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TH1134: On-Line

Teaching Notes

ECCLESIASTES

Please turn in your Bibles to Ecclesiastes chapter 3, as we continue our study through the Word of God. If you remember from our last study, Solomon is on a pursuit to find the meaning of life outside of God. His vantage point is "under the sun" which is an earthly perspective of things instead of a heavenly one. And because of this improper perspective of things, he sees life and all the various pursuits that are out there, as empty. There was no real satisfaction, lasting fulfillment in them even though Solomon tried it all. He said "Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, For my heart rejoiced in all my labor; And this was my reward from all my labor. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done And on the labor in which I had toiled; And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun." Ecclesiastes 2:10-11.

Now the first two chapters of this book are basically an overview of what he did to satisfy himself. Now he is going to fill in some of the details, expound on some of the pursuits he was on in the following chapters. And so lets begin reading in Ecclesiastes chapter 3, beginning in verse 1.

ECCLESIASTES 3

VERSE 1

1. Some people speak of good luck and bad luck, when in reality it is the timing of God. When you study the life of Jesus you find Him working according to the Father's timetable. There were times when some of the Jews wanted to make Jesus king, but He departed until the specific day when He would ride down the Mount of Olives as Messiah, the king! How did He know when and what to do? Mark 1:35 tells us His secret. We read "Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed." Notice, before the day began He was being directed by the Father. We as Christians need to follow His example for there is a time for everything, and may we be sensitive to hear what the Father wants us to do and then have the faith to take those steps. We need to listen to His voice, be directed by Him! Now Solomon is going to expound on this idea by giving a series of 7 statements and 7 opposing statements dealing with life.

VERSES 2-8

1. What Solomon is speaking of here is how mundane life is. You are born and you die, and in between we have all these other activities taking place. And understand that this is not an endorsement to do these things, it is just a reality of what happens in life!

VERSE 9

1. Solomon's view is that life under the sun is monotonous. There is no profit from it. But in the next couple of verses he begins to see the truth of the matter when he looks at life from a different perspective.

VERSES 10-11

1. God puts meaning back into life. Thus, through those difficult times, the trials, the sufferings, and-so-on, we grow and God takes those trials and makes them beautiful in His time. You see, our character is not developed in the good times, but in times of pressure, and like a piece of coal, when enough pressure is applied to it, and given the right amount of time, it will turn into a diamond, that is what God is doing in our life, and in His time He will turn us into a precious diamond.

2. God has also placed in us the knowledge of Him, that there is a God, but that will never be complete until He fills that void in us. Thus, as we come to Him and view the things we see with eternity as a back drop, we will be able to enjoy the fruits of our labor for we once again have a correct perspective of things. And even though we may not know all the details of our life, God will begin to reveal them to us one step at a time.

VERSES 12-13

1. Don't be angry or bitter because of what you don't have, rejoice in what God has given you. Learn to be content. If you refuse, you will only become restless and unsatisfied as you try to fill yourself with things under the sun.

VERSE 14

1. When God does a work it is eternal, it won't fade away. Thus, as we serve the Lord, the work we do will be lasting, and through it all God will get the glory. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

2. Another important point is God has shown us the end from the beginning. He has told us the things that would transpire long before they ever happened. And that strengthens our faith, causes us to fear the Lord with a reverential fear.

3. Lastly, God is sovereign, and whatever He desires to do, He does. Now the only reason we can rejoice in that is because He is a good God, there is no darkness in Him at all. If He wasn't a good God, we would be in trouble, and that fear would be one of hiding from Him and not a reverential fear.

VERSE 15

1. God knows all we will do before we do it. Thus, outside of Christ we will be judged for our deeds and cast into the lake of fire, eternally separated from God. In Christ our sins have been paid in full and thus, the judgment is not regarding our salvation but our rewards in heaven.

VERSES 16-17

1. As Solomon looked at some of the court systems of his day, he saw the many injustices that were done by these men. But he also saw that they would eventually have to appear before the righteous judge of all the earth and they would not get away with their wickedness. You see, judges in Israel were called ELOHIM, not because they were gods, but because they held the power of life and death in their hands, depending on how they judged a case. And as a representative of God they were to judge righteously. Because they misused their power, they were going to be judged by God for their actions. And as Hebrews 10:31 says "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."

