All Is Vanity – Ecclesiastes 1

SPEAKER 02 : 0:00

Whoever wrote this book, I believe, had a sensitivity not only to the people of Israel, but to all the nations around them. I have never come to a book that I believe is so contemporary in one sense to our generation than Ecclesiastes.

SPEAKER 01 : 0:40

This is Hope for Today. You know, there are some books of the Bible that feel historic or ancient. And then there are books that feel uncomfortably current. Ecclesiastes is one of them. Its questions sound like our questions. Its frustrations mirror our frustrations. Its search for meaning feels strangely modern. From the first chapter of Ecclesiastes, Bible teacher David Hawking begins the series in Ecclesiastes, and the first message is titled, All is Vanity. It’s a sobering and honest look at life, meaning, and what happens when we search for fulfillment without God at the center. And we’ll get into the passage in just a moment. First, remember, if you ever miss a Hope for Today program or you want to catch it again, you can always listen back later at davidhawking.org. We keep the most recent broadcasts there for a limited time so you can catch up. But again, we only keep them there for a limited time, so don’t wait. Don’t wait too long. Our web address, davidhawking.org. That’s davidhawking.org. And here’s David with day one of the first message in our Ecclesiastes series, All is Vanity.

SPEAKER 02 : 2:01

Our series today begins in the book of Ecclesiastes. Ecclesiastes is a book that a lot of people through the years have wondered, should it really be in the canon? I don’t think there’s any doubt about it, but If you’ve read the book through in its entirety, you’ll find it to be quite strange, different. There are a multitude of interpretations, as wide and diverse as a pessimistic view of life to an optimistic view of life. Exactly the opposite. Very strange book indeed. We want to deal with two questions as we begin this series. One is, who wrote the book? And secondly, why was it written? Let’s read the first chapter of Ecclesiastes and then deal with our two basic questions today as to who wrote the book and why was it written. The words of the preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, says the preacher. Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What prophet has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun? One generation passes away and another generation comes, but the earth abides forever. The sun also rises and the sun goes down and hastens to the place where it arose. The wind goes toward the south and turns around to the north, and the wind whirls about continually and comes again on its circuit. All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. To the place from which the rivers come, there they return again.” All things are full of labor, man cannot express it, the eyes not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done. There is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which it may be said, see, this is new? It has already been in ancient times before us. There’s no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come by those who will come after. I, the preacher, was king over Israel and Jerusalem, and I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven. This grievous task God has given to the sons of man by which they may be exercised. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and indeed all is vanity and grasping for the wind. What is crooked cannot be made straight. What is lacking cannot be numbered. I communed with my heart, saying, Look, I have attained greatness, and I have gained more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has understood great wisdom and knowledge, and I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceive that this also is grasping for the wind, for in much wisdom is much grief, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.” It’s interesting that Ecclesiastes is one of the roles that is publicly read at Jewish festivals. In particular, it’s read on the third day of the Feast of Tabernacles, which I remind you is a feast of joy. I doubt seriously that they would read a book that was morbid, pessimistic, and depressing at the Feast of Tabernacles when it’s a time to rejoice and to praise God. That alone tells you something about the nature of Ecclesiastes, at least from a Jewish point of view. Also, the great questions about Ecclesiastes that have existed among Christians as to whether or not it’s really a book of God. Does it belong in the canon? This question’s been asked over and over again. The very books on Ecclesiastes, commentaries that we’ve acquired, it’s kind of interesting that all we’ve acquired, they spend links, volumes of pages, talking about who wrote the book and whether it belongs in the canon. And yet it seems to me that we ought to look to the Jewish people who had committed to them, entrusted to them the Scriptures according to Romans chapter 3, and look at how they regarded it. For instance, the Jewish writers of the first seven centuries of the Christian era quote at least 122 of these 222 verses in their writings. At the time of Herod the Great, the time when our Lord was born, and in the time of Gamaliel, who’s mentioned in the book of Acts, the book is cited by Jewish writers as Holy Scripture. At the Synod of Jamnia, 90 AD, following the destruction of Jerusalem, when the Jews gathered together to put their act together and to again declare what they believed was the Word of God, The school of Shammai began to question whether or not Ecclesiastes belonged in the Bible because it fails to mention the name