HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 958
EC C LES I A S T ES 1
page 588
“Fear God and obey his commands” is Solomon’s final plea. We can almost sense Solomon’s wistfulness as he says this, wishing above all else that he had had the ordinary
common sense to follow this guideline throughout his own life.
Key verses in Ecclesiastes
2:11 But as I looked at
everything I had worked so
hard to accomplish, it was all so
meaningless—like chasing the
wind. There was nothing really
worthwhile anywhere.
2:24-25 Then I realized that
these pleasures are from the hand
of God. For who can eat or enjoy
anything apart from him?
3:1 For everything there is a
season . . .
4:9-10 Two people are better off
than one, for they can help each
1
other succeed. If one person falls,
the other can reach out and help.
But someone who falls alone is in
real trouble.
10:1 As dead flies cause even
a bottle of perfume to stink, so
a little foolishness spoils great
wisdom and honor.
5:10 Those who love money
will never have enough. How
meaningless to think that wealth
brings true happiness!
6:9 Enjoy what you have rather
than desiring what you don’t have.
12:1 Don’t let the excitement
of youth cause you to forget
your Creator. Honor him in
your youth before you grow
old and say, “Life is not
pleasant anymore.”
8:1 How wonderful to be wise,
to analyze and interpret things.
Wisdom lights up a person’s face,
softening its harshness.
12:13 Here now is my final
conclusion: Fear God and
obey his commands, for this
is everyone’s duty.
These are the words of the Teacher,* King
David’s son, who ruled in Jerusalem.
Everything Is Meaningless
2 “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher,
“completely meaningless!”
3 What do people get for all their hard work
under the sun? 4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. 5 The sun
rises and the sun sets, then hurries around to
rise again. 6 The wind blows south, and then
turns north. Around and around it goes, blowing in circles. 7 Rivers run into the sea, but the
sea is never full. Then the water returns again to
the rivers and flows out again to the sea. 8 Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No
matter how much we hear, we are not content.
9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been
done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.
10 Sometimes people say, “Here is something
new!” But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly
new. 11 We don’t remember what happened in
the past, and in future generations, no one will
remember what we are doing now.
The Teacher Speaks: The Futility of Wisdom
12 I, the Teacher, was king of Israel, and I lived
in Jerusalem. 13 I devoted myself to search for
understanding and to explore by wisdom everything being done under heaven. I soon discovered that God has dealt a tragic existence to the
human race. 14 I observed everything going on
under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless—
like chasing the wind.
15
What is wrong cannot be made right.
What is missing cannot be recovered.
16 I said to myself, “Look, I am wiser than any
of the kings who ruled in Jerusalem before me.
I have greater wisdom and knowledge than any
of them.” 17 So I set out to learn everything from
wisdom to madness and folly. But I learned
firsthand that pursuing all this is like chasing
the wind.
18
The greater my wisdom, the greater
my grief.
To increase knowledge only increases
sorrow.
The Futility of Pleasure
I said to myself, “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life.”
But I found that this, too, was meaningless. 2 So
I said, “Laughter is silly. What good does it do
to seek pleasure?” 3 After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine. And while still
seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In
this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in
this world.
4 I also tried to find meaning by building
huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards. 5 I made gardens and parks, filling them with all kinds of fruit trees. 6 I built
reservoirs to collect the water to irrigate my
many flourishing groves. 7 I bought slaves, both
men and women, and others were born into my
2
1:1 Hebrew Qoheleth; this term is rendered “the Teacher”
throughout this book.