Lose Your Fool (Ecclesiastes 10:2-20)

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Those are the closing lines from Robert Frost’s famous poem, The Road Not Taken. In pop culture it is an anthem of individuality and non-conformity – a charge to go your own way – knowing that your courage will lead you on to great adventure.

The thing is, that’s not why Frost wrote the poem. He wrote it as a joke. You see, Bob often took walks with friend and fellow poet Edward Thomas. But Ed always struggled to decide which way to go. After finally choosing a path, he would predictably lament that they hadn’t gone the other way.

The trouble was, no one got the joke! Frost later wrote to Edward Thomas complaining that after reading his poem to a group of college students, it was “taken pretty seriously…despite doing my best to make it obvious by my manner that I was fooling.”^[1]

A closer look at The Road Not Taken reveals that both paths are equally fair, both had worn the same, both are, in fact, uniformly untravelled. In the poem, the choice of one over the other comes down simply to the internal impulse of the moment.

Tonight, we stand with the Teacher at the head of two paths. As we set out he shares some poetic proverbs. There’s a bit of silliness in his illustrations, but make no mistake: The choice before us is extremely serious. One path leads to success in all the ways that matter, the other to ruin.

Ecclesiastes 10:2 – ² A wise person’s heart goes to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left.

In the Bible, right symbolically refers to prosperity in the whole of life.^[2] It refers to the Godly way. It speaks of strength.^[3] The left refers to the way of disaster. Man’s way. The way of weakness. This isn’t about a walk in the woods. This is about the lives we’re living. The direction we’re headed in.

This is not like Robert Frost’s choice where both paths are essentially the same. These two paths are going in totally opposite directions. And you are on one of these paths right now.

Even if you feel like your life isn’t going anywhere, or that you haven’t made any major life decisions recently, you are in transit. Your life is developing according to the choices you make.

Notice that for both the wise and the fool, it is the heart that drives them on. What does our culture always say? “Follow your heart!” The problem is that our hearts are desperately wicked – more deceitful than anything else.^[4] The Proverbs tells us that foolishness is bound to our hearts.^[5] So, when we follow our hearts, we’re going to go to the left into folly.

We need to be cured of our heart disease. That’s why Christ gives us a new heart. Meaning a heart that’s truly alive, that’s filled with God’s wisdom and desires. A heart whose gravitational pull is toward this rightward path.^[6]

So, as we read this text, thinking about these two paths, the question is: Am I living wisely or foolishly?^[7] We shouldn’t assume we’re never the fool in these images we see along the way.

Ecclesiastes 10:3 – ³ Even when the fool walks along the road, his heart lacks sense, and he shows everyone he is a fool.

Dan Allender writes, “[the fool] will follow a path that seems to be right, even when the blacktop gives way to gravel and gravel to dirt and dirt to rocks and debris.”^[8] You see, he thinks he has gone the right way, just as Lot did when he chose the plains of Sodom. It looked so promising. Look at the wealth out there. Look at the power he’d gain and the luxury and the worldly delights. He was so quick to leave the presence of the Living God for some lush grass. But even as the ground of Sodom crumbled beneath his feet, he still thought his way was the best way.

As he walks, the fool in verse 3 keeps telling people that they’re the dummies.^[9] But his heart has tricked him. Now, we might laugh at this foolish figure strutting down his path, but what happens when powerful fools cross our path? Look at verse 4.

Ecclesiastes 10:4 – ⁴ If the ruler’s anger rises against you, don’t leave your post, for calmness puts great offenses to rest.

Maybe the “ruler” here, this person in authority over you, is a fool – they’re mad over something they shouldn’t be. Or, maybe you did something foolish and are getting tuned up for it. After all, we still make foolish mistakes from time to time.

Either way, when the ruler blows up in our face, what should we do? The Teacher is very candid: Don’t be so easily offended. Don’t resign your post in a huff.^[10] Your response shouldn’t be “I don’t have to sit here and be talked to like that.” Instead, the wise thing to do is to respond calmly. Philip Ryken writes, “This is the Biblical way to deal with fools—not by sharing in their folly but by living out the character of Christ.”^[11]

The problem is, we don’t want to suffer fools. We want to dismiss them. But we have a higher calling to live like Christ. And, thank God that He suffers fools, because that’s all of us, right?

Ecclesiastes 10:5-7 – ⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun, an error proceeding from the presence of the ruler: ⁶ The fool is appointed to great heights, but the rich remain in lowly positions. ⁷ I have seen slaves on horses, but princes walking on the ground like slaves.

The Teacher isn’t being an elitist snob. He’s pointing out that things are all mixed up in our world. A powerful king might be infected by fool-heartedness while people who should be leaders are relegated to positions far below their abilities.

One example here is that you have an inexperienced house servant leading the army while the battle-tested field commander is mixed in with the infantry.^[12]

Now, as people on God’s path, as people who have real wisdom, we not only look at the world and understand how things could be better, but in Christ we actually transcend conventional wisdom and relate to the world according to what Christ thinks should be. Where the greatest among us should be the servant of all. Where life is not about aggrandizing ourselves, but magnifying the Messiah. Where wealth and social status and position aren’t the end goals of our lives, but the glory of God and the furtherance of His Kingdom, rather than our own.

Ecclesiastes 10:8 – ⁸ The one who digs a pit may fall into it, and the one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.

There are different ways we could look at these proverbs. One is to recognize that, because of sin, the world is now an inherently dangerous place. A world of thorns. There are occupational hazards. Being wise means being careful when necessary, which might help us avoid some of those hazards.