of Jehovah, even though the name of God is mentioned some 39 times. But that particular council of Jamnia in 90 AD, Jewish leaders decided beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is a part of God’s word and it is canonical in the sense it belongs in God’s word. It seems to me that this book is written for a wider audience, however, than the children of Israel, and that explains somewhat of the dilemma. Whoever wrote this book, I believe, had a sensitivity not only to the people of Israel, but to all the nations around them. I have never come to a book that I believe is so contemporary in one sense to our generation than Ecclesiastes. What the writer talks about here are the basic questions we deal with every day. What the writer deals with in this book are questions that a secular world is asking, and they need answers. I like what a lot of writers say about Ecclesiastes. It’s kind of a cultural apologetics. It is appealing to a secular world and saying, let’s tell you exactly what is the answer to life. What’s the meaning to life? Why we’re here? Let’s tell you exactly what God, who created us, really wants of us. I think it’s a book for the secular humanist of every generation, as well as for the believer. The believer is confused at times because of that. The believer reads this book and wonders, is this advice from man or is this advice from God? It’s interesting to me how many times this happens to you. Just two months ago. I was discussing a particular matter that is really proven to be a fact in the book of Ecclesiastes. And the Christian that I was discussing with immediately said, but that’s in Ecclesiastes. I said, what has that got to do with it? They said, well, that passage in Ecclesiastes is only worldly wisdom. I said, does it say in Ecclesiastes that this is worldly wisdom? It says, well, no, but if you understand the whole meaning of it, that’s the point of it. you know, I want to understand the meaning of this thing. I want to really get after it. But I’ll tell you, it’s interesting that the average Christian looks at Ecclesiastes as kind of a secular book filled with worldly wisdom. And most people say the only thing good about it are the last couple of verses where he tells you the conclusion of the whole matter is to fear God and keep his commandments. Well, I’m going to give you a totally different view of this book. Because I believe this book is not only intended for the believer, but is intended also as a book of evangelism. It’s a cultural apologetic, all right. It’s to tell the secular world who God is and what he has in mind for you and what life is all about. It asks basic questions about whether life is even worth living. And with the depressed state of most people in this particular culture of ours, always questioning, always fearing, always suspicious, always pessimistic, always critical, always doubting, always questioning, having no security and stability, no joy, no happiness, no lasting satisfaction. I say to you, Ecclesiastes is the message for you. It has much to tell us. Now, who wrote the book? Let’s look at the person who wrote the book. Why do people criticize the obvious fact that Solomon wrote the book? It’s because they see things in the book that they don’t believe Solomon either would have said or could have said. Example down in verse 12, when he says, “‘I, the preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem,’ they remind you that Solomon was king till the day he died.” And the text reads literally, I have been king. It suggests he was king at once, but not king now. That isn’t really necessary in the grammar, but some people are a little picky with it. It’s easy for me to say that I have been a preacher, and I still am. It’s easy for me to say it in that way to anybody in any context. I don’t think that proves a thing. Some people say the preacher is different than the king, that a king would never be a preacher. The very word Ecclesiastes is the Greek word for preacher, literally one who is addressing an assembly. It does not necessarily mean a preacher of the word, though that’s our modern connotation. For instance, in Acts 19, there is a mob in Ephesus, and the Bible calls it an assembly. And a town clerk tries to address that assembly. He is an ecclesiastes, or the Hebrew word koaleth. He is a preacher. He is a public speaker. talker. He is publicly addressing assembly. As a matter of fact, kings are also called this. So there’s no confusion in my mind as to why Solomon would have been one to address an assembly. Who else besides the king to have addressed and publicly declared points that he wanted to get across to his constituents? I don’t see there’s any problem there. Let me tell you why I think Solomon wrote the book. Six reasons. One, The title, verse 1, the words of the preacher, the son of David, how can you miss that? king in Jerusalem. So I believe we got a very clear-cut statement here that he has to be a son of David. Some writers say, well, he could be down in history a little bit further. True. But a son of David, king in Jerusalem. How can we miss the point? It’s got to be Solomon. When I look at verse 12, I, the preacher, was king over Israel and Jerusalem. I think of a second reason why it’s Solomon. Not simply the title, but his home. In fact, turn over to chapter 5, verse 1. Let me show you something interesting. I believe we can nail down the time period of the book as to who it might be who wrote it. In chapter 5, verse 1, it says, Now, the house of God refers to the temple. The temple was destroyed in 586 B.C., so it has to be a king in that period. It’s interesting, many, many people