Ecclesiastes 2:12-17
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Introduction
Introduction
“We all end up in the same place, so what’s it matter how we get there?”
That’s Solomon’s question (really his complaint) in this section of Ecclesiastes.
Earlier in he said...
And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind.
Later, he will say in ...
I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.
And here in he writes...
So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly. For what can the man do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done.
But after the repeated examination of wisdom, madness, and folly, Solomon says they end up in the same place.
Death comes for the wise man just as it does the mad fool, so what’s the point?
Well, the point is beyond death. The point is eternity to come.
But how we live our lives now affects how we will spend eternity.
Major Ideas
Major Ideas
Solomon stays on the same pessimistic note that he began Ecclesiastes with. In v. 12, he writes...
So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly. For what can the man do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done.
The king has already said that his own reign was “vanity and striving after wind” (). In addition, because his rule has been so monumental (cf. ), he has made the rule of all who follow him vanity and striving after wind as well.
The king has already said that his own reign was “vanity and striving after wind” (). In addition, because his rule has been so monumental (cf. 2:1-11), he has made the rule of all who follow him vanity and striving after wind as well.
Solomon is returning to the same theme he spoke of in vv. 9-10...
What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us.
Q: How do you see people trying to do something new and innovative today?
[Illus] In our day, it seems as if some new rebellion against God is presented as innovative.
A couple years back, a pop singer did something lewd and said that she was making history. But of course there were thousands of lewd entertainers before that one.
refers to “inventors of evil,” and that phrase describes well the age we live in, but every age sees itself as innovative in thought and deed when in reality it is only following the same rebellious path as all the ages before.
But then in v. 13 it seems as if Solomon is coming around. He says in v. 13...
Then I saw that there is more gain in wisdom than in folly, as there is more gain in light than in darkness.
Q: How would you define “living wisely” versus “living foolishly”?
v. 13, “…there is more gain
Q: What are the benefits of living wisely versus living foolishly?
But v. 13 only seems pessimistic because in v. 14 Solomon says...
The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them.
Verse 16 tells us that the fate Solomon is talking about is death. We also see this teaching in Psalms...
The discerning sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
For he sees that even the wise die; the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others.
Psalm 49
This teaching is also repeated in Ecclesiastes...
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.
It is the same for all, since the same event happens to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil, to the clean and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As the good one is, so is the sinner, and he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.
Q: Solomon responds to this kind of teaching with a “what’s the point?”attitude, but what’s the problem with his thinking? He is thinking of death as the end.
Q: What Scriptures prompt us to think about what happens after death?
For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.
Matthew 16:37
He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life;
He will render to each one according to his works:
Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.
Revelations 2:23
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done.
Revelation 22:11
Q: How do these verses teach us to prepare for death and the eternity to follow? Know Christ and bear fruit.
In , Solomon asks, “Why then have I been so wise?” He asked that because he saw that the wise man and mad fool both die.
Q: But in light of eternity, how might we answer that question? Living wisely puts us in a position to better store up treasure in Heaven.
Solomon is also discouraged in v. 16 because he realizes that he won’t be remembered after death.
Q: Why is it a fool’s errand to live to be remembered? Because you’ll be forgotten!
[Illus] We just celebrated the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. We blasted men up to the moon and put a flag on it. It was truly a monumental achievement.
But I heard one guy talking about it, and he said, “When the story of the 20th Century is written, the moon landing was so important that it will get a paragraph.”
If the moon landing gets a paragraph, how much print space do you think you will get?
Q: Rather than living to be remembered, how should you live?
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
Ecclesiastes 12:13
Trust God for significance as you obey Him.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Solomon ends with a despairing note, which we might have expected.
Ecclesiastes 2:17
So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Q: How does living in light of eternity through faith in Jesus turn our despair to hope?
Through faith in Jesus, our lives have significance as we trust him and strive for obedience to God. We live not to be remembered but to make him known to future generations. In doing those things, we store up treasure in Heaven to lay at the feet of Jesus as we worship him there.