The Injustice of the World

Everything has a Destiny

Ecclesiastes 3:16–4:3 ESV

16 Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness. 17 I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work. 18 I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts. 19 For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. 20 All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return. 21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth? 22 So I saw that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for that is his lot. Who can bring him to see what will be after him? 1 Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them. 2 And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive. 3 But better than both is he who has not yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.

God’s Perspective(vv. 16-17)

One of the more difficult qualities of God is His justice. We start where man is asked to exercise or play a God-like function - justice. In the court of law, where true judgment was called to prevail, there was wickedness. This was rooted in the nature of fallen man.

True justice could not prevail because true judgement cannot be made without righteousness. Therefore, there is no true justice apart from God. We are all called to make judgments throughout our lives as to another person’s character, abilities and actions, but these judgments will always be impaired in some way by our sin.

Only God is the righteous judge and the one who can rule perfectly every time. God is testing man so that he can see clearly that in this area he is, in effect, little more than an animal. He too will face the true righteous judgment that comes from God. Man’s destiny is to face the judgment of God.

Man’s Perspective (vv. 18-22)

Man’s perspective sees fallen humanity from a different perspective. He sees the same tings, but views them in a different way. He acknowledges the failure of his own species and race to exercise justice and act in righteousness. He concludes that he is little more than an animal of a different species. His destiny is no different than a dog or any other living creature.

Is there any hope whatsoever in such a perspective. Whether they voice it like this or not the majority of the world who do not believe in God follow this line of thinking. What fallen humanity needs is a revelation: someone to show them the true reality of their position in the mind and heart of God; someone to show them their destiny apart from Christ. The question that leaves each one of us hanging is, “who can bring him to see what will be after him? This now opens us up to pursue answers which are clearly found in the pages of the Bible.

2 Questions on the Injustice of the World:

1). If God is sovereign over his creation, how are we to view the injustice of life?

2). How can we possibly defend believing in the essential goodness of God?

How do we understand the Perceived Injustice of God?

1. We must learn the truth about ourselves in injustice.

If anything cries through the window of history to be reversed it is the injustice in the world that we see played out everyday.

Our job is not to try and school God on what He should be doing or not doing, our job is to learn the truth about ourselves, a lesson that we are very slow to accept. (even in the 20th century we find ourselves inclined to deny the truth about our inborn sinfulness, or better yet exposing them to show that they are mere bests.

We read in verse 18 that God is testing (or better exposing) them to show them that they are but beasts. We do find that there are at least to facts about us which support the charge as being beasts:

1). The Role of greed and cunning.

2). The Mortality which man shares with earthly creatures.

The first of these is played out in the next chapter; the second occupies the remainder of this one, and interacts with other parts of the Old Testament. Verse 20 depicts a man on his journey from dust to dust, as in Genesis 3:19, confronts us with the Fall, “that by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust, you shall return.”

So, the fall highlights the irony that we now die like cattle because we desired ourselves as gods. All of this leads to a profound and yet greater question that has plagued humanity since their eyes were opened and they came fact to face now with their own mortality.

Can something inside of us survive death?

English Standard Version (Chapter 3)

21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth?

*We must humble ourselves to ascend to our full humanity.

Look at Psalm 49:16-20

Psalm 49:16–20 ESV

16 Be not afraid when a man becomes rich, when the glory of his house increases. 17 For when he dies he will carry nothing away; his glory will not go down after him. 18 For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed —and though you get praise when you do well for yourself— 19 his soul will go to the generation of his fathers, who will never again see light. 20 Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

The Psalmist makes the same comparison between men and beasts, reminding us that there is an answer. Now look at verse 15 of Psalm 49:15

Psalm 49:15 ESV

15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah

It is man in his arrogance and pomp without understanding, who is ‘like the beasts that perish:’ not the true believer and follower of Christ. The man who is arrogant and continues to think that God is a puppet on a string who exists to give us proof of the eternal mysteries of His purpose who are no better as the writer of Ecclesiastes say’s beasts of the field.

Daniel 4 stands out as the only time in scripture which a human being appears to be turned into an animal. It may remind you of the classical trope of metamorphosis - think of the sequence in Pinocchio when the boys morph into jackasses or the many tales from the Roman poet Ovid when the gods transform humans into creatures that represent their fatal flaws.

Daniel 4 opens with Nebuchadnezzar at his leisure in his grand palace receiving a symbolic dream. In this dream, the king appears as a giant tree that reaches to heaven and provides food and shelter to all the birds of the sky and beasts of the field. But a decree comes down from heaven that the tree must be cut down. The tree is an image of strong, benevolent kingship, and the animals in the dream are the subjects that the king is provisioning and protecting. In verse 30 the king declares “is not this Babylon which I have built by my own mighty power as a residence for the glory of my name and majesty.”

