What does ecclesiastes 1 mean




















How grateful is it to think that none ever made such advances in knowledge, and such discoveries by it, as we, that none ever made such improvements of an estate or trade, and had the art of enjoying the gains of it, as we have. Their contrivances and compositions are all despised and run down, and we boast of new fashions, new hypotheses, new methods, new expressions, which jostle out the old, and put them down.

But this is all a mistake: The thing that is, and shall be, is the same with that which has been, and that which shall be done will be but the same with that which is done, for there is no new thing under the sun, v.

It is repeated v. It is an appeal to observing men, and a challenge to those that cry up modern learning above that of the ancients. Let them name any thing which they take to be new, and though perhaps we cannot make it to appear, for want of the records of former times, yet we have reason to conclude that it has been already of old time, which was before us.

What is there in the kingdom of nature of which we may say, This is new? The works were finished from the foundation of the world Heb. The heavens were of old; the earth abides for ever; the powers of nature and the links of natural causes are still the same that ever they were. In the kingdom of Providence, though the course and method of it have not such known and certain rules as that of nature, nor does it go always in the same track, yet, in the general, it is still the same thing over and over again.

Men's hearts, and the corruptions of them, are still the same; their desires, and pursuits, and complaints, are still the same; and what God does in his dealings with men is according to the scripture, according to the manner, so that it is all repetition. What is surprising to us needs not be so, for there has been the like, the like strange advancements and disappointments, the like strange revolutions and sudden turns, sudden turns of affairs; the miseries of human life have always been much the same, and mankind tread a perpetual round, and, as the sun and wind, are but where they were.

Now the design of this is, 1. To show the folly of the children of men in affecting things that are new, in imagining that they have discovered such things, and in pleasing and priding themselves in them. We are apt to nauseate old things, and to grow weary of what we have been long used to, as Israel of the manna, and covet, with the Athenians, still to tell and hear of some new thing, and admire this and the other as new, whereas it is all what has been. To take us off from expecting happiness or satisfaction in the creature.

Why should we look for it there, where never any yet have found it? What reason have we to think that the world should be any kinder to us than it has been to those that have gone before us, since there is nothing in it that is new, and our predecessors have made as much of it as could be made? Your fathers did eat manna, and yet they are dead.

See Jn. To quicken us to secure spiritual and eternal blessings. If we would be entertained with new things, we must acquaint ourselves with the things of God, get a new nature; then old things pass away, and all things become new, 2 Co. The gospel puts a new song into our mouths. In heaven all is new Rev. This consideration should make us willing to die, That in this world there is nothing but the same over and over again, and we can expect nothing from it more or better than we have had.

The memorableness of the achievement, that it is such as will be known and talked of hereafter. Many think they have found satisfaction enough in this, that their names shall be perpetuated, that posterity will celebrate the actions they have performed, the honours they have won, and the estates they have raised, that their houses shall continue for ever Ps. How many former things and persons were there, which in their day looked very great and made a mighty figure, and yet there is no remembrance of them; they are buried in oblivion.

Here and there one person or action that was remarkable met with a kind historian, and had the good hap to be recorded, when at the same time there were others, no less remarkable, that were dropped: and therefore we may conclude that neither shall there be any remembrance of things to come, but that which we hope to be remembered by will be either lost or slighted.

Ecc Solomon, having asserted in general that all is vanity, and having given some general proofs of it, now takes the most effectual method to evince the truth of it, 1. By his own experience; he tried them all, and found them vanity. By an induction of particulars; and here he begins with that which bids fairest of all to be the happiness of a reasonable creature, and that is knowledge and learning; if this be vanity, every thing else must needs be so.

Now as to this, I. Solomon tells us here what trial he had made of it, and that with such advantages that, if true satisfaction could have been found in it, he would have found it.

His high station gave him an opportunity of improving himself in all parts of learning, and particularly in politics and the conduct of human affairs, v. He that is the preacher of this doctrine was king over Israel, whom all their neighbours admired as a wise and understanding people, Deu. He had his royal seat in Jerusalem, which then deserved, better than Athens ever did, to be called the eye of the world.

The heart of a king is unsearchable; he has reaches of his own, and a divine sentence is often in his lips. It is his honour, it is his business, to search out every matter. Solomon's great wealth and honour put him into a capacity of making his court the centre of learning and the rendezvous of learned men, of furnishing himself with the best of books, and either conversing or corresponding with all the wise and knowing part of mankind then in being, who made application to him to learn of him, by which he could not but improve himself; for it is in knowledge as it is in trade, all the profit is by barter and exchange; if we have that to say which will instruct others, they will have that to say which will instruct us.

Some observe how slightly Solomon speaks of his dignity and honour. He does not say, I the preacher am king, but I was king, no matter what I am. He speaks of it as a thing past, because worldly honours are transitory. He applied himself to the improvement of these advantages, and the opportunities he had of getting wisdom, which, though ever so great, will not make a man wise unless he give his mind to it. Solomon gave his heart to seek and search out all things to be known by wisdom, v.

He made it his business to acquaint himself with all the things that are done under the sun, that are done by the providence of God or by the art and prudence of man. He set himself to get all the insight he could into philosophy and mathematics, into husbandry and trade, merchandise and mechanics, into the history of former ages and the present state of other kingdoms, their laws, customs, and policies, into men's different tempers, capacities, and projects, and the methods of managing them; he set himself not only to seek, but to search, to pry into, that which is most intricate, and which requires the closes application of mind and the most vigorous and constant prosecution.

Though he was a prince, he made himself a drudge to learning, was not discouraged by its knots, nor took up short of its depths. And this he did, not merely to gratify his own genius, but to qualify himself for the service of God, and his generation, and to make an experiment how far the enlargement of the knowledge would go towards the settlement and repose of the mind. He made a very great progress in his studies, wonderfully improved all the parts of learning, and carried his discoveries much further than any that had been before him.

He did not condemn learning, as many do, because they cannot conquer it and will not be at the pains to make themselves masters of it; no, what he aimed at he compassed; he saw all the works that were done under the sun v. He could say, "Lo, I have magnified and increased wisdom, have not only gotten more of it myself, but have done more to propagate it and bring it into reputation, than any, than all that have been before me in Jerusalem. Where God gives great advantages of getting knowledge he expects improvements accordingly.

It is happy with a people when their princes and noblemen study to excel others as much in wisdom and useful knowledge as they do in honour and estate; and they may do that service to the commonwealth of learning by applying themselves to the studies that are proper for them which meaner persons cannot do.

Solomon must be acknowledged as competent judge of this matter, for he had not only got his head full of notions, but his heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge, of the power and benefit of knowledge, as well as the amusement and entertainment of it; what he knew he had digested, and knew how to make use of. Wisdom entered into his heart, and so became pleasant to his soul, Prov.

He applied his studies especially to that part of learning which is most serviceable to the conduct of human life, and consequently is the most valuable v. He tells us what was the result of this trial, to confirm what he had said, that all is vanity. He found that his searches after knowledge were very toilsome, and a weariness not only to the flesh, but to the mind v. As bread for the body, so that for the