Or, he could be referring to fools being stupid. Did you hear about the amateur treasure hunter in Brazil who dug a 130 foot hole in his kitchen floor? He dreamed there was gold down there and started digging. One day in his kitchen, he lost balance and fell 12 stories to his death.^[13] That’s not Adam’s fault, that’s your fault. There’s a difference between futility and stupid foolishness.

A third way of looking at this proverb is that you reap-what-you-sow. The sinner who digs a pit for an innocent person will fall into it himself in the end.

No matter which way we look at it, the point is we should use our God-given minds to think about the choices we’re making. Even though we can’t predict the future, we can do the math and make some forecasts. We should look a little bit ahead in life and take wise steps when possible.^[14]

Ecclesiastes 10:9 – ⁹ The one who quarries stones may be hurt by them; the one who splits logs may be endangered by them.

Sometimes accidents happen. The fallen world is in decay. That doesn’t mean we give up on doing life. Look at the elements here: Wood and stones. Basic elements for human activity. We have to accept risk to live life. Withdrawing from life is a waste of life.

Beyond the literal aspect, let’s think about it this way: There are things we need to do that are necessary for a healthy life. Things like being regularly connected to a local church. We go to the New Testament and it’s clear: We need this.

Yet there are many Christians who say, “Well, I love Jesus, but I’ve been hurt by ‘the Church,’ so I don’t go anymore.” Ok. I get it. But that attitude is just wrong. Yes, there are some risks when we connect our lives to other people. We’re all fools at heart. We all make mistakes. Sometimes we hurt one another. But quitting the quarry doesn’t lead you to a healthy spiritual life. It robs you of the basic elements you need for spiritual life. And remember, even great offenses can be put to rest if we fear God and walk in His wisdom. So, we can’t be so afraid of the risks of life that we refuse to live these lives God has given us. We simply need to be more wise and less impulsive.

Ecclesiastes 10:10 – ¹⁰ If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen its edge, then one must exert more strength; however, the advantage of wisdom is that it brings success.

Wisdom can make life easier. On the flip side, foolishness makes life needlessly difficult. Sharpen your ax. Hone your skills. Improve your understanding. Learn from others. Get wisdom and apply it.

Ecclesiastes 10:11 – ¹¹ If the snake bites before it is charmed, then there is no advantage for the charmer.

In certain cases, wisdom might actually save your life! There are a couple of ideas here. The first is about using wisdom to prioritize what needs doing now. If there’s a snake at your feet about to bite you and your shoes are untied, prioritize the snake. For you procrastinators out there, just be careful about what you put off to do tomorrow. Don’t pretend it doesn’t cost you something.

But also consider this: The Teacher always wants to keep death in our minds. Death is coming to bite you. A viper slithering your way. What will you do about that? Do you have the anti-venom you need? Even better, have you found the Person Who takes the teeth out of death?

Ecclesiastes 10:12 – ¹² The words from the mouth of a wise person are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him.

At this point, I know it’s easy for me to say, “Well, I’m not the fool in this passage, so I’m good.” But let’s remember the many warnings we receive as Believers in the New Testament about our words. James, in particular, really hammered home this idea about our words. Because, he said, none of us have fully tamed our tongues. We need these reminders because, as James says, “We all stumble in many ways.” In particular with the things we say.^[15] We can diagnose our heart health by looking at our words.

As wise people, walking God’s path, our words should fall into the category of grace. We’re saved by grace, we should speak with grace. But again, remember the context: We’re walking through life in this fallen world, going God’s way but dealing with the fools around us. We have to interact with them. We have to speak with them. The calling of God is that we speak with undeserved favor toward people. Obviously that doesn’t mean we never deal with problems or bring up mistakes, but let’s be less quick with the phrase, “I want to speak with your manager!” Grace is the way.

Ecclesiastes 10:13 – ¹³ The beginning of the words from his mouth is folly, but the end of his speaking is evil madness;

Words matter. Look at what the words of a fool do in this verse. He may start by saying, “I’m just foolin’,” but before he knows it they’ve born the fruit of raving wickedness. So, seeing the impact of the fool’s words, it should cause us to measure our own. Because words can destroy lives. They can destroy relationships. They can destroy churches and institutions and industries.

The answer is not to come up with a list of words that make us ‘good.’ The answer is proper heart health. When our hearts are in proper shape, we’re able to speak as Paul commanded:

Colossians 4:6 – ⁶ Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person.

Ecclesiastes 10:14 – ¹⁴ yet the fool multiplies words. No one knows what will happen, and who can tell anyone what will happen after him?

The fool has no idea where he’s headed, but he’s sure he knows the way. Be careful of people who come to you as if they’re an expert when they’ve never been where they’re telling you to go.

Ecclesiastes 10:15 – ¹⁵ The struggles of fools weary them, for they don’t know how to go to the city.

As on commentator puts it: The fool would get lost if you put him on an escalator.^[16] That’s a silly image, but some people stumble through life that way because they have no direction. They’re driven on by their urges, by temptations, by fallen, conventional, human wisdom. Their lives are built on sand. There they are, at the bottom of a pit they’ve fallen into, holding a dull ax with a bunch of snake bites, shouting up at you that they’ll tell you how it really is!

The thing is, in this world, it might be a king down there in the pit. He might have beautiful royal robes on. He might have all his court attendants down there with him. But folly is still folly.

Ecclesiastes 10:16 – ¹⁶ Woe to you, land, when your king is a youth and your princes feast in the morning.

The word doesn’t only mean a very young king. It can also mean a man-child.

