Introduction

• Matthew 5:13-16

Ethics

• Definition: Moral principles that influence our behavior.
• Galatians 1:10
• Stick to God’s unchanging truths!
• Ephesians 6:5-8
• Psalms 15:1-5 – Would you want your employee to be like this? Your chief of police?
• What God is prescribing causes us to be good people in the world.
• Proverbs 23:23 – Hold to the truth!
• Romans 14:11

Service

• Mark 10:34-35
• “I’m not here for attention or glory.”
• “I’m here to work.”
• Luke 17:7-10
• What job is beneath a Christian?
• John 13

Joy

• Romans 12:15
• Philippians 3:1
• I Peter 4:13
• Deuteronomy 28:47
• Galatians 5:15-24
• Acts 16:22-25
• Philippians 1:1-5, 18-20
• Christians should be joyful people!

• Ecclesiastes 1:1-2:17

Writer

• The writer appears to be Solomon.
• Solomon (971-931 BC): I Kings 1-11; II Chronicles 1-9
  • Blessed with wisdom, riches, and honor (I Kings 3)
  • Built temple (I Kings 6-8)
  • Wrote Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
  • Women: 700 wives, 300 concubines, “turned his heart away” (I Kings 11:3)
  • Last king of the united kingdom

Themes

• Vanity / wind / evil / futility
• Under the sun
  • The scope of the book is life “under the sun.” That helps explain these strange statements (Ecclesiastes 4:2-3; 10:18).
• Nothing new / things go in circles (Ecclesiastes 1:3-11)
• Death (Ecclesiastes 2:14-16)
• Hard work / possessions (Ecclesiastes 2:18-26)
• Pleasure (Ecclesiastes 2:1-11)
• Time / chance / random / unfair (Ecclesiastes 9:11)
• Wisdom (Ecclesiastes 9:13-18)

Tone

• Brutally realistic
• Contrast with Proverbs

Notes on the book

• Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 – Everything is circular and there is no progress.
  • Ecclesiastes 1:7 – This seems to be a reference to the water cycle, which may be an example of scientific foreknowledge in the Bible.
• Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 – Solomon did the experimentation, so we don’t have to. He explored by wisdom but found only vanity.
• Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 – Solomon tried all sorts of pleasure, but never found fulfillment.
• Ecclesiastes 2:12-17 – Wisdom is better than folly, but will not save you from death.

“Making melody with your heart to God”

• Ephesians 5:18-21
• Matthew 12:34 – Singing is speaking to God, and this starts in the heart.
• James 5:13
• Colossians 3:16
• Matthew 15:8-9
• Matthew 18:35
• Matthew 22:37
• Songs are a beautiful way to combine truth and emotion.

“Praise to God”

• Romans 15:7-12 – The unity all people have in singing praise to God.
• Hebrews 2:11-12
• Hebrews 13:10-16 – Through Jesus we can offer up praise to God.
• Philippians 4:!8
• Our singing is a sacrifice to God. Just like in the Old Testament, we must do it properly to be acceptable to Him.

“Sing with the mind”

• I Corinthians 14:11-16, 26 – Worship should be understandable to yourself and other people.

“One another”

• Colossians 3:15-17
• Acts 16:25 – The prisoners were listening to them sing!
• We have an effect on each other when we sing.

Truth

• Speaker: Jeremiah 6:13-14; II Timothy 4:1-5

  • Must speak the truth! Don’t cover up or ignore sin.

  • See also Galatians 1:6-10.

• Listener: Acts 17:11

  • Examine the scriptures to verify the truth of the teaching.

Attitude

• Speaker: Acts 20:18-24; Romans 10:1
  • Teach with humility and concern for the souls of the listeners.
• Listener: Nehemiah 8:1-8
  • Listen with respect for God’s word. Don’t take His teaching lightly.

Motivation

• Speaker: Ecclesiastes 12:11; I Corinthians 4:16-21
  • Motivate the listeners to seek and obey God.
• Listener: Acts 2:37; 17:21
  • Acts on this motivation – don’t just traffic in idle words and theories.

God and Job

• Job 38:1-7; 40:1

God’s sovereignty over creation (Job 38:1-39:30)

Dialogue between God and Job (Job 40:1-5)

• Job immediately responded with humility.

God’s sovereignty over creation, continued (Job 40:6-41:34)

• Compare Job 10:3, 17.
• Introduction – Job 40:6-14
• Behemoth – Job 40:15-24
• Leviathan – Job 41:1-34
• Behemoth and Leviathan could be extinct dinosaurs. (See https://apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=9&article=184 )
• It’s very possible that leviathan was actually a fire-breathing animal. Many animals can eject various chemical as defense. One great example is the bombardier beetle (https://youtu.be/W3sxJNt8CYw ).

Job’s final response (Job 42:1-6)

• Job repents and retracts his words.
• Job 30:19-21 – This might be a place where Job went too far.

God’s conclusion (Job 42:7-17)

• Job 42:7-8 – God refers to Job as His servant. Job’s right speaking here might be his repentance.
• James 5:10-11 – The story of Job teaches us about God’s compassion and mercy.
• Job’s role was to stay committed to God. That’s our role as well, regardless of what we face!