I NSIGHTS INTO THE M EANING OF L IFE E CCLESIASTES 8:1-17 L IVING W ISELY IN A W ORLD OF V ANITY

E CCLESIASTES 8:1,2 “ Who is like a wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man's wisdom makes his face shine, and the sternness of his face is changed. I say, "Keep the king's commandment for the sake of your oath to God. "

E XPRESSIONS OF W ISDOM “Who is like a wise man?” “Who knows the interpretation of a thing?” Wisdom causes a man to keep his composure in all circumstances Peace in knowing—makes one’s “ face shine ” A wise man need not demonstrate haughtiness or puffed-up attitude “ Sternness of face changed ”—grows in wisdom, confidence also increases

E XPRESSIONS OF W ISDOM Wisdom should cause one to keep the king’s commandment Best to avoid the king’s wrath Dangerous to question or disobey Earthly king fits context better than God ( Principle fits God also ) –Romans 13:1-7 —authority from God –2 Chronicles 36:17 –2 Kings 11:17

E CCLESIASTES 8:3,4 “ Do not be hasty to go from his presence. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.” Where the word of a king is, there is power; and who may say to him, "What are you doing ? "

E CCLESIASTES 8:5 “He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; and a wise man's heart discerns both time and judgment, "

E CCLESIASTES 8:6,7 “ Because for every matter there is a time and judgment, though the misery of man increases greatly. For he does not know what will happen; so who can tell him when it will occur ? "

R ESPECTING A UTHORITY “Don’t be hasty to flee from his presence.” “Do not take a stand for something that is evil.” In a hurry to “do evil” breaks the oath to the king—and to God God and the king have ability to punish the evil doer –Job 34:18 –Ecclesiastes 3:17

R ESPECTING A UTHORITY King issues a command—subject in no place to question him Such authority cannot be questioned without reprisals! Keeping king’s command keeps one from harm Wise man’s heart judges (discerns) both time and judgment Know the law and obey it !

R ESPECTING A UTHORITY All things work out in time Disobedience to the authority (unless causes one to disobey God) places one at odds with God too Wait on God… Pray for them and obey them –Proverbs 24:22 –1 Timothy 2:1,2 –1 Peter 2:13-17

E CCLESIASTES 8:8 “No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, and no one has power in the day of death. There is no release from that war, and wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it.”

L IMITATIONS TO A UTHORITY Many things we cannot control One cannot keep the spirit from departing from the body –James 2:26 No one has the power over the day of death—we will die –Hebrews 9:27

L IMITATIONS TO A UTHORITY Many things we cannot control No discharge in the war—no man can retain his spirit at the end – Ecclesiastes 12:7 Wickedness cannot deliver those who are given over to it Sin cannot benefit the sinner Proverbs 13:15 Galatians 6:7,8 Numbers 32:33

E CCLESIASTES 8:9 “All this I have seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun: There is a time in which one man rules over another to his own hurt.”

E CCLESIASTES 8:10 “Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity.”

E CCLESIASTES 8:11 “Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.”

E CCLESIASTES 8:12 “Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him. ”

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Men cannot truly exercise authority over others without God’s help profitably Solomon applied his wisdom to all his work “ under the sun ” End of hurting self and others—why? Did not use God’s wisdom by choices made!

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Wicked are given a decent burial Come and go from the place of holiness Praised in the city Soon forgotten Wicked did evil—no voice raised in objection Did “ justice ” get overlooked? Vanity - man’s attitude towards evil

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS “Sentence against evil is not done speedily” Why do people continue to do evil again and again? No immediate punishment Quick response—brings less wickedness No fear of God —false sense of security –Romans 3:10-18 –2 Peter 3:4-9

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS When a sinner lives a life, seemingly going unpunished, no need to envy Regardless of outward appearances and actions, sinner does not have God’s approval Blessings do not mean that God approved of his deeds With God, sin is empty and an unprofitable lifestyle In the long run—things will be for the one who fears God!

E CCLESIASTES 8:13 “But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God. ”

E CCLESIASTES 8:14 “There is a vanity which occurs on earth, that there are just men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.”

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Be sure it will not be well with the wicked Shadows—don’t last long Wickedness shall not prosper beyond the grave! Eventually face the wrath of God Eternity will not be pleasant for those who failed to fear the Lord –2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 –Revelation 20:13-15

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Sometimes the righteous receive the “punishment” the wicked deserve Wicked receives the “righteousness” the righteous deserve Misfortunes and blessings come to both the wicked and righteous –Psalm 73:1-17; Matthew 5:45 Do not allow to be a stumbling block System of justice and retribution sometimes seems “ uneven ”

E CCLESIASTES 8:15 “ So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun. ”

E CCLESIASTES 8:16 “ When I applied my heart to know wisdom and to see the business that is done on earth, even though one sees no sleep day or night. ”

E CCLESIASTES 8:17 “Then I saw all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. For though a man labors to discover it, yet he will not find it; moreover, though a wise man attempts to know it, he will not be able to find it.”

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS One should still seek to enjoy one’s life Make the most out of life here Blessings of life come from God Life can still be enjoyed, even when evil is present, if one has God as part of it Keep things in proper perspective Enjoy life—but not at the expense of one’s duty to the Lord and His work!

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Solomon has given his all to attaining the meaning and purpose of life Worked 24 hours a day to find the answer—but has failed! Man alone—separate and apart from God—cannot find the true meaning and purpose of life

U NDERSTANDING G OD ’ S W AYS Wise man may make elaborate claims to know the true meaning of “life” Need to be content with man’s “limited wisdom” No man knows the future Only with God’s revelation can man make sense of life Man’s wisdom is empty and worthless

C ONCLUSION Need to keep things in proper perspective True wisdom can be found only in the hands of God Life presents us with choices and those choices can be helpful/hurtful Learn from Solomon’s “research” and “mistakes”