What about all those other times when the Teacher told us to enjoy feasting? Yes, we’re called to enjoy the lives we’ve been given. But this is a heart issue. Instead of waking up each day to lead his people and improve his society, this fellow wakes up and starts to party.^[17] His life is about selfish pleasure at the expense of the people around him. Think of King Belshazzar in Daniel 5.

Ecclesiastes 10:17 – ¹⁷ Blessed are you, land, when your king is a son of nobles and your princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness.

The feasting isn’t the problem – it’s the heart behind it. Here’s a king who is thinking about how to lead, how to protect his people, how to improve his nation, who knows that he needs personal strength to do those things.

By the way – ‘noble’ here isn’t used because the Teacher is a classist. It refers to a person of high moral character.^[18]

Now, we’re not kings or queens. But there is still an application for us: We have a spiritual and societal duty to grow up. To mature. What did Paul say? “When I was a child,  I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put aside childish things.”^[19]

We’re to grow up as we walk with the Lord – not remain childish. We’re to exercise self-control and thoughtfulness and selflessness and moderation. Peaceful hearts, not constantly offended.

Ecclesiastes 10:18 – ¹⁸ Because of laziness the roof caves in, and because of negligent hands the house leaks.

The Teacher has spent a lot of chapters talking about our hevel world, but don’t blame this on hevel. This is just foolishness causing problems.

Ecclesiastes 10:19 – ¹⁹ A feast is prepared for laughter, and wine makes life happy, and money is the answer for everything.

Instead of being wise, instead of maintaining the roof, the fool spends all his money on a party. And then when the drips start leaking in, they sing verse 19, which some scholars think may have been a drinking song at the time.^[20] They say, “Just throw more money at it.” Our government does this sometimes. But do the problems go away? Not without wisdom.

Yes, money is useful, but eventually it dries up. And if it’s wasted and lost and the leak isn’t fixed, then we’ve got real problems. The answer is to walk in wisdom rather than folly.

Ecclesiastes 10:20 – ²⁰ Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, and do not curse a rich person even in your bedroom, for a bird of the sky may carry the message, and a winged creature may report the matter.

No sorcery happening here. Has anyone ever come up to you and said, “A little bird told me…”? This is a closing reminder that wise living demands wise speaking. Be careful, especially when you are using sharper words. “Well, this king deserves it!” Maybe. But we still have a God-given duty to respect authority.^[21] And we need to be honest about the fact that the words we speak are seeds being planted in our relationships and in our own hearts. Seeds that bear fruit.

Two paths diverge before us: The foolish and the wise. We’re called to this other way. Calmness, not cursing. Grace, not griping. Thoughtfulness, not impulsiveness. A way of life that is different than what the world does. A way that leads to rest, not ruin. Fruitfulness, not futility. Destination, not disaster. As we walk it, our lives will benefit and the lives around us will benefit. But most importantly, we’ll be headed in a true direction, to the right destination, fulfilled along the way.

Look On The Blight Side (Ecclesiastes 9:11-10:1)

Do you consider yourself a pessimist or an optimist? Compared to other nationalities, Americans are some of the most pessimistic people. When asked if they think the world is getting better, only 6% of Americans said yes. If you think that’s bad, nearly 1 out of every 3 Americans say they believe humanity will be extinct in the next century.^[1]

There are optimists, of course. Clint Eastwood is quoted as saying, “I don’t believe in pessimism. If something doesn’t come up the way you want, forge ahead. If you think it’s going to rain, it will.”

But does pessimism bring the rain? Even the most optimistic person here would have to admit that Clint’s quote is more wishful thinking than anything else. We don’t control the weather.

We live in a wonderful world full of beauty and supply and discovery and adventure. But, at the same time, life in this world can be incredibly frustrating. This reality is often rife with suffering, unfairness, disappointment, and sorrow.

Optimism doesn’t keep the clouds away, as I’m sure many of you who had an outdoor wedding can confirm. On Monday we took a day trip to Yosemite. It was a beautiful day…until it wasn’t. In the mid-afternoon a cloud suddenly rolled in. Before we knew it, rain was pouring down and, since it was so cold, snow even started to flurry.

It was fun for us, but there was at least one couple who did not appreciate the sudden change – the lady and gentleman who were taking their wedding pictures outside the Yosemite Valley chapel. They were doing their best – forging ahead – but there was something profoundly unfair about how things turned out for them. Of course, we’re used to that kind of thing. “It’s just part of life.”

In our text tonight, the Teacher speaks frankly about the fundamental unfairness of this world. Many label him a pessimist, but that’s not quite right. Certainly he is distressed by the world he lives in and has studied so closely, but the Teacher isn’t just a cynical Eeyore here to ruin the party. He’s honest about what we’re up against. Look at the world, look at your life, and you’ll find many happy occurrences, days filled with achievement and joy. But in the same life you’ll find when things went the other way, and not because of something you did or some mistake you made, but simply because this world is broken. What should happen doesn’t always happen.

Ecclesiastes 9:11 – ¹¹ Again I saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, or the battle to the strong, or bread to the wise, or riches to the discerning, or favor to the skillful; rather, time and chance happen to all of them.

The Teacher isn’t talking about The Tortoise And The Hare here. In that case, the Hare gets what he deserves. These are instances where chance twists the outcome. Think of any obviously terrible sports call – Maradona’s hand-of-God goal in the 1986 World Cup. The rightful winner simply doesn’t always win.

Nikola Tesla died broke while Pablo Escobar died with $70 billion.

Or consider stories like that of Donald Peters. For 20 years he would buy a pair of lottery tickets from his local 7-Eleven. On November 1, 2008 Donald bought his tickets, like he always did. He died later that day. And then the numbers were announced: Donald’s ticket won $10 million.^[2]

There have been times when you should’ve been selected for the promotion, the position, the opportunity, but it didn’t happen. Why? Because time and chance hold sway over this world.

