• 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!

Introduction

• John 19:28 – The word translated “perfect” is also translated as “accomplished” and “fulfilled.”

• We must keep the word in its context.

  • Matthew 5:43-48 – “Perfect” here means loving everyone.

  • James 1:2 – Trials bring a state of maturity. This completeness is also a type of perfection.

  • Hebrews 5:7-9, 14 – Jesus was made perfect. He perfected Himself by carrying out His mission.

  • Philippians 3:11-16 – Paul wanted to be perfected in the sense of being resurrected. Christians can be perfect today in the sense of spiritual maturity.

My relationship with God

• Matthew 22:37 – Martin Luther was racked with guilt and didn’t think he or anyone else could live up to this. He misunderstood perfection and God’s crace, thinking that God must just do everything for us.
• Hebrews 9:1-14 – Our consciences can be perfectly cleansed today by the blood of Jesus.
• Hebrews 10:1-4, 10-14
• I John 1:7 – The sacrifice has been made!
• I John 2:1-2 – I can be perfect because I can partake of God’s perfect plan.

My relationship with myself

• Isaiah 55:3, 7-9 – God’s thoughts are far above us.
• Perfectionism can bring us down and lead us to procrastinate and be idle.
• Robert Turner is a good example of a man who, although he preached God’s word for many years, was still plagued with self-doubt.
• Haggai 2:3
• We need to come to terms with our limits as humans.

My relationship with others

• Luke 18:9-14
• Self-righteousness ruins our relationship with others.
• Ephesians 5:21
• Romans 12:16
• Romans 2:23
• I Timothy 1:15 – Paul said he was chief among sinners!

Conclusion

Let us live with humility and an understanding that we need God.