We read in verse 16 how Nebuchadnezzar’s body becomes the canvas on which his profound change is illustrated. Let his mind be changed from a man’s, and let a beast’s mind be given to him.” Since pride floods Nebuchadnezzar’s mind, God gives him a new one.

This is not a fairy tale, but fairy tales are tapping into an aspect of the truth that we find in Scripture. In the old story, the arrogant prince is transformed into the Beast until he learns to love selflessly. His external appearance is made to match his character until his character changes. Nebuchadnezzar’s pride made him subhuman, so God drove him out from among mankind. His mind was changed to the mind of an animal so that he would learn to humble himself after God.

Here is the arrogance of the struggle we face with injustice. We fail to have a proper human response to God’s goodness and glory. But pride disorders our minds that we ignore God and become less than human. Paul urges us to reflect on Christ’s humanity so that we can embody his mind (Philippians 2:5). When we see the character of God shining through it humbles us and leads us to praise. We must humble ourselves to ascend to our full humanity.

2. We must Learn the Truth about the tears of injustice.

The preacher now gives us four areas of life he observes that reinforce his view that the injustice we face here on earth is difficult to understand. The tears that flood the annals of humanities journey from the garden of Eden until now are vast and expansive.

Has God forgotten us in the middle of oppression, frustration, loneliness and disillusionment of this world.

1). The Tears of the Oppressed (vv. 1-3)

*Godless sorrow leads to suicidal longings.

“Basically the writer is commenting that it would be better to be dead already than living in a world with the injustice of oppression.

Note: When we have a merely horizontal view of life instead of a vertical view it brings no smile to the tyrant’s frown.

THE OPPRESSION IN SCRIPTURE

For most people in the world today life is little more than a game of chance. It’s like playing the lottery or going to Vegas and setting at the slot machine all day. We all appear to be victims of chance - all subject to the way the wind blows.

Through out the course of a lifetime many tears are shed. The preacher now goes down the road of some of the causes of such tears.

Oppression is a theme seen throughout scripture and especially in the OT. From the oppression of the Israelites under the Egyptians, to the prophetic writers highlighting oppression, to Israel’s experience of oppression in the exile. The same root from which the act of oppression and the oppressed come in v.1 also occurs in Proverbs 14:31 “Oppressing the poor to enrich oneself, and giving to the rich, will lead only to poverty”; and Proverbs 28:3: “A poor man who oppresses the needy is like a beating rain that leaves no food.” The preacher now merely describes the horrors of what he had seen and moves to his conclusion. Remember the only appearance of Job’s wife in the middle of Job’s immense oppression and suffering was, why do you not just curse God and die.

The preacher sees no comfort coming to the oppressed.

The power to Oppress

Many scholars date the writing of Ecclesiastes sometime around the 3rd century BC. During this period Judea was part of the province of Syria and Phoenicia in the Ptolemaic kingdom. The Greed elite permeated the kingdom, and the leading families in Jerusalem were becoming integrated with the Greek elite and their way of life. In this context the wealthier classes oppressed the underclass, especially through the institution of debt slavery.

Whole families could end up being sold into foreign slavery when they were unable to pay their debts. This abuse of economic and political power leading to terrible oppression of the underclass was widespread at this time in history.

The horror and pain of such relentless oppression is evoked in the writers words. So, we see that politics in this fallen world is meaningless. The people who are elected to uphold justice, set things right, and pass laws to protect the hurting are the ones who ultimately end up doing the oppressing. The problem is that power corrupts even those with the best of intentions.

In our political system today, often people have compromised their ideals in order to climb the ladder, and once they get to a position of influence they no longer are the same person anymore. The powerful can do what they want to the weak and no one can stand up for the weak, whether it is an unborn child or a slave-trade little girl. Sex traffickers pay off the police to look the other way, and Liam Neeson is not flying in to save these little girls. It seems hopeless.

You might object that is not true. Much can be done to help the oppressed. “yes, people can help the oppressed, but Solomon’s point is that there is no net gain. You cannot end oppression altogether. You might work really hard for a time to end oppression in one little corner of the world and see a degree of success, but the oppression pops back up somewhere else in the world. The twentieth century saw Hitler over thrown, but then there was Stalin, and next there was ISIS.

Certainly we should work for justice. We should engage in mercy ministry. This is near and dear to God’s heart and talked about repeatedly in scripture. But without Christ, it will not be completely changed.

While other books of the Bible intend encourage concern and help for the poor, Ecclesiastes intends to expose the meaningless of life in this fallen world.

The whole thing is discouraging. We live in a world where it is vogue to end injustice by putting a red X on your hand. However, ours is a world where powers are corrupt to the core, and they even use mercy as a ploy to benefit themselves. For example, half of the millions that have been donated to Haiti over the years go to American companies and NGO’s instead of local efforts. It insures a cultural dependency.