Even so, the Teacher isn’t saying that it’s stupid to train or strengthen ourselves or to learn to be wise and skillful. He’s already shown how doing those things can dramatically help you in life and benefit the world around you. The point is that you cannot guarantee outcomes in this life.

Ecclesiastes 9:12 – ¹² For certainly no one knows his time: like fish caught in a cruel net or like birds caught in a trap, so people are trapped in an evil time as it suddenly falls on them.

The Teacher often reminds us of our impending deaths, but that’s not the only thing he’s referring to here.^[3] He also means the regular misfortunes of life that grab the guilty and innocent alike, like a self-springing trap.^[4] Ours is a dangerous world, full of thorns and tangles and snares.

The Teacher considers time and chance to be “evil.” A cruel net. A system that works against people, whether they’re wise or foolish, righteous or wicked. Not as it should be.

Ecclesiastes 9:13 – ¹³ I have observed that this also is wisdom under the sun, and it is significant to me:

Wisdom should always triumph, but we’re under the sun in a reality where Adam and Eve traded God’s wisdom for man’s wisdom and now, things are different. Just as the rules of movement and survival change when you submerge under water, so reality changed under the sun when sin came.

The Teacher invites us to look at a particular case study that proves his point. He says this is significant to him. Your version may say it was “great” to him. Not great in the sense that he was happy about it, but in the sense that it was a major finding in his research. This story shows the kind of brokenness and unfairness people are up against in this world.

Ecclesiastes 9:14-15 – ¹⁴ There was a small city with few men in it. A great king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege works against it. ¹⁵ Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he delivered the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.

Scholars argue over what the Teacher really said in this story. One of two things happened: Either this poor wise man figured out the way to save his town and then, despite his heroism, he was forgotten and unrewarded, or the Teacher might be saying that this poor wise man could have saved the town, but because of his social status, he was ignored and the town was destroyed.^[5]

Either outcome would’ve been bad. Yes, the second option is much more bad, but neither is right. But, despite what should be, this world values a lot of things that don’t actually matter. Things like social status, style, the class a person is in, the hype that surrounds them. It still happens today.

This is a serious blight in the system. Let’s say the wise man did successfully save his city. Wouldn’t you want to then give that guy a position of leadership? But, they didn’t, because he wasn’t cool enough or rich enough or important enough. He’s written off – never paid back for his service.

How often has history shown people choosing defeat and destruction because they were too proud to humble themselves to do the wise thing? Isn’t that the case with those who refuse salvation in Jesus Christ? Psalm 149 tells us that God adorns the humble with salvation.^[6] But so many people refuse to humble themselves and instead choose humiliation in the end.

Ecclesiastes 9:16 – ¹⁶ And I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.”

“Wisdom is better than strength” was probably a popular maxim during the Teacher’s time – one of those things people say like, “Cheaters never prosper.” “Every cloud has a silver lining.” “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” True? Kinda. Maybe.

In an ideal world, wisdom is better than strength. But in this world, wisdom is disdained far too often. Think of the Apostle Paul on the ship sailing to Rome. He knew they were making unwise choices to keep sailing late into the season. He warned them to head to port and wait out the winter. But unwise men wanted pleasure, wanted convenience, wanted their payday, wanted to be seen as the experts, and so they sailed right into the Euroclydon and almost paid with their lives.^[7]

Our world’s rebellion against wisdom is a feature, not a bug. That doesn’t mean we should all give up on this world or give up on wise living, and just recede into ourselves. In fact, chapter 10 is all about the consequences of folly. And we’ve already seen that wise living, even in our broken system, can bring a lot of advantages to a life and community. But we shouldn’t be surprised when the world around us goes the way of fools. Cooler heads do not always prevail.

Ecclesiastes 9:17 – ¹⁷ The calm words of the wise are heeded more than the shouts of a ruler over fools.

That is better translated, “Wise words, spoken quietly should be heeded rather than the leader of fools.”^[8] But the system is broken. Once again, what should be true usually isn’t here under the sun.^[9]

Let me ask you this: If you turn on any cable news show tonight, what are you most likely to see? A calm and thoughtful person making a reasoned case full of solutions for the world’s problems? Or, will you see four people all shouting over one another, saying nothing particularly sage or helpful?

Ours is a shouting society. That’s not a good thing. Let’s not be a shouting people to our family or in our community or online toward those we disagree with.

Ecclesiastes 9:18 – ¹⁸ Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner can destroy much good.

If this was where Ecclesiastes ended, it would be pretty bleak. Remember, this is a major finding in his research. This is the way things are in this world, vividly illustrated in the next verse.

Ecclesiastes 10:1 – Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil ferment and stink; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

All the work of gathering the ingredients, reducing them down, straining and purifying them, storing them properly, then mixing them all together in a careful recipe to make this costly bottle of perfume. And then one little fly randomly lands in the batch and it’s all wasted. Ruined. Hevel.

The Teacher says the same is true when a single “bungler” enters a situation in life.^[10] He doesn’t even necessarily mean a purposefully evil person. But that’s how things go under the sun.

The Bible is full of examples of the incredible, destructive power of sin and folly. Achan’s impulsive decision to take a few goods out of Jericho led to a shocking defeat of Israel’s army. Solomon’s own son Rehoboam made a foolish political decision and instantly the kingdom of Israel, which had never been stronger, wealthier, or more at peace was ruined. Split in two.