VERSES 18-20

1. This is not true, for man is different than the animals, for he is a triune being, he has a spirit, soul and body. But outside of Christ the spirit is dead and man acts just as the wild animals, being controlled by their body appetites. You see, wild animals are basically a two dimensional creature, they have a body and a soul. Man apart from God is also a two dimensional creature who is living to feed the body appetite. That is why man can do such heinous crimes, acting like wild animals, for their spirit is dead, and they need to be reborn in Christ.

VERSE 21

1. The reality is, outside of Christ you go down to hell, and in Christ you go to be with the Lord when you die. As Paul said in II Corinthians 5:8, "We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord."

VERSE 22

1. Solomon is saying to enjoy what you have because you don't know what is going to happen in your life. Just rejoice in what God has given you.

ECCLESIASTES 4

VERSE 1

1. Solomon is now focusing on the oppressed, those that are taken advantage of. And in this condition there seems to be no hope for them, no one to comfort them or help them out of this terrible condition. And life outside of Christ is hopeless. But for those in Christ there is hope, comfort, deliverance. David said in Psalm 18, "I will love You, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies." Psalm 18:1-3. But for Solomon, his perspective is an earthly one, and because of that, he says the following...

VERSES 2-3

1. The outlook of natural man as he sees all the injustice that is taking place around him is it is better to be dead and not have to deal with all this oppression. He did not even want to see it any longer.

VERSE 4

1. Another problem Solomon sees is the person who has worked very hard to get where he is at, and those around him are envious of his success, even though he worked hard to obtain it, it was not handed to him on a silver platter. As one modern cynic wrote, "I've tried everything that life has to offer, but all I see is one guy trying to outdo another in a futile attempt at happiness."

VERSE 5

1. On the other hand, a fool who does nothing is going to starve to death!

VERSE 6

1. Balance is so important. It doesn't pay to work yourself to death to be wealthy, nor not to work and go hungry. Work to provide for yourself and your family and be content with that. The problem is the flesh is never satisfied with just enough, it keeps wanting more and more, and Solomon is saying it will never satisfy.

VERSES 7-8

1. Now Solomon sees the emptiness, the futility of a person who works and works, obtains much wealth, and because he still is not satisfied with what he has, he keeps on working. The problem here is this person is all alone, he has no one to give his possessions to, and once he dies, all he has worked for is given away to someone else.

2. It has been reported that from the early 1970's till today, a persons leisure time has decreased by 37%. More and more people are working harder and harder, and are less and less satisfied with life, and they don't know how to relax and enjoy life.

VERSES 9-12

1. Solomon is speaking of the benefit of companionship. Two people working together will get the job done twice as fast as a person working all alone. If a person stumbles his companion is there to lift him up, encourage him, get him back on track. But when you are alone, there is no one to assist you. You see, there is comfort in companionship, it helps to keep you healthy and strong. And lastly, companionship can help you fight against an enemy that is coming against you.

2. This is also very true in a marriage relationship, with a threefold cord being made up of a husband, a wife and Christ. A marriage that is centered in Christ will not be broken by the destroyer, Satan. I think one of the reasons marriages are struggling, that is Christian marriages, is because they are trying to make it without Christ, and that is very difficult to do. A threefold cord is more than three times as strong as three separate cords, and with Christ as the binding force, it will not be broken.

VERSES 13-16

1. Here we see the transitory nature of fame and fortune. While you are living you are honored. But after you are gone, you are quickly forgotten.

2. We are not sure if Solomon is speaking of a real person, or just speaking of a reality that happens with no particular situation in mind. Some feel that this is speaking of Joseph, who was cast into a pit by his brothers. Sold in to slavery. Falsely accused of raping his masters wife. Thrown into prison. And then raised to be second in command over all of Egypt, even though he was not a king, he had great power in his position. And then, after he died it says "Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, 'Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we; come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it happen, in the event of war, that they also join our enemies and fight against us, and so go up out of the land.' Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses." Exodus 1:8-11. Thus, Solomon is saying it is better to be a nobody because if you make a name for yourself, you will eventually be forgotten and you will have the same prestige of a nobody, even though you worked yourself to death.

