Week 35 Ecclesiastes
I was reading the prophets this summer and I kept seeing phrases like ‘this is the word of the Lord’. Or ‘the Lord spoke to ______ saying’. Or ‘the Lord said to me…’ Or maybe the writer describes an oracle a dream or a vision from the Lord.
Ecclesiastes is different. The Preacher’s content is the product of personal observation.
He says things like this:
I devoted myself to search for understanding and to explore by wisdom everything being done in the world
I worked hard to distinguish wisdom from foolishness
I remained clear-eyed so that I could evaluate…things
I decided to compare…
I realized…
I observed…
I concluded…
I searched everywhere, determined to find wisdom and to understand the reason for things
I have thought deeply about all that goes on here in the world
I tried to observe everything that goes on all across the earth
I carefully explored…
In this way Ecclesiastes is different from other bible books that quote or paraphrase the words of the Lord. The Preacher is more like a social science observer assessing a bunch of real-life things: Pleasure & the good life. Wealth & poverty. Work & leisure. Law & order. Friendship & relationships. Politics & power. Education. Morality. Death. Developmental psychology.
The Preacher is assessing exploring observing concluding.
I like the Preacher but he’s pretty shrewd so I’m cautious around him. I think it’d be easy to decide he’s saying something he isn’t.
Note: quotes from Ecclesiastes 1:13, 17, 2:9, 12, 3:18, 4:1-2, 7:25, 8:9, 16, 9:1 (NLT)