As I said, if this were the end of the book, it would be pretty hopeless. But it’s not the end. By the end, the Teacher will have discovered not only what is but also he finds the answer to what we should do about it. His findings are basic, considering he was writing centuries before Christ’s arrival. In his conclusion, having seen the brokenness of the world and the difficulties of life, he says, “Here’s what you do: Fear God, follow Him, and enjoy the life He has given you even though our life experiences are dominated by time, death, and chance. God is real. He is sovereign. He knows what we don’t, so live as joyfully and happily as you can and trust that God will do the right thing.” That’s the culmination of the Teacher’s lifelong research.

But, before we close, I think it’s important that we wrestle with this for a moment. Given what the Teacher discovered about the broken, hevel nature of the world under the sun, is his finding sufficient? We know a lot more about the plan and Person of God than Solomon did. We don’t think about life from an agnostic, secular humanist perspective, but rather in the knowledge of what God does and what He has promised and what He is capable of.

Knowing what we know, how are we to reckon with the unfairness that pervades this reality? If God is sovereign, how do we square that with the chance horrors of life? The nagging problems of pain, suffering, injustice, many of which are arbitrary not only from our perspective, but frankly from history’s perspective? We know God could remove His people or exempt them from the consequences of sin. He’s done it before. But, in most cases He doesn’t. The cruel net grabs young and old, good and bad alike. And often without direct spiritual purpose.

It’s estimated that 16,000 children die every single day around the world. Eleven every minute.^[11] When people suffer around us, as theological conservatives we tend to assuage ourselves by saying, “God must be trying to teach us something.” Or, “God will bring specific good out of that situation.” But is that just a not-quite-real maxim like “every cloud has a silver lining?”

Did all those children die today because God had things He wanted to teach people? More than 225,000 people died in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. As far as I know, none of them became a modern Lazarus. Rather, if we’re honest, it seems to be more Ecclesiastes 9 than Genesis 50.

Jesus Himself seemed to reference the arbitrary randomness of suffering inherent to this world in Luke 13. A group of people came to complain to Him about injustice. In response He said, “A tower fell and killed 18 people in Siloam. Do you think that happened because they were more sinful than other people?” The answer was no. The fact of the matter is that tragedy, injustice, and unfairness are baked into this world because of the ruinous impact of sin. How do we square that with what we know about God?

On the one hand, we take to heart that wonderful promise from Psalm 31 that “My times are in Your hands.” But we also experience the same reality that the Teacher brought out here: People are trapped in an evil time under the sun. These findings have serious implications.

If God is sovereign and He cares about us and He can deliver, then why doesn’t He? Why does Peter go free while James is beheaded?

It’s wise to consider these questions because this is the major accusation people use when they reject the Gospel. And we should be careful in how we answer these questions because we may inadvertently back ourselves into a theological corner where God is a monster making sport of us. Or, we may convince ourselves that every difficulty would go away if we could just learn the spiritual lesson. That suffering always exists because I’m being disciplined or instructed.

We must start by thinking about the sovereignty of God. The Bible clearly, explicitly teaches that God is sovereign. The Teacher agrees, while also noting that chance impacts everyone, both righteous and unrighteous. Evil touches all of our lives, yet God cannot be the Author of evil.

When you think of sovereignty, what do you imagine? Do we picture it as God standing before a vast, soulless machine which only He operates – pulling levers and flipping toggles in whatever order He wants while each gear underneath turns in lifeless obligation? Is the universe simply a great bin of Legos that God alone is constructing, posing, and adjusting with no other input?

That is a view of sovereignty held by many faithful Christians, commonly known as “Divine determinism,” or “meticulous providence.” The problem is that this view of sovereignty leads invariably to God being the cause of the suffering in our world. Even the suffering that we have to admit does not lead to any lesson being learned or eventual Joseph-esque reveal in the end. And it also conflicts with some very straightforward teachings in Scripture like: “God does not tempt anyone,” yet we are tempted.

On the polar opposite you have what is called “Open Theism.” If you boil down this view, the idea is that God is not totally sovereign – in fact He doesn’t even really know what’s going to happen in the future. He’s just super powerful and is reacting to things. Proponents of this view will say things like God is “experimenting,” and “taking risks” with us.^[12] All I can say is, “Yikes.”

There is another perspective called “Relational sovereignty.” Where “God’s will is settled in terms of the intention of His character” and His overall plan for this world, but meanwhile He personally relates to us and invites us to individually, truly cooperate with Him, not as pawns but as partners.^[13]

What does that mean? It means your life is not just a toggle God is switching, but He allows you to make an impact on His heart and activity. You can please Him. You can grieve Him. You can anger Him. You can hasten His coming. You can delay His stated intentions in your life. All of these things are said and exampled in the both Testaments of the Bible. But that means there is flex in the providence and sovereignty of God. Does that mean things can happen that He wasn’t aware of or happen outside of His authority? No. He is sovereign over all the universe. But He is sovereign over His sovereignty. And, as King, He has freed the wills of human beings and humans now make a difference as we interact with Him. As God reigns, He invites us to live in this hevel world as active partners in His grace. We will be subject to the futility of this world just as Jesus Himself was subject to it in His Incarnation. Though time, death, and chance often work against us, and though this fallen, failing, soon-to-be-dissolved world actively tries to trap us and hinder us, none of it can succeed in separating us from the love of God in this real relationship we have with Him.

Understanding that God’s sovereignty is accomplished through a love relationship can give us a lot of hope, perspective, and excitement.

It gives us hope because we know that even though we are impacted by time, death, and chance under the sun, we have a faithful Friend and Savior Who does care about us and Who does keep the score with the intention of settling it in eternity. And He allows us to impact His heart and activity as we respond to His love and grace by loving and obeying Him in return.

