The Preacher’s thoughts turn away from God’s providence over the Earth to the injustice which is done on Earth. We can all think of examples of injustice in the world--and agree with Solomon that it just isn’t right. The Bible is filled with teachings against injustice, such as:
“An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous, but one whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked”. (Proverbs 29:27)
“You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor”. (Leviticus 19:15)
But, under the sun, injustice prevails. God is the ultimate Judge, and He will set things right at the appointed time. We need to trust that He sees and cares and will judge accordingly. Only God is truly just, only God will always do what is right:
“The Lord within her is righteous; He does no injustice; every morning He shows forth His justice; each dawn He does not fail; but the unjust knows no shame”. (Zephaniah 3:5)
Verse 18 is curious--God is testing people so that they may see they are no different than the animals. To test can be translated ‘to prove’ or ‘make manifest’--to show. In our wickedness and injustice, we are no better than animals--not because they are wicked and unjust, but because they act on instinct without thought or care. And, like animals, in the end we die.
This echoes 2:15-16--just as all die, whether wise or foolish, so all humans, like animals, die. ‘Under the sun’, there is no difference--humans are just another animal. Evolution makes sense ‘under the sun’, humans and animals have equal worth, there is no distinction, and in the end, they both return to the dust. ‘Who can see what will be after him?‘ There is no afterlife for the one who lives ‘under the sun’ because there is no thought of God.
Because there is so much injustice and in the end, we will all die, nothing is better than finding happiness in our work. Again, the Preacher extols joy in the ordinariness of life. What God gives us to do everyday should be our source of joy. It often isn’t easy because we expect more and want more, but, in the end, these things lead to dissatisfaction.
Solomon, who had access to everything, tells us it is the simple things which will be our true contentment. Even those who live ‘under the sun’ can find joy in the everyday, this is God’s common grace given to all. They should, in fact, find joy in the everyday if this life is all that there is. ‘He who dies with the most toys, wins’ is not what Solomon advocates, and he, of all people, would know.
READ 4:1-6
Because there is no justice, wickedness and oppression prevail, just as it did in ancient Israel:
“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages” (Jeremiah 22:13).
“The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have oppressed the poor and needy, and have extorted from the sojourner without justice” (Ezekiel 22:29).
“Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals” (Amos 2:6-7a).
The oppressors are powerful, those they oppress have no one to help them, they are all alone. The Preacher paints a grim picture of their hopelessness and concludes that the dead are better off than the living. Furthermore, it is better to never have been born than to see the evil which is done ‘under the sun’.
When America was attacked in 2001, I remember thinking that those who died prior to this event will never have to deal with what was coming--they were better off than we were. Even now, I sometimes think about my father, how he no longer experiences that bad things that we deal with. This is what Solomon is referring to. One who is dead, or has never been born is sheltered from the evils of this world, ‘under the sun’.
As Christians, we understand that we live in the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of Heaven at the same time, this world is not our home. That gives us perspective. Solomon is simply looking at the evils of living on Earth--the injustice and oppression and concludes that it is better to have never lived than to experience all the sorrow and suffering of life ‘under the sun’.
Verse 4-6 goes back to Solomon’s earlier observations that striving to accomplish and acquire are ultimately chasing after the wind. What causes us to strive for more is envy. We compare ourselves to our friends and neighbors--‘keeping up with the Joneses’. We may be satisfied with our car or house, until we see the new one our friend just bought. We may be content with a small business that pays the bills, until we hear of the young entrepreneur who made millions in his first year. We are glad that we were accepted at the college of our choice, until our friend is accepted at the Ivy League school. We are driven by envy.
It’s not just the big things which entice us to work more and more--maybe our friend just bought a great pair of shoes, so we head to the mall the next day. For me, it’s jewelry. An inexpensive item truly does make me happy. But, when I see something new and different, I still want it. I certainly don’t always buy it, but the desire is there. When we are enticed because of what others have and go after it, thinking it will bring us ultimate happiness, it is striving after the wind because there will always be something else that another has.
Selfish ambition, driven by envy, will not bring ultimate meaning. That’s not to say that ambition is a bad thing. The one who has no ambition is the one who folds his hand--he will not work, thus, he eats his own flesh. That is, he brings trouble upon himself when he can’t provide for himself and/or his family. There is a vast difference between being a workaholic because we envy what others have and resigning ourselves to doing nothing. Both extremes are to be avoided.
A little with peace is better than much with strife. It is better to be content with little and live a quiet life than to attain more and more when there is chaos and disorder. Being content with meeting our needs is to be desired above both not having enough due to laziness or having an abundance due to envy.
Ecclesiastes has much practical ‘advice’--God will deal with injustice, we should enjoy and be content with the simple things in life, rather than being driven by envy. In order to see how these relate to Jesus, let‘s take a look at a few New Testament passages:
Luke 18:7 “Will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to Him day and night? Will He delay long over them?”
- When Jesus returns, justice will be accomplished. The book of Revelation is about how God will make all things right in His time.
- Unlike the animals, we are adopted, beloved and redeemed because Jesus, the Savior, has come. Like the animals, we die, but death is more than the grave, for Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life, the one who believes in Him will never die (John 11:26-27).
- When envy is allowed to have control, it always leads to sin.
- We are to outdo one another in showing love, not by doing and acquiring more. Instead of envy, we are to love one another.
“But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”
- We must find our contentment in Christ, for the temptation to get rich leads to destruction.
God graciously reveals Himself and His will to us, so that we are not living meaningless lives of vanity, because the Messiah has come. It is He who said, “Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it” (Matthew3:16-17).
No comments:
Post a Comment