think it was written around the Persian or Greek period, much later. But impossible. The writer is talking about going to the temple. The temple has to be standing. As a matter of fact, it assumes in this section that the writer lives near the temple. And that would match with the earlier statements in chapter 1. Son of David, king in Jerusalem. In fact, look at verse 16 of chapter 1. Just a little reminder. The writer starts talking, I communed with my heart, saying, etc., etc. I gained more wisdom than all who were before me in where? In Jerusalem. He emphasizes the place where he lives. Chapter 2, verse 7. I acquired male and female servants, had servants born in my house. I had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me. Now, whoever this person is, he had much more than anyone else did in Jerusalem before me. Almost saying… in terms of kings, because he is calling himself a king in Jerusalem. Look at chapter 2, verse 9. I became great, excelled more than all who were before me in Jerusalem again. So not only his title, son of David, king, but also his home. He’s in Jerusalem. It also points to Solomon. Third, let’s take a look at his age, his age. Turn to chapter 11 of the book. You may say, why don’t you just say it’s Solomon and keep going? Hey, I want you to know this book, but I’ll tell you there’s a very definite reason. If it’s Solomon, then many things in the book are going to be interpreted in a certain way. There is no man’s life, with the exception of a few others in the Old Testament, but there’s no man’s life that is so dealt with in terms of details and facts and attitudes than the life of Solomon. If Solomon is the writer, then it opens up a fantastic insight to what the writer is actually saying, especially as we look at the matter of his age. How old is the man? Verse 9 says, Rejoice, O young man, in your youth. He obviously is not, therefore, a young man. In chapter 12, verse 1, Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth before the difficult days come. In describing that in the first eight verses, and I’ll let you just glance through it, it’s interesting, the way it’s described, people say it’s got to be an old person here. Verse 6 repeats, remember your creator before the silver cord is loosed or the golden bowl is broken or the pitcher shattered at the fountain or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was and the spirit will return to God who gave it. And most writers will say who’s ever writing the book is an old man. And I agree with that. He’s an old man who writes the book. As a matter of fact, it’s interesting, the Jewish view states that Solomon wrote it in his old age when he was weary of life to expose the emptiness and vanity of all worldly pursuits and carnal gratifications and to show that the happiness of man consists in fearing God and obeying his commands. End of quote. Straight from Jewish writers. As a matter of fact, the Jewish Midrash says that Solomon wrote it in the, quote, evening of his days. He wrote the Song of Solomon in his youth and Proverbs at middle age. Isn’t that an interesting insight into those three books of Solomon? So I kind of agree with that view. Song of Solomon, he’s writing about the love of his heart, and he’s a young man. But when he comes to Proverbs, he’s at the height of his wisdom. What a wonderful book that is. And no wonder the Jews said it was at a middle age when he understood things. It had to be middle age in one sense because he writes also to children and writes about things that they experience as though a father would and discusses himself as a father. But when you come to Ecclesiastes, that’s all gone. It’s a long time in the past. He’s now rich in years. And he’s looking at life from a whole life that has lived it like no one else in the ancient world had ever lived it. No one had ever experienced what Solomon had. And that’s another reason why the book is so contemporary and so important for this generation. That we look at a man who really lived it all. Who had the advantages of everything some of us are still seeking. We look at that man and we look at his evaluation and we learn a great deal. Yes, I believe the man is old. I also think it’s Solomon because of his marital experiences. Look back at chapter 7 of Ecclesiastes. I think this ought to remind you also of Solomon. In chapter 7, verse 26, he says, I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God shall escape from her, but the sinner shall be taken by her. I remind you that those women he married, according to the Bible, led his heart away to foreign gods. Interesting, because down in verse 28, he says, after in verse 27, here’s what I found, says the preacher, adding one thing to the other to find out the reason, which my soul still seeks, but I cannot find. One man among a thousand, interesting mentioning the thousand, one man among a thousand I’ve found, but a woman among all these I have not found. Now, gals, that isn’t going to be your life verse. I know that. But that tells me it’s Solomon, okay? That’s Solomon, his marital experiences. Chapter 9, verse 9, he says, look at this insight in the light of it, if it’s Solomon. Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your vain life, which he’s given you under the sun, for this is your portion in life. If it’s Solomon, it’s the woman of the Song of Solomon, And he is telling you something there that is so very, very important in this day of lack of fidelity and lack of loyalty and lack of commitment, lack of understanding about God’s purposes in marriage. What an interesting insight if it’s Solomon himself that’s writing this book.

