Ecclesiastes 02 (Contemporary English Version)
- I said to myself, "Have fun and enjoy yourself!" But this didn't make sense.
- Laughing and having fun is crazy. What good does it do?
- I wanted to find out what was best for us during the short time we have on this earth. So I decided to make myself happy with wine and find out what it means to be foolish, without really being foolish myself.
- I did some great things. I built houses and planted vineyards.
- I had flower gardens and orchards full of fruit trees.
- And I had pools where I could get water for the trees.
- I owned slaves, and their sons and daughters became my slaves. I had more sheep and goats than anyone who had ever lived in Jerusalem.
- Foreign rulers brought me silver, gold, and precious treasures. Men and women sang for me, and I had many wives who gave me great pleasure.
- I was the most famous person who had ever lived in Jerusalem, and I was very wise.
- I got whatever I wanted and did whatever made me happy. But most of all, I enjoyed my work.
- Then I thought about everything I had done, including the hard work, and it was simply chasing the wind. Nothing on earth is worth the trouble.
- I asked myself, "What can the next king do that I haven't done?" Then I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and stupidity.
- And I discovered that wisdom is better than foolishness, just as light is better than darkness.
- Wisdom is like having two good eyes; foolishness leaves you in the dark. But wise or foolish, we all end up the same.
- Finally, I said to myself, "Being wise got me nowhere! The same thing will happen to me that happens to fools. Nothing makes sense.
- Wise or foolish, we all die and are soon forgotten."
- This made me hate life. Everything we do is painful; it's just as senseless as chasing the wind.
- Suddenly I realized that others would someday get everything I had worked for so hard, then I started hating it all.
- Who knows if those people will be sensible or stupid? Either way, they will own everything I have earned by hard work and wisdom. It doesn't make sense.
- I thought about all my hard work, and I felt depressed.
- When we use our wisdom, knowledge, and skill to get what we own, why do we have to leave it to someone who didn't work for it? This is senseless and wrong.
- What do we really gain from all of our hard work?
- Our bodies ache during the day, and work is torture. Then at night our thoughts are troubled. It just doesn't make sense.
- The best thing we can do is to enjoy eating, drinking, and working. I believe these are God's gifts to us,
- and no one enjoys eating and living more than I do.
- If we please God, he will make us wise, understanding, and happy. But if we sin, God will make us struggle for a living, then he will give all we own to someone who pleases him. This makes no more sense than chasing the wind.
Solomon was considered the wisest and richest man of his time, yet he did not find these attributes adequate to overcome a sense of futility in it all. So he decided to experiment and see what might seem of greater value in life starting with pleasure. Along with pleasure he also tried wine and then he turned to achievements. He succeeded with his achievements in becoming great, surpassing all who went before him, and was able to maintain his wisdom throughout. But his verdict was that everything was futile and "a pursuit of the wind." Whatever pleasure or sense of fulfillment and accomplishment derived from these pursuits was short lived. He was left wondering what else there was to life that was of greater or lasting meaning.
Considering his accomplishments, what more was there to be done? He could only do what had already been done. What fulfillment was there in that? And, who knows what the next king would do? All of his accomplishments may well be for nothing if the next king was not able to sustain them. So, he was ready to turn his attention to another subject. What are the merits of wisdom versus madness and folly? After considering this question he concluded that there is an advantage to wisdom over folly as there is an advantage to light over darkness. The wise man can see where he is going while the "fool walks in darkness." But he decided that even this was futile. What was the advantage to being overly wise when both the wise man and the fool share the same ending. They will both die and neither will be remembered for long. I think he is missing a couple of points. For instance, the wise man's death is likely to be delayed longer than that of the fool. Solomon himself points this out in Proverbs. The lifestyle and choices of the fool are likely to bring him to an early death. Also, I think the wise man may be remembered after death well beyond the memory of the fool. Particularly if his accomplishments are significant. But we will bear with Solomon here to see where he goes with all this. He addresses three topics in this chapter and concludes all three in the same manner, "everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind."
Again, in verse 18, Solomon considers the value of all his accomplishments when he must leave them to whomever follows him, "and who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool?" He decided it was all futile and gave himself over to despair. All of his effort and accomplishments and it was for nothing. He must turn it all over to someone who has not worked for it and who may let it all go to nothing. What is a person to do then? Solomon's conclusion was that it is best to " eat, drink, and to enjoy his work." In other words, to enjoy the fruits of one's labor. Don't give yourself over completely to accomplishments and amassing of wealth. Allow yourself time to enjoy what you have accomplished. But the key to all this is recognition that enjoy life is only possible if it is permited by God. "Who can eat and who can enjoy life apart from Him?" he asks. It is only those who are pleasing to God who are granted the enjoyment of life. As for the sinner, the one who is not pleasing in God's sight, what he has accumulated will be given to those who are pleasing to God. "This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind," he says. Thus, there is only one activity Solomon has determined is not futile. That is to please God and enjoy the fruit of one's labor.
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