Ecclesiastes 7:10

Ecclesiastes 7:10 “10 Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.”

A first person video of a boy in his room in the late 90s.

Comments tell of a better time.

Video of Obama speaking and then stopping because there is a medical emergency. Him commanding the staff doctor to take care of it

People saying it is better times when presidents cared.

In an age of cultural decline at neck break speed, this question is often repeated.

It is a common practice for humans to look at the past with certain fondness and their present situation with pessimism.

Why is this so natural and is it okay?

What this is not saying:

Never acknowledge when things use to be better.

Jeremiah 2:2–3 “2 “Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the Lord, “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown. 3 Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest. All who ate of it incurred guilt; disaster came upon them, declares the Lord.””

Hosea 11:1–4 “1 When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. 2 The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols. 3 Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk; I took them up by their arms, but they did not know that I healed them. 4 I led them with cords of kindness, with the bands of love, and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws, and I bent down to them and fed them.”

(Church at Ephesus) Revelation 2:4–5 “4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”

There are times when we should consider the past and consider the present and know that something has changed for the worse

The family today versus pre-sexual revolution era

Your own condition when you have fallen lax on spiritual discipline

What it does mean:

Asking the question with a motivation of complaining over your present situation.

Your motivation is not so much about how things actually were, but to complain about how things are.

Not being satisfied with the present condition God has providentially established for you.

We in sin have the uncanny ability to take for granted what God has given us at present, and demand more like a toddler in the middle of a temper tantrum

Israel longs for food, get manna. Long for meat until they had too much.

Exodus 16:1–3 “1 They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. 2 And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.””

Numbers 11:4–6 “4 Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.””

Exodus 2:23–25 “23 During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.”

Numbers 11:18–20 “18 And say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat, for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was better for us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall not eat just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, 20 but a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come out of Egypt?” ’ ””

Exodus 5:5–21 “5 And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” 6 The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, 7 “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. 8 But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.” 10 So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. 11 Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least.’ ” 12 So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 13 The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw.” 14 And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?” 15 Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, “Why do you treat your servants like this? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” 17 But he said, “You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ 18 Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.” 19 The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, “You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.” 20 They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh; 21 and they said to them, “The Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.””

It is a natural thing to do as sinners to take for granted what God has given to us at present, and demand more.

And in that vein of murmuring we will feed it by exaggerating the better times of before.

So the question becomes another way of complaining and not appreciating the things God has given us at present.

A person who cries why was it so much better, if they were to be brought back to that time, it would not be long before they are crying for another time further back, if their heart does not change)

When we ask this question with a complaining and murmuring heart we are outside the bounds of wisdom and we are not thinking productively.

Job did this as well.

Job 29 (things were better)

Job 30 (things are bad now)

1;9;16

And what does God say to Job when God finally talks:

Job 38:1–3 “1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? 3 Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.”

Philippians 4:4–7 “4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness (KJV moderation, NIV gentleness) be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

It is only after this that you can look at history with an eye of wisdom.

You will typically see that there were dark things back then and light.

And there are light things now including dark.

But with this mindset you will be convinced that as God worked providentially then, he works the same now.

And if there are things about the past that were better, the question will be asked not to complain but to see what can be done at present to make things better.

This is one of the reasons why as soon as we had Silas Sarah stayed home.

Andy Bernard: I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days, before you've actually left them.

In some measure you are always in the good ole days, if you have a heart of thanksgiving to receive it.