SPEAKER 01 : 19:47

That’s Bible teacher and author David Hawking, and this is Hope for Today. He’ll return in a few moments to bring our study to a close, so do stay right there. First, though, everybody chases something. It might be more money, more success, more pleasure, more meaning. And yet, at the end of the day, at the end of the day… The question won’t go away. Is this really all there is? Well, Matt’s joining me now, and we’re going to tell you about a new resource, a special package from Hope for Today. Solomon was the third king under the United Monarchy of ancient Israel. He is called the wisest and wealthiest king among all of Israel’s kings and leaders. He was noted for building the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. In fact, the Western Wall, the Wailing Wall that’s there, you’ve been there, I’ve been there, many of our listeners. What a great place it is to visit. He built that temple that was eventually destroyed by Babylon in 586 B.C. You know, at Ecclesiastes, Solomon lays before the answer to one of life’s most important questions we can ask. Is life worth living? If you leave a personal relationship with God, With the God who created you out of the answer, then the answer is clearly no. Yeah, it’s not worth the struggle, which inevitably comes to all of us. But if you see all of life as God intended and you are rightly related to him, then the answer is an absolute yes. Yes. Amen. Well, David makes the biblical case for this inside his book is life. worth living is life worth living is a powerful study guide for the book of ecclesiastes and a perfect tool for getting the very most out of our current radio series that we’re combining the book with a complete collection of all of the messages in the ecclesiastes series so the 172 page book by david titled is life worth living plus all 18 messages in our ecclesiastes radio series and of course each message covers about three days on radio Yeah, the complete package is just $40 plus shipping. It’s a perfect way to save and share all that you’ll be learning in the series for years to come. And your purchase will also help the ministry of Hope for Today. That is Life Worth Living Ecclesiastes package. Again, just $40. Consider adding a donation with your order or becoming a regular monthly contributor as long as God directs and supplies. And please pray for Hope for Today. Well, that’s a special Ecclesiastes package. David’s book, again, Is Life Worth Living? And the audio of our complete series in Ecclesiastes. And you know something? David, when he wrote Is Life Worth Living?, he wanted to give you a straight-ahead, no-fluff walk through the book of Ecclesiastes, where God strips the illusions and tells the truth. You know, Solomon had everything the world promised, and he called it vanity, as we’ve mentioned on the program here. And right now you can get David’s book, Is Life Worth Living? Plus, again, the entire audio teaching through Ecclesiastes, every message, every chapter, the whole study of it. Again, just $40. Call 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. to order or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. Bible by the numbers 24253. You can also order online at davidhocking.org. Let’s stop chasing a win. Let’s start living for what lasts. Order your copy of this great resource package today. And just before David returns, we want to remind you that you can write to us. You can pray for this ministry and prayerfully consider becoming a regular monthly supporter in this new year, as long as God directs and provides for you to do so. Your deeply appreciated financial partnership helps us continue proclaiming the gospel and teaching God’s word with clarity and faithfulness. You can write to Hope for Today at Box 3927, Tustin, California, 927. In Canada, write to Hope for Today, Box 15011, RPO 7 Oaks, Abbotsford, BC, V2S 8P1. And here’s David.

SPEAKER 02 : 23:52

Well, friends, we’re really excited to bring this series on Ecclesiastes. It is a different world now, and there are pressures that we never had in the past. And some say ever since 9-11 in 2001, we have not been the same since. Ecclesiastes is for us. It’s a cultural apologetic. Jewish people maybe think a little differently about the book than many Christian commentators. Some Christian teachers actually call this worldly wisdom. Solomon was an old man when he wrote it, which is probably true, but that he was reflecting on a life that was miserable and terrible and no blessing in it. Well, that causes me a little question, because as we are teaching you in the background of Ecclesiastes, it’s read on the third day of the Feast of Sukkot or Tabernacles. That is a feast of joy. I doubt seriously the Jews would be reading a Bible book that was pessimistic or depressing during a time of rejoicing. So that might tell you something about the Jewish point of view. By the way, we know that Jewish writers in about the first seven centuries of the Christian era, they quote at least 122 out of the 222 verses of this book. That pretty well shows you they believed it was Scripture. Yes, this book is Scripture, and it’s powerful. And I do like to call it cultural apologetics. It’s wisdom for today as well as forever. God bless you.

SPEAKER 01 : 25:40

Amen. Well, next time, more from Ecclesiastes and David’s first message in the series, All is Vanity. We’ll see you then, right here on Hope for Today.