It gives us perspective because we realize that God could remove us like He removed Enoch, but instead He has decided to leave us here, under the sun. Why? So that we can be salt and light. So we can lead others to salvation. So that we can be a part of restraining evil through the power of the Holy Spirit. God leaves you here so that maybe you can, in some small or large sense, be the wise person in the city under attack. You have God’s truth, His wisdom, His mandate. These are better than weapons of war. These are more precious than gold. These keep our world from spiraling into total ruin. Your life is meant to be an example of what is possible and what is coming.

And having that perspective should give us a lot of excitement. Your life might not be appreciated by the world around you, but God appreciates it. He gave it to you for a reason. He put you where you are and gave you real freedom and empowering to not only bring Him glory, but also so that you could actually please the Lord Himself. And you can be a meaningful, heroic part of His merciful, redemptive work. Your simple life shining as a beacon of how the Lord is going to make all things right one day. How hesed not hevel defines the people of God.

Yes, the world is unfair. Yes, sometimes it rains on our wedding day. Yes, sometimes we suffer under the sun – intensely – not because we’re being disciplined, not because God’s is going to use it to start some new ministry, not because we need to learn something, but because the world is sick with time, death, and chance.

But knowing what is really true and knowing what is really going on and knowing what is really going to happen because God is sovereign, as Peter said in his second letter, “It’s clear what sort of people we should be:” People who understand that my focus does not have to be on the failures of earth, but the faithfulness of God as we fear Him and follow Him and are able to do so joyfully and contentedly in spite of the sufferings of this present time. No matter the unfairness, no matter the circumstances we can trust Him and thank Him for His faithful love endures forever.

A Death Well Lived (Ezekiel 8:16-9:10)

In the mid-1700’s lived a man who could have written Ecclesiastes if Solomon hadn’t already done it. He entered the university at age 12. From there, his life took many adventurous turns. He was a cleric, then a soldier, a gambler, a poet, and a conman alchemist. He once saved the life of a Venetian senator and became a spy in Amsterdam.^[1] He was imprisoned by the Inquisition, then became the only person to ever escape the prison.^[2] He reportedly helped to write the libretto for Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni and penned a 12 volume autobiography. He knew wealth and poverty, saw the world, and left a string of scandals and broken hearts in his wake.

Some idolize him. To others he is notorious. You know his name, at least his last name: Giacomo Casanova. One author wrote that Casanova’s quest was to “drink as much pleasure from the cup of life as possible.”^[3]

And yet, while many celebrate his lust for life, his womanizing, and his unrestrained worldliness, the truth is that at the end of his life Casanova knew no joy. At the age of 65, exiled from Venice, worn out, and unhappy, he got a job as a librarian. He was so lonely he considered suicide.

But there was a problem: Casanova was afraid of death. He described death as a monster who chases you out of a theater before the play is over. And so he lingered at his librarian job for the last dozen years of his life.

The Teacher of Ecclesiastes is the Bible’s Casanova – A man who tried everything he could think of to drink in life. But no matter what he did, he couldn’t escape the shadow of death. It haunted and frustrated and demoralized him.

In tonight’s text he comes to a couple of conclusions. The first is that human beings don’t know nearly as much as we think we know. The second is that the one thing we do know is that we are going to die. And the third conclusion is how we should respond to the first two.

Ecclesiastes 8:16-17 – ¹⁶ When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe the activity that is done on the earth (even though one’s eyes do not close in sleep day or night), ¹⁷ I observed all the work of God and concluded that a person is unable to discover the work that is done under the sun. Even though a person labors hard to explore it, he cannot find it; even if a wise person claims to know it, he is unable to discover it.

The Teacher speaks as someone who is trying to solve the puzzle of life on his own, using human wisdom, human genius, human philosophy. The problem is: Human philosophy cannot solve the puzzle. Derek Kidner very aptly points out that every human philosophy comes along and exposes the omissions of its predecessors.^[4] Another scholar writes, “Human insight, understanding, and reason, like water, cannot rise higher than their source or own level.”^[5]

We are finite beings. We cannot comprehend the infinite unless it is revealed to us. The Bible puts it very plainly in Job 28: “Where can wisdom be found? It cannot be found in the land of the living” (meaning under the sun). But God understands the way to wisdom, and He knows its location.^[6]

Not only does God reveal His wisdom to us, He also reveals that He is in charge of all things. He is sovereignly accomplishing His will. While we often don’t know why things are happening the way they are, we do know that God is working. That means we can be s Christians no matter what happens. In the first 10 verses of chapter 9, the Teacher shows us how it’s possible to live a joy-filled, faithful life even in the midst of hevel, of unfairness, and even when facing death.

Ecclesiastes 9:1 – Indeed, I took all this to heart and explained it all: The righteous, the wise, and their works are in God’s hands. People don’t know whether to expect love or hate. Everything lies ahead of them.

We don’t know what’s going to happen. We know some things, like that the sun is going to rise tomorrow. But we don’t know a lot of important specifics, like whether we’ll be alive to see it. Will your Thursday be full of delight or disaster? Or will it be a mixture of both? We don’t know.

Here’s what we do know: Your life is in God’s hands. Not only in the general sense that He reigns over all the universe. Look at what Solomon says here: He specifically carves out the righteous – God’s people. He is our loving Shepherd and we are the sheep of His gentle hand.^[7]

Yesterday I saw a video where Ben Shapiro said, “We live in a timeline where God clearly hates us.” I think he was probably being a little sarcastic, but he said it multiple times as he expressed his fear for the election.^[8] I can’t help but note that he speaks and feels as someone who has rejected Christ as Messiah. Someone who turns away from God’s revelation.