ECCLESIASTES 5

VERSE 1

1. Solomon is saying that when we go to the house of God, when we come before Him, don't speak foolishly, make sure what you vow you are going to do. In Deuteronomy 23:21-23 we read the following about vows, "When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it; for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and it would be sin to you. But if you abstain from vowing, it shall not be sin to you. That which has gone from your lips you shall keep and perform, for you voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God what you have promised with your mouth."

VERSE 2

1. We would be far better off to listen to what God is saying than to speak foolishly and place our confidence in our flesh, in that what we have vowed to the Lord we will be able to keep. As Proverbs 20:25 says "It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, And afterward to reconsider his vows."

VERSE 3

1. The Hebrew seems to imply that if you conduct yourself improperly before God, it might manifest itself in a nightmare.

VERSES 4-5

1. Don't be quick to make foolish vows, in fact Jesus tells us "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one." Matthew 5:33-37. You see, any more than that is just boasting in your flesh. But if you promised something, then do it.

VERSE 6

1. Do not go back on your word, God is displeased with the insincerity of our speech.

VERSE 7

1. Walk in the fear of God and not in the strength of your dreams or in the loftiness of your speech.

VERSE 8

1. The idea here is that corruption will filter downward and reach all levels of business or society. That is why leaders are admonished to live righteously for their actions will filter down to reach all levels. Again, we must remember that the wicked, the corruption they have perpetrated on others, they will not get away with. They will have to come before the righteous judge some day.

VERSE 9

1. This is a difficult verse to translate for the Hebrew is uncertain. But what seems to be implied is that both the rich and the poor, leaders and the common people are fed from the same land.

VERSE 10

1. Solomon is saying that if your goal in life is to be rich, understand this, you will never be satisfied. You will always want more and more. We need to heed the words of Agur from Proverbs 30:7-9. He said "Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food allotted to me; Lest I be full and deny You, And say, 'Who is the LORD?' Or lest I be poor and steal, And profane the name of my God." In other words, "Lord, give me just enough, not to much so I forget you or to little so I disgrace you." And then be content in What God has given you.

VERSE 11

1. The more you have the more you spend. The bigger the home you buy, the more people you have to hire to care for it.

VERSE 12

1. For those that work hard, making a honest living, they will sleep well. Those that have much wealth are always worrying, looking over their shoulder to see if anyone is going to take their possessions, and thus, they can't sleep.

VERSES 13-14

1. It is the story of a person who goes from rags to riches and back to rags again, and has nothing left to pass on to his children.

VERSE 15

1. Job also made this point in Job 1:21 when he said "...Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD.'" You see, you can't take it with you. Let me explain it this way. A wealthy man died and many came to his funeral. One of the friends of the deceased sat next to this mans accountant, and curiosity got the better of him. And he asked this mans accountant "How much did he leave behind?" The accountant smiled and said "All of it!"

2. "Cecil Rhodes spent years exploiting the natural resources of South Africa. When he was about to die, he cried out in remorse:

I've found much in Africa. Diamonds, gold and land are mine, but now I must leave them all behind. Not a thing I've gained can be taken with me. I have not sought eternal treasures, therefore I actually have nothing at all."

VERSES 16-17

1. He has worked so hard to obtain so much and now he is left with nothing and he lives out the rest of his days in a depressed state. Does not seem to be worth all the trouble, does it? Now Solomon is going to give us his conclusion of all of this.

VERSE 18

1. God has given us a portion of life to enjoy, don't miss it by grasping for that which is not of God.

VERSE 19

1. If God has given you wealth, riches, then enjoy it but don't be consumed by it.

VERSE 20

1. When you focus on the Lord, doing what He has called you to do, you won't worry about the day but be satisfied in Him. It is as David said in Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart." You see, the underlying theme of this book is learning to be content in what God has given us, may we learn that lesson!