, 6 for like the crackling of burning thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This too is futile. 7 Surely, the practice of extortion turns a wise person into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the mind. 8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning; a patient spirit is better than a proud spirit. 9 Don’t let your spirit rush to be angry, for anger abides in the heart of fools. 10 Don’t say, “Why were the former days better than these?” since it is not wise of you to ask this. 11 Wisdom is as good as an inheritance and an advantage to those who see the sun, 12 because wisdom is protection as silver is protection; but the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner. 13 Consider the work of God, for who can straighten out what he has made crooked? 14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that no one can discover anything that will come after him. We're in the middle of the book now and Solomon stops to give some wise sayings to his son before going on (if we've read the book of Proverbs, many of these nuggets of wisdom should be familiar to us). First Solomon reminds us that a good name (a good reputation) is better than fine perfume. Perfume gives a good aroma and gives a pleasing sensation when people know you are coming. The same should be true of a good name.
The next one should not surprise us at all after reading this book. Solomon says that the day of one's death is better than the day of one's birth, because an end is brought to all the misery and suffering that comes with life on this earth. That is really only true however for the one who has eternal life in Christ. Otherwise, the day of one's death does not bring any relief and leads to more severe, eternal torment. It is never a good day to die for those who die outside of Christ. Solomon says i t is better for us to attending gatherings that are sad where we are invited to mourn with those who are sad (like funerals) than celebrations where we feast and often pretend to be happy. In this "under the sun" approach to thinking, it is just reality that life is hard and tragic and sad, and we should not pretend otherwise when we put on a happy face to celebrate when we are not happy. The sooner we accept this fact, the better off in Solomon's mind. It is better in Solomon's opinion to be sad on the outside and happy on the inside than that be happy on the outside and sad on the inside. Solomon also reminds us that the places of mourning are places where the sober-minded people (who are usually wise people) gather, but the fools gather in party houses trying to force themselves to be happy when there is nothing to be happy about (drinking in excess to get drunk to make them feel numb to the pain and misery around them). We should listen closely to the words of the wise, even their rebukes, for they are honorable and true words unlike the flattery of a fool who may act as if they are singing your praises while they are probably plotting against you and stabbing you in the back. The laughter of a fool is just noise like the burning of thorns, thistles and brambles that are used as fuel for the fire. Both the fuel and the heat it produces will quickly dissipate and be forgotten. It is of no value. Do not try to be an extortionist or one who tries to manipulate people or circumstances. Solomon says that such practices can change a wise person into a fool, for they believe they can play God and control people and circumstances to turn things into their favor and for their selfish gain. Bribery corrupts the mind of the one offering the bribe. The LORD hates this kind of behavior and calls it an abomination, so don't engage in such behavior. Solomon says it is better to finish something than to start something (I know some of you disagree and would rather start a new book than finish any of the ones you are currently reading). I think this is a restatement of what we have already talked about that he sees death being better than birth, but he's applying it to other situations now and saying that bringing something to a close so that you see its conclusion and no longer have to worry about it is better than starting something now and adding more responsibility and worry to your life (again, the person Solomon is talking about is usually anxious and worries because he is trying to live life without the consideration of God and without trying to acknowledge that he needs God's help). We shouldn't be worried about starting anything that God has told us to do--just obey what the LORD commands and trust Him to equip us for that work and to provide the necessary human and capital resources needed. He adds that it is better to be patient than to be proud. Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. Solomon reminds us that only fools allow their emotions, especially anger and rage, to control them. Emotions make great foot soldiers, but terrible generals. Do not let your emotions control you. Be self-controlled (or better yet, Spirit-controlled). Do not long for the way things used to be back in the olden days because we cannot go back in time. Time only moves in one direction. You can work to make the time that you live in now the best that it can be, but don't wish for something that you had, but weren't willing to work for to keep, and aren't willing to work for to have back. This is another form of covetousness as well. Live in the time that the LORD has placed you in looking at the people and opportunities that are in front of you that the LORD wants you to take advantage of and seize. You don't do a very good job driving if you're constantly looking in the rearview mirror. You must keep your eyes focused on where you want to be going while being aware of everything else around you. To impart wisdom to the next generation is as good or better than to store up treasure and to give them a monetary inheritance. Silver and gold are items that you can only spend one time. Once you trade them for something else, they are gone. However, you can use your wisdom over and over again and never lose it. Wisdom also acts to preserve the life of its owner where those who acquire much silver and gold often spend it on lavish lifestyles that shorten their lives. Last, but not least, Solomon brings his son back to the God that his son is trying so hard to ignore. Solomon tells his son to consider that the LORD is the only one who can straighten out the crookedness of our messed-up lives. Without him, we are forever doomed to be defined by our mistakes and worst moments and attributes, but God can change us. It's not just about God being able to paint a straight line with a crooked stick, but God is actually about to make the crooked stick straight. I think Solomon is encouraging his son that no matter how badly he thinks he has messed up, God can still fix things and give him a fresh start. We may think that we like the days of prosperity better than the lean times, but the LORD has made them both for a purpose and we often learn more wisdom and lean more on God in the lean times than when we have an abundance of all that we physically need. Comments are closed.
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Daniel WestfallI will mostly use this space for recording my "journal" from my daily devotions as I hope to encourage others to read the Bible along with me and to leave a legacy for others. Archives
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