But God doesn’t hate us. And we can be hopeful because that the righteous are safe in His hands.

That doesn’t mean believers won’t experience problems or suffering. The Teacher is about to make the point that everyone on earth is subject to the same effects of time, death, and chance. But rather than being frustrated about the mysteries and disappointments of life, we can remain hopeful and joyful and confident in our lives.

Ecclesiastes 9:2-3a – ² Everything is the same for everyone: There is one fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not sacrifice. As it is for the good, so also it is for the sinner; as it is for the one who takes an oath, so also for the one who fears an oath. ³ This is an evil in all that is done under the sun: there is one fate for everyone.

The one fate he’s talking about is physical death. That’s always what the Teacher returns to, because  as a self-centered secular humanist, that’s the end of the line. And, as usual, he’s incredibly upset by the fact that there’s no apparent escape from the grave. Whether you’re good or bad, clean or unclean, honorable or dishonorable, everyone has a date with death. All of us are dying right now!

The Teacher thinks this is unfair. Since God exists, shouldn’t making the sacrifices count for something? Shouldn’t religious activity get people an exemption from death?

It does, but not in the way the Teacher wants. You see, a real relationship with God makes all kinds of difference. But the differences are internal and eternal. The Teacher wants external and temporal differences. He wants to keep living this life. He wants to find human experiences to fill up the void in his heart. But that fulfillment cannot be found under the sun. It can only be found in eternity.

Faith in Christ is not about getting external, temporal things. It’s not about being healthy and wealthy all the time in this life. It’s about the internal transformation as God bears spiritual fruit in us. It’s about the eternal value, the eternal advantages.

Meanwhile, we live on this earth for a time. As we do, “Everything is the same for everyone.” That doesn’t mean we all experience the same things, but that the same rules apply to everybody. We’re in a world that is wrecked by the presence of sin which has brought death to every corner of the cosmos. This universe is spiraling down the drain to destruction. But God reaches down to save, reaches down to sustain, reaches down to make beauty from the ashes. But death still applies to the people of the earth. God has defeated death and He will cast death and hades into the Lake of Fire one day. But for now, we live in a storm of sin and we are headed to the end of our mortal lives.

Ecclesiastes 9:3b – In addition, the hearts of people are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live; after that they go to the dead.

Death isn’t the only problem in this world. We see here that life, too, has been infected by the toxicity of sin. It leads people into lives of “moral wildness.”^[9] This is why we shouldn’t focus all our efforts on patching world systems. We should focus on healing hearts. If we only work to make systems better – to solve temporal problems with temporal solutions – it will invariably come undone because the underlying condition of human hearts is evil madness.

Instead, we should work in the power of the Gospel that brings people from death to life. Power that transforms mad kings into evangelists. The power that changes the world.

Ecclesiastes 9:4 – ⁴ But there is hope for whoever is joined with all the living, since a live dog is better than a dead lion.

From this verse comes the often quoted maxim, “While there’s life, there’s hope.”

Most people are generally hopeful that things will work out in the end.^[10] But what is your hope built on? A lot of people hope in the “I’m a good person” idea. That when they die, there will be a scale and all the good things they did will be on one side and all the bad things on the other, and the good will outweigh the bad. What a stupid hope! You’re going to be disappointed.

A lot of people hope that death is just the end, even though their own hearts betray them with the gnawing suspicion that death is not the end. Their hope is built on hevel. Wisps of smoke.

Our hope, on the other hand, does not disappoint. It the anchor for our souls. Our hope is firmly rooted in the justification by faith, in the grace of Almighty God. Fastened to God’s unfailing love that is poured out in our hearts. Our hope is real and secure and adamantine.

Ecclesiastes 9:5 – ⁵ For the living know that they will die, but the dead don’t know anything. There is no longer a reward for them because the memory of them is forgotten.

The Teacher is not denying an afterlife. He believes in a future judgment.^[11] But the fact of the matter is that these Old Testament believers didn’t have as much revelation as we have. They weren’t exactly sure what to expect after death.^[12]

The point Solomon is making is that you have this life to earn a reward. The problem is, this life is fleeting. At the same time, it’s incredibly important. Your life is not a mistake. Your life is incredibly valuable. As is the life of your neighbor. We must preserve the value of life in our hearts and we must recognize that how we live has monumental, eternal impact.

So many people live out their lives totally distracted and deceived by the enemy, doing all they can to ignore death or put it out of their minds until it suddenly ambushes them. We need to spread the word that there is an antidote to death. That there is a way to take all its sting and all its victory and it is only through faith in Jesus Christ, the King of Life.

Ecclesiastes 9:6 – ⁶ Their love, their hate, and their envy have already disappeared, and there is no longer a portion for them in all that is done under the sun.

We get one life on this earth. There’s no purgatory. There’s no reincarnation. There’s no time machines to do it over. This temporal life is passing quickly, but in it we are locking in eternal absolutes. Our eternal home. Our eternal rewards. From the Teacher’s perspective, death is the most significant moment in life and we’re all dying. So what kind of death are we living out? Are we living out a death in Christ or a death on the run from Him?

Love and hate here can also refer to passions.^[13] What are we passionate about? What are we filling our days with? Spending our lives on? Casanova had a great passion for women. But his passions were worldly. They led to perversions. Scandals. Disgrace. Looking at our passions – would our memoirs sit on the shelf next to Casanovas or someone like Corrie Ten Boom’s?

So, Solomon’s first conclusion is that we know much less than we like to think. His second is that what we do know is that death is coming. In verses 7 through 10 we have his third conclusion, which is how to live life in light of what he’s discovered.

