Vanity of vanities – Exploring the teaching of Ecclesiastes

Source:http://www.kcm.co.kr/bible01/gnb/gnb205.jpg

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labor which he taketh under the sun? One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth forever. The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again. All things are full of labor; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
(Ecclesiastes 1:2-9)

Recently, the Boston Marathon was held in Boston, Massachusetts. Thousands came to run in this event. Some ran competitively, some just to prove something to themselves, and still others ran and did not finish the 26.2 mile course. A gentleman from Kenya took first prize amongst the men. Of course, there is a monetary prize involved of several hundred thousand dollars. It is easy to see why the winner would compete in such a race, or any other serious athlete participating in this event. Training until the body can withstand the pressure of 26.2 miles running each individual mile in well under five minutes takes extreme commitment on behalf of the participant who seeks to win.
There is a race in which we all run. Some appear not to know the goal, the finish line if you will. Some have already conceded to give up the prize unaware of what it is. Some sadly give up voluntarily taking it upon themselves to drop out of the race. This is the essence of Ecclesiastes.
Chapter one of this oft misunderstood book of the Tanakh introduces the Qoholeth, the preacher. This appears to be one who convenes over an assembly of people. Traditionally, based upon the text, we often attribute this writing to King Solomon, however debate amongst scholars has emerged as to the authorship. This debate is based upon elements that note the possibility of a different time period than Solomon’s in other books, and a writing style synonymous with Helenistic, Syriac, and other cultures unrelated to that of Israel.
But, what is the content of this book? Within the pages of the Qoholeth, there is an almost helpless, pointless tone that caused many to overlook its inclusion into the biblical canon. As on delves into the book’s pages, it becomes clear that all point to the goal, the finish line every man should have in his view. This goal is service to the Most High God. Without this goal, all is vanity or empty and pointless. Like running a race, and having no goal or end in view, yet trying to find it and while doing so, attempting to stay motivated and not lose hope in the process.

The Problem of Pain - When God speaks

Source: http://www.trosch.org/ant/prayhands.jpg

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
(Job 38:1-2)

I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.
(Job 42:5)

As we read through the book of Job and see the persistence of this man, one can only marvel at his willingness to not buckle under the pressure being put on him. It is humbling to view Job in light of today's Christian experience. Void of teachers, scripture, and even the necessity of the Mosaic law, Job depended on his day to day experiential knowledge of God. Because of the nearness of his walk to the one, true God, Job is able to consistently answer his friends who feel that he has committed some heinous sin or shortcoming worthy of such affliction. Yet, with his bedrock faith, perserverance, and knowledge of God, he, like us all, still wants God to speak clearly into his situation. When an answer to his calls do not come, frustration ensues and with it accusations made out of distress. Earlier in the book Job cursed the day he was conceived, born, and pleas with God to come and justify him. Truly Job in its content is truly poetic, stating the heart of men regardless of belief, and pointing to man's fragile nature, emotionally, psychologically, and physically. But it is within Job's (and our's) ranting for verification, justification, and answers to suffering that interests me. When God finally answers Job, he speaks from a whirlwind. A whirlwind (tornado, hurricane, funnel-cloud, tempest, etc.) is not designed to completely obliterate an edifice, but will destroy everything down to the foundation, that is if the foundation is stable. In Job's case, his foundation is strong. In spite of his wealth and favor from God, he does not hesitate to reverence God for what he has been so richly blessed with and in the midst of everything being stripped, says that if he accepts the good from God, will he just not accept the bad from him. Job is a man built upon a solid foundation of belief in God and his ability to be God, yet the "structure" which has grown has caused him to question why. The book of Job lets us know that their is nothing unrighteous in asking, but the question for us as believers is, are we prepared for when God speaks? I have questioned things that are allowed to go on in this world, from my own shortcomings to the shortcomings of others to natural calamities. I have sought answers for such things, sometimes even upset with God. In the 38th - 42nd chapters of Job, we find out just what occurs when God speaks. Using my own questioning of God as the context for explanation I will try to elucidate what occurs in this passage. In questioning the natural order of things, the good, the bad, and uglies of life, man is tempted to question God's administration. In so doing, we do two things, we imply that our way of getting to a result is better and God may not have the power to answer such pleas to begin with. The beauty of God speaking to Job out of the whirlwind is no clear answers are given. God creates a paradox in Job's experience, one where God answers, but He doesn't, where he clarifies the questions, yet creates deeper questions within Job's mind, and thus emerges the connundrum of Job being faced with either doubting the ability of the only one able to vindicate him fully or trusting in his own ability to vindicate himself, which thus far has proven extremely unsuccessful in 37 chapter of the book of Job.
As this relates to us, our finite minds cannot climb far enough out of the hole of this life to see the totality of what God has done in just His creation. How then will we be able to see clearly the picture that the Master Painter has so exquisitely framed before the foundation of the world. We ask questions seeking answers, but if God were to speak to us on the level that we wish to understand, would we leave the conversation enlightened, or more confused? Job is answered in a series of questions. The questions he is asked represents an depth of knowledge that no man can concoct a valid answer for. How can man go to the gates and shadows of the realm of death and hell and live to tell about it? How can he know what the earth rests on in space. Oh, the majesty of God! It is the duty of man to understand God's sovereignty. He reigns supreme over every individual, locale, mindset, influence, spirit, dimension, and reasoning. For one to not trust what he has spoken (His will) is to be darkened by ones own knowledge. The thing that happens when God speaks is revealed from the beginning. For when He speaks, what He proclaims to be so is so, whether good or bad in our sight, but we must be assured that if He spoke it into being, it is placed in our midst for purpose and as a part of the total picture, the answers to the questions posed by a sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient God.