The Purpose to Keep our Eyes Wide Open

I think that the greater purpose of reading this in scripture as painful as it is may be, is to keep our eyes wide open to the reign of evil in the world in its most cruel and hideous forms. If the gloom of the writer strikes us as excessive at this point, we may need to ask whether our more cheerful outlook springs from hope and not complacency. While we as Christians see much further ahead than the writer of Ecclesiastes allowed himself to look, it is no reason to spare ourselves the realities of the present.

2). The Tears of the Frustrated (vv. 4-6)

Achievement under the sun that does not put God first, will always leave you frustrated, because its motivating force is envy - and envy will never satisfy you.

Why do you work? For some this question may seem easy to answer, while if we look deeper it may have many layers of frustration tied to the toil we experience under the sun. Our ambitions may appear to have roots that are pure, however, they can still be fed and watered by our envy of others.

The Bible gives us many instances of the envy of those who have much to crave even more. Ahab had a kingdom, but killed a man in a vineyard; Solomon’s father had many wives and concubines, yet stole another man’s wife.

How often have we secretly wished someone else’s success to be our success or possibly wanted him or her to fail?

What affects does materialism have on a person?

What Materialism is and is not

The first time I went to Haiti I remember passing kids playing kick the can down a pile of rocks not even seeming to be fazed by the piles of trash they were playing in I could not help but wonder what kids back in America were doing, likely hanging on their video games, cell phones, and computers. When I got to the pastors conference and began to teach, I asked one of the pastors what he perceived as the greatest hindrances to the spread of the gospel is in Haiti.

His answer floored me. He simply said, “Materialism”

I could not fully understand or comprehend his answer, so I asked him to explain. After all, we were watching kids play on the piles of trash. Ho could materialism be an issue here? The pastor astutely explained that in that pare of the world, if someone had a on-room mud brick house, they wanted one with two rooms. If someone had a mud brick home, they wanted one made of concrete. If they had tow cows, they wanted three. And so on.

Materialism isn’t about having a lot and wanting more. Instead, it’s defined by worshiping what you have and what you think you want. It is a belief that having more things can bring you contentment and joy. It is a sickness that is present in all corners of the world, and it is prevalent among the poor as among the rich.

It all comes down to a faulty view of who God is and what He has done for us. King Solomon is a great example of the issue of materialism. He is believed to be one of the wealthiest men who ever lived, however, at the end of the day his pursuit of pleasure found him left wanting more.

If a Christian is preoccupied with material things rather than the things of God it is definitely wrong. This does not mean that we cannot have material things, but the obsession with acquiring and caring for “stuff” is a dangerous thing for the Christian for two reasons.

(1). any preoccupation, obsession, or immoderate fascination with anything other than God is sinful and displeasing to Him. (this type of sinful behavior is one that we tend to give ourselves a free pass on.) Matt. 22:37-38; Deuteronomy 6:5.

(2). when we concern ourselves with the material world, we are easily drawn into the deceit of wealth.(Luke 16:33 “no servant can serve two masters; Mark 4:19 “but the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches.... come in and choke out the word)

verse 6: the preacher now throws a balancing factor into play that maybe a little of this is not a bad thing as long as I add a little bit of this other thing. However, the end result never changes.

3). The Tears of the Lonely (vv. 7-12)

What is the root cause of Loneliness in the Word?

According to a study done by Pew Research the top contributing factors for peoples loneliness is: dissatisfaction with family life, social life, quality of life in community, current job or career, and financial situation. According to studies ran by the national library of medicine pervasive loneliness is at epidemic levels. Pervasive loneliness has widespread effects and is strongly linked to mental health issues such as anxiety and depression.

Life on Lonely Street

The preacher now puts himself in the shoes of a lonely man. What is the root cause of this man’s loneliness? He has not immediate family. Maybe he is an only child who has lost both his parents?

Why has he never married? the context suggests that he is describing someone who is so consumed by his work, that he is incapable of making or keeping close relationships. There are those who have achieved things in life, who have sacrificed their families and relationships along the way.

Anne Hathaway

“Loneliness is my least favorite things about life. The thing that I’m most worried about is just being alone without anybody to care for or someone who will care for me.”

I have sat across from my share of single young men and women, who have expressed this same sentiment. We could blame this on a digital age as we are connected to more people, but in reality are less connected than every before. It could be a sign of selfishness and self-centeredness in our culture. It could be the sign of the “godlessness of our culture.” I am not sure what all the contributing factors are, but I do know that this fear is a reality in the lives of many young people, especially young women.

Many women have been raised to desire, and have rightly embraced, the calling to be a godly wife and mother. As the college years approach and we see our thirties fast approaching discouragement, hopelessness, and even depression can set in as the fear of remaining single for a lifetime becomes a real possibility.