Ecclesiastes 9:7 – ⁷ Go, eat your bread with pleasure, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has already accepted your works.

That “Go” can be translated, “Come on!”^[14] It’s an urgent summons to action.^[15] The Teacher says we must live joyfully. And he’ll then point to joy in daily life, in marital life, and in your work life.

Bread and wine refer to life’s staples. Regular, day-to-day enjoyment of the gift of life God has given you. Philip Ryken writes, this is not to live a life of guilty pleasures, but Godly pleasures.^[16] That we seek joy where it can be found.^[17] The beauty of creation. The gratification of a meal. The cheer brought from a favorite song. God gives all sorts of gifts in ordinary life for our enjoyment.

Some Christians tend to think that the more somber we are, the better. That deprivation equals holiness. But that isn’t true. Again, we’re not talking about living a Casanova life. But neither should we think an ascetic life is what the Lord wants. James Smith points out that asceticism only intensifies the gloom of this world and all its problems. “That gloom, however, can be dispelled by resolving to enjoy all the gifts of God.”^[18]

The Teacher says your works are already accepted by God. The verb he used there often referred to God’s divine pleasure at the sacrifices in the Temple.^[19] That doesn’t mean anything you do will please God. But, as we walk with God doing the things He’s given us to do, then we please Him.

Ecclesiastes 9:8 – ⁸ Let your clothes be white all the time, and never let oil be lacking on your head.

Is this a “let them eat cake” moment? No. In this time, white robes symbolized celebration and festivity.^[20] It’s about attitude more than attire. Don’t live your life in sackcloth.^[21] There are times of mourning or repentance or discouragement, but let those be the exception, not the rule.

In Psalm 45 we read that God anoints us with the oil of joy. In the New Testament the Lord gives His people white robes of righteousness. That’s the reality of our lives. If we don’t live in that reality, it’s a problem. In fact, when writing to the church at Sardis, Jesus said that there were a bunch of people there who had a reputation for being alive, but in reality they were dead. And He said, “But you have a few people in Sardis who have not defiled their clothes, and they will walk with me in white, because they are worthy. In the same way, the one who conquers will be dressed in white clothes, and I will never erase his name from the book of life but will acknowledge his name before my Father and before his angels.”^[22] We’re called to live the life Christ has given us. White robes of righteousness, anointed with the oil of gladness. Conducting ourselves as joyful people.

Ecclesiastes 9:9 – ⁹ Enjoy life with the wife you love all the days of your fleeting life, which has been given to you under the sun, all your fleeting days. For that is your portion in life and in your struggle under the sun.

Marriage was the first institution and relationship that the Lord established on the earth. The Bible is clear that not everyone needs to get married. If God calls you to singleness, that’s not worse than being married, nor is it better. But the vast majority of us are going to be called into marriage. And marriage is meant to be a great blessing to us – a thriving, cooperative relationship based on love. Solomon wrote this when most marriages were arranged. Here he says, “What God wants is for you to enjoy life with the wife you love.” And we see that God has an opinion about who you marry. He has a specific portion, a specific person in mind for you. And He matches you for just the right fit. And when we allow God to lead us in this area of our lives, the result is wonderful. Because he brings us to our helper so we can face the struggles of life together.

Enjoying here isn’t only for you. “In combination with ‘love,’ it seems to have the connotation of keeping one’s marriage ‘alive and happy,’ not allowing it to become ordinary and routine.”^[23]

Ecclesiastes 9:10 – ¹⁰ Whatever your hands find to do, do with all your strength, because there is no work, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

Sheol here refers to the grave, not hell. Again, the Teacher isn’t saying there’s no afterlife or that when we die we go into soul sleep. Jesus echoed this verse in John 9 when He said, “We must do the works of him who sent me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work.”^[24]

The message is: This life matters. What you do matters. The work of your hands and the words from your lips. Life is extremely consequential, but it’s also hevel – fleeting. And we live it out in a frustrating world that is dominated by sin, by suffering, by randomness, and difficulty. Knowing what we know, let’s live life on purpose with purpose.

Casanova reportedly worked 13 hours a day trying to complete his 12 volume memoir. A self-important record of his sinful excesses, crimes, and selfishness. What a waste of work. What a waste of the gift of life God gave to him.

You are dying. John Oxenham wrote, “Death begins at life’s first breath, [but for the Christian] life begins at the touch of death.” In this mortal world, we are living out our death. It’s an extremely important life, full of consequence and opportunity and worth.

As we live, let’s be a people of lively hope. Listen to what the Teacher has learned. Don’t let the mysteries or frustrations of life rob your joy. It doesn’t mean we have to walk around with fake smiles on our face. But, as we face each day, we can do so with a special knowledge. Solomon said that the living know that they will die. Well, as Christians, we are the dying who know that we will live. We’re going to live forever with the Lord, where He will reward us for the lives we lived here under the sun. And we know that He is sovereign and that He has our lives in His hand. We know He gives us innumerable gifts to not only endure life but to enjoy life. Because of these things, we can walk through life in hope, approved by God, and entrusted by Him with the Gospel and with so many other gifts. And not only can we enjoy this life He’s given us, He enjoys it when we receive these gifts from His hand.

It’s never too late to take this gift from God and use it the way He intends. I’ve dumped a lot on Casanova tonight, but let me close with this: At the end of his life, he turned to the Lord. Multiple witnesses record that his last words were, “I have lived as a philosopher and I die as a Christian.” The first road he took led only to sorrow and ruin. The high road of heaven leads to life everlasting, life more abundantly.