1:1 - 1:11 Introduction? The Futility of Everything (Everything is changeless)
Solomon establishes that everything is vain and empty, and compares life to the cyclic patterns of nature
(water flows to the sea, wind blows, v4-8)
Is this an introduction?
1:12 - 1:18 The Futility of Wisdom (Ends in Grief)
1:12 - 1:18 discusses the result of Solomon's quest for wisdom.
- he does not discuss methods, practices or how he went about it.
basically, he just says that he decided to do it, that he investigated everything, became wise, and decided that it was ultimately
empty.
Summary statement is v18 "in much wisdom is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain"
the old question: would you want to know _____ if knowing _____ meant you could never be happy again?
what does this say about god?
i've often wondered about what the experience of God's omniscience is like: at the same time as a wedding and birth to be conscious of
a child being abused, a mother dying, etc...
but that works across time as well, right? (maybe)
if ultimate knowledge involves knowledge of past and future events, and eternity outweights temporal events, then there is plenty of
reason for joy perhaps?
so - that said - what does that say about this statement from solomon?
is it correct?
is it correct from one perspective or set of experiences but not from all angles?
2:1-26 Wisdom, Work, And Pleasure
2:1-11 Pleasure, Huh. What is it good for?
Is this to be taken as a 'next attempt' from 1:18? Study, books, and wisdom wasn't an end of itself, so Solomon tried pleasure?
I haven't found anything that says this is necessarily indicated from the text, but the transition seems to allow for it.
Fun Solomon Tried:
v3 wine (while my mind was giding me wisely)
v4 enlarged my works
v4 built houses for himself
v4 planted vineyards for himself
v5 made gardens and parks for himself, planted fruit trees
v6 made ponds of water to irrigate a forest
v7 bought male/female slaves, homeborn slaves.
v7 flocks and herds bigger than any preceeding in Jerusalem
v8 collected gold, silver, treasures
v8 provided male/feamle singers, and concubines
he did all this without losing his wisdom.
v11 the inevitable result: it was vanity and striivng after wind, and there was no profit under the sun
2:12-22 Wisdom, Folly, And Death
12-14 - Wisdom is better than folly, because it reflects reality correctly.
15-17 But ultimately, how much good does it do? You die either way.
Solomon addresses both work and wisdom in this section (which are related)
here he questions the benefit of either, in light of inevitable death.
so, having affirmed the value of wisdom, he wastes no time in limiting it's benefit and that of labor as well.
2:18 - 2:26 Work and Pleasure, Yin and Yang
Solomon concludes the section by arguing that men should eat, drink, and labor.
he ties this privilage of work and pleasure to God, and affirms the judgement of God on the sinner, an idea
that seems to come out of nowhere.
this maybe indicates that we should be careful to understand the context of solomons discussion?
Question: is it fair to take 24-26 as a conclusion on the questions of 1/2? what impact does that have on ecclesiastes study?
i think it is a conclusion. the section seems to remain on topic (somewhat), and the verses do seem to summarize many of the
intermediate conclusions discussed.
if that is true, then it maybe that other sections of ecc. follow the same pattern, in which case a reading through until the 'complete'
conclusion is reached becomes the pattern.
Question: to this point, how should the word translated 'vanity' or 'futility' be understood?
it seems to me like the best way of understanding it in the book is in terms of establishing whether or not a think or quality is an end of itself.
so, in this context, solomon is asserting that wisdom does not work as an ends (he is not necessarily attacking it as a means).
If we understand futility as referring to purpose, than it follows that the central question of the book is necessarily purpose as well.
but why does he not consider charity/giving to others as a purpose?