Ecclesiastes 8
This chapter contains a number of aphorisms that provoke interesting reflections or remind me of similar statements of wisdom, so I'll focus on the ones I found most compelling.
8:3b "stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him."
Eight chapters in, I'm beginning to understand the grammatical connections in the KJV a bit better, I think. "He" in these cases appears to be a substitute for "whoever does this." It's interesting that the mindset of doing whatever pleases us is strongly shown as a perspective to avoid. Sure, we can recognize the potential selfishness behind this perspective, but contemporary psychology teaches that it is important to find a balance between prioritizing one's own needs or desires and being co-dependent or overly self-sacrificial. Yet the wisdom of Ecclesiastes clearly states that simply following our own whims is probably a sign that we already have misplaced priorities or an inactive conscience. My instinct suggests that both of these views have merit, and it seems that moderation can be found by never abandoning close self-examination regarding what we're doing and why. Ecclesiastes seems to be warning that lingering in the wrong state of mind will naturally lead to an abandonment of the practice of self-examination.
8:4a "Where the word of a king is, there is power."
This made me think of the line from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, "[mercy] becomes the throned monarch better than his crown." And thinking of the influence that lies at the grasp of those with power, I'm also reminded of a quote from Bryan Stevenson's book, Just Mercy: "The power of just mercy is that it belongs to the undeserving; it is when mercy is least expected that it is most potent."
8:5 "Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing and a wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment."
This seems to make the statement that by focusing on what is important, the rest will fall into place and we can be free of anxiety. In particular, this plays out in two ways: 1) by concerning ourselves only with what is right (from a New Testament lens we could say "the commandment" is to love God and love others) we will find ourselves freed from the chains of resentment and the temptation to be perpetual judges. 2) this same focus will keep us in the present, and in such a state we will know consistently what the right is to do.
8:9 "There is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt."
Boy, it would be easy to provide a plethora of examples that demonstrate this truth. Sadly, the one who "ruleth" in these situations rarely sees or acknowledges the damage being done to himself or to others. But the general ethic this reveals is that as humans, our destiny is inextricably bound up with the destiny of everyone else, and to put a couple Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. paraphrases in quotes, "their destiny is bound up with our destiny," and "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
8:11-13 "Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him. But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God."
This I had to include because I identify so strongly with the character identified as the "sinner" or "wicked," and I suspect a majority of us don't have difficulty finding identity there. Whether we think of some of our habits, impulses, and addictions as weaknesses, sins, or something else, the situation described in these verses calls forth those "never again" prayers, the prayers we utter when suffering or regret is the payment for our choices. But these verses point to a little different state of being, which I am also familiar with, which is the state of realizing that really, in the short term, even if there's some suffering from my choices, I don't die, and the suffering passes, so why seek an incentive to change? Ecclesiastes tells us why: because in the long run what has been sewn will be reaped. Thus, in the words of F. Scott Fitzgerald, "the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men" can easily lead us astray from practicing the fear of God. With no apology for the redundancy, I'll mention once again that the "fear of God," according to Eugene Peterson, simply means being attuned to what God is doing and desiring to participate.
8:15-17
Not for the first time, Ecclesiastes concludes a chapter by saying it is good to enjoy one's labor and one's experience of life; and lest we forget, the author reminds us that however earnestly we seek to fully understanding God or the meaning of the life we have been given, we will fail to find answers that bring complete satisfaction.
8:3b "stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him."
Eight chapters in, I'm beginning to understand the grammatical connections in the KJV a bit better, I think. "He" in these cases appears to be a substitute for "whoever does this." It's interesting that the mindset of doing whatever pleases us is strongly shown as a perspective to avoid. Sure, we can recognize the potential selfishness behind this perspective, but contemporary psychology teaches that it is important to find a balance between prioritizing one's own needs or desires and being co-dependent or overly self-sacrificial. Yet the wisdom of Ecclesiastes clearly states that simply following our own whims is probably a sign that we already have misplaced priorities or an inactive conscience. My instinct suggests that both of these views have merit, and it seems that moderation can be found by never abandoning close self-examination regarding what we're doing and why. Ecclesiastes seems to be warning that lingering in the wrong state of mind will naturally lead to an abandonment of the practice of self-examination.
8:4a "Where the word of a king is, there is power."
This made me think of the line from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, "[mercy] becomes the throned monarch better than his crown." And thinking of the influence that lies at the grasp of those with power, I'm also reminded of a quote from Bryan Stevenson's book, Just Mercy: "The power of just mercy is that it belongs to the undeserving; it is when mercy is least expected that it is most potent."
8:5 "Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing and a wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment."
This seems to make the statement that by focusing on what is important, the rest will fall into place and we can be free of anxiety. In particular, this plays out in two ways: 1) by concerning ourselves only with what is right (from a New Testament lens we could say "the commandment" is to love God and love others) we will find ourselves freed from the chains of resentment and the temptation to be perpetual judges. 2) this same focus will keep us in the present, and in such a state we will know consistently what the right is to do.
8:9 "There is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt."
Boy, it would be easy to provide a plethora of examples that demonstrate this truth. Sadly, the one who "ruleth" in these situations rarely sees or acknowledges the damage being done to himself or to others. But the general ethic this reveals is that as humans, our destiny is inextricably bound up with the destiny of everyone else, and to put a couple Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. paraphrases in quotes, "their destiny is bound up with our destiny," and "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
8:11-13 "Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him. But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God."
This I had to include because I identify so strongly with the character identified as the "sinner" or "wicked," and I suspect a majority of us don't have difficulty finding identity there. Whether we think of some of our habits, impulses, and addictions as weaknesses, sins, or something else, the situation described in these verses calls forth those "never again" prayers, the prayers we utter when suffering or regret is the payment for our choices. But these verses point to a little different state of being, which I am also familiar with, which is the state of realizing that really, in the short term, even if there's some suffering from my choices, I don't die, and the suffering passes, so why seek an incentive to change? Ecclesiastes tells us why: because in the long run what has been sewn will be reaped. Thus, in the words of F. Scott Fitzgerald, "the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men" can easily lead us astray from practicing the fear of God. With no apology for the redundancy, I'll mention once again that the "fear of God," according to Eugene Peterson, simply means being attuned to what God is doing and desiring to participate.
8:15-17
Not for the first time, Ecclesiastes concludes a chapter by saying it is good to enjoy one's labor and one's experience of life; and lest we forget, the author reminds us that however earnestly we seek to fully understanding God or the meaning of the life we have been given, we will fail to find answers that bring complete satisfaction.
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