Every wedding invitation, baby announcement feels like another wound of loneliness. And the church can become awkward as you are too old to hang with the singles and not exactly comfortable among the married folks.

Let me encourage you today and give you one strong and clear warning you need to hear: Loneliness in a godless marriage can be even more severe than the loneliness on experiences in singleness. Just as I have heard from numerous single mean and women regarding their loneliness, it does not compare to the individuals who are grieving the loneliness they feel trapped in a godless relationship.

“Two are Better than one.”

You may have heard us say many times at the Journey that you were not created to live alone but in community with one anther.”

The thoughts that we read here are simple, and direct; they apply to many forms or relationships and partnerships, not least (though not explicitly) to marriage. The writer is depicting the profit of comfort and strength that are set against the demands that it may make of us.

*There is a cost to authentic community

If there were no cost to true authentic community than it would not be so profitable. The price is a persons independence: we must consult another persons interests and convenience not our own, listen to another persons reasoning and not our own, adjust to another persons pace and schedule and not our own, keep faith with another persons trust.

True community does take great effort and time invested. No less than a persons relationship in marriage. Over my 25 plus years in ministry the one greatest hindrance I find to a persons spiritual growth and development is a lack of authentic biblical community. You will never find a Christian who truly lives out his faith for a lifetime without it. We do not see any of the relationship of early believers who do not experience this kind of community. “Woe to the man or woman who is alone when they fall and have no one their to help them up.”

The reflection in verse 12 is on the security a companion provides. Isolated, one is more vulnerable to violent attack than in community. The natural setting here is of one going on a journey. Roads outside of the city and towns were often hazardous, and the isolated traveler would be particularly vulnerable to attacks.

Look at the great intimate part of this in verse 11 “if the two lie together, they can keep each other warm, but how can he keep himself warm alone.”

Philippians 2:4–8 ESV

4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

“The Threefold Cord”

Now the move from two companions to three. We can also see this illustrated as the two travellers were on the road to Emmaus and were joined by a third. We can also see this in the story of Shadrach, Meshack, and Agendego. Where king Nebuchadnezzar threw the boys into the fire of the furnace and when he looked into the blaze of the furnace behold he saw a third in the furnace with him.

4). The Tears of the Disillusioned (vv. 13-16)

The short-lived popularity of the great

This parable of sorts shows both sides beginning with the stubbornness of the man who has been too long in the saddle-who is out of touch and out of sympathy with the times, forgetting what it was like to be young, and fiery, and hard-up, as he once was himself. There is possibly enough likeness of the early and David for us to reflect that the finest of men can go this way and be the last to realize it. However, this is not necessary meant to be a historical picture.

We see this played out in every area of society in the lives of politicians, business executives, football stars and coaches, society builds someone up into a super star, only to bring them crashing down with a scandal either real or imaginary! We also see this played up and displayed in pastors and spiritual leaders.

CONCLUSION

Our passage begins today with “ I looked and saw all.” If we compare this with what is found in Revelation 7:9

Revelation 7:9 ESV

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

‘I looked and behold,’ we see a different picture. John saw a great multitude praising God. the passage ends with the words, Revelation 7:17

Revelation 7:17 ESV

17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

The preacher who is writing today looks and sees all of the oppression and struggles under the sun.

The historical Buddha or Gautama Buddha was believed to be about 29 years old when he began his quest for enlightenment. His quest was accomplished about six years later when he was in his mid-30s.

Raised in a life of privilege and luxury protected from all knowledge of pain and suffering in the world. Young prince Gautama at the age of 29 is said to have left the family place to meet his subjects, at which time he was confronted with the reality of human suffering. Then, with five friends over six years he engaged in rigorous asceticism. He tortured himself, held his breath, and fasted until his ribs stuck out. Yet he was not closer to enlightenment.

He then remembered as a boy sitting under a rose-apple tree on a beautiful day and had a spontaneous experience of absolute bliss. Buddha fell asleep under the tree and had a vision, when he awoke he had experienced what he called true enlightenment. All Buddhist religion is based on ridding the world of all human suffering and pain.

James writes that we should consider it all joy when we face trials of various kinds; Jesus tells us that in Him we will find peace but, in this world you will have trials and tribulations.

Christian theism is, in fact, the only worldview which can consistently make sense of the problem of evil and suffering.

Christians serve a God who has lived on this earth and endured trauma, temptation, bereavement, torture, hunger, thirst, persecution and even execution.

The cross of Christ can be regarded as the ultimate manifestation of God’s justice. When asked how much God cares about the problem of evil and suffering, the Christian God can point to the cross and say, “That much.”

Christ experienced physical pain as well as feelings of rejection and abandonment. He experienced the same suffering as many people today who know the bitterness of isolation, pain, and anguish.