The Problem of Pain - more gleanings from the book of Job

Source: http://www.beloit.edu/~nurember/book/images/Old%20Testament/big/job_with_non-defaced_devil.jpg

The Problem of Pain – more gleanings from the book of Job
Scripture references: Job 14:1,2,11-17; 32:6,8;37:14, 22

Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.
(Job 14:1-2)

Fair weather cometh out of the north: with God is terrible majesty.
(Job 37:22)


In this series of scripture, we find once again Job tormented by Satan himself. Having no offense to his charge other than the witness of Job 1:1 that he was an upright man that avoided evil, Job is inundated with unspeakable affliction. God testifies of Job to Satan and in so doing allows Satan to consume all his wealth, his ten children, and finally a loathsome case of boils all over his body. Job’s affliction is severe to the point of friends being unable to recognize him. The three friends of Job, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu are so astonished at the physical manifestation of Job’s torment, they can only sit with him and weep for seven days and nights. After this grieving, each friend has their say as to why Job is suffering.
As if Job was not in enough pain physically, emotionally, and psychologically, here enters the friends of Job to diagnose the problem and render a solution. Immediately, the three men speak of the need for repentance, unresolved issues, and the justice of God. It further worsens the condition of Job to the point that he tells them that they are only contributing to his affliction as opposed to lessening its impact. This begs the question, who can really speak for God but God when such life woes occur?
Believers should have some basic, foundational understanding on the nature of who God is in relation to us. He is eternal, He is holy, He is just, He is righteousness, He is omnipotent (Possessor of all power), Omniscient (Possessor of all knowledge, wisdom), omnipresent (Everywhere in all instances of time, simultaneously), and most important of all God is sovereign. Sovereign is defined in Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary as supreme; supreme in power; possessing supreme dominion; as a sovereign ruler of the universe; superior to all others; chief; supremely efficacious; superior to all others; predominant; effectual; as a sovereign remedy; pertaining to the first magistrate of a nation; as sovereign authority.
Most Christians, though we love God and revere our precious Christ as Savior and Lord, fail to understand this concept of sovereignty. In defense of Job, he did not have the Law, the Prophets, or the New Testament that we have today. Job relied on his experiential day in and day out reliance on God in times past and his newly strengthened faith in the midst of his current adversity. As a matter of fact, in reading the whole of the book of Job, it does not appear that God speaks to Job offering him assurance that everything was okay. It would have been nice for Job to know that Satan was speaking allegations against Job and that he was on trial for his integrity. But Job, as with us all, are not privy to the information that God is keeping to himself about our situation. Not to be spiteful, but as a proving medium against the accuser of the brethren (Rev. 12:9) and ourselves. God has so made man that the true content of his character is not exhibited unless exposed to certain elements. For example adversity, circumstance, and fame oftentimes exposes what we inwardly believe. Therefore, God uses or allows such things to occur in order to reveal and draw us closer to what we have professed as a bedrock of our faith.