Ecclesiastes 9:1-10
But all this I laid to heart, examining it all… (v. 1) By “all this” I assume the Preacher is referring to the previous 8 chapters, so it might be a good idea to go back and look those chapters over again. (It may have taken us 14 days to get to this point, but, really, it’s only been 8 short chapters, so it won’t take you long to review. I’ll wait…)
And having examined “all this” what does the Preacher still find? That death levels the playing field, that all meet the same end. Even so, it is better to be alive than dead, and so, enjoy life while you can.
At this point, I think we should be clear that the Preacher, although speaking truth, does not have a full and complete revelation. He believes in God, but is not fully aware of the Resurrection. He is focused on this life and is not looking to the next. We, of course, do have that fuller revelation and can look forward to life after death. And we should, for if there is no resurrection, then, as Saint Paul says, we are of all people most to be pitied. (I Cor. 15:19) Yet we should not then just brush off the Preacher‘s perspective. God does not just whisk us away from this life as soon as we come to faith. Instead, He has called us to live out our lives in the here and now, and we can learn much from the Preacher for how to do that well.
One more thing…
Have you seen the movie, Up? Yes, I mean the animated flick with the old man and the house and a whole lot of balloons. I watched it a few years back and enjoyed it and rarely thought of it again. But a few weeks ago a friend recommended Up to my wife, who hadn’t seen it before. So we watched it together. That was a week or two before we started reading Ecclesiastes here. Since then, as we’ve been reading, it has occurred to me that Up reflects Ecclesiastes rather profoundly. Really! If you haven’t seen it, I won’t spoil the plot by trying to explain what I mean. But I’d like to suggest that you find a copy of Up (the Woodford County Library has it on DVD), grab a soft drink and some popcorn, and enjoy watching Up — with Ecclesiastes in mind. And then let us all know what you think. If you think I’m nuts, that’s OK. You will still have done a little eating, drinking, and enjoying — which is entirely consistent with the Preacher‘s advice, assuming you engage in a bit of toil while enjoying the show!
John, I had to laugh at your “(I’ll wait…)” and it accomplished what you intended. I went back and reread the previous 8 chapters. It struck me that part of what the preacher is saying is to live in the moment. Ecc. 6:9: Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite: this also is vanity a striving after wind. I take the sight of eyes as a present moment and the wandering of appetite as vain imaginations.
Also the much repeated “eat, drink, and find enjoyment in toil” seems to me to be an encouragement to be in the present moment.
I have seen the movie Up but will go back and rewatch with Ecclesiastes in mind.
I’d also like to add that present-moment living is shaped by keeping our death in mind.
Thanks for your encouraging comments. I think you are very much onto something by framing the Preacher’s message as “living in the present moment”. That’s a good way to look at it.
I’m a day or two behind on my readings and getting caught up. Sorry for that.
I read this day’s verses through three times to try to grasp a little deeper meaning of the Preacher’s words, specifically in today’s readings, Ecc. 9:7-10. At my first read-through, I was left with the impression that the Preacher is telling us to be very self-centered and self-focused, kinda living for the moment.
But as I thought through these words a bit more, I realized the Preacher didn’t have the promise of the Resurrection or maybe only a vague understanding of it. And I came to a thought that he is telling us to enjoy the gifts God gives us in this life versus living for the moment or hoarding stuff away for some other time. Hoarding stuff leaves us unfulfilled and just wanting more.
I often have difficulty enjoying life; when I look at all the comforts in my life and compare it to the situation of most of the world’s 8 billion(!) people, I easily feel anguish and guilt at my white, privileged American ease.
Reading Ecclesiastes has given me permission to relax and feel blessed. It’s okay to do that, while giving absolute glory to God and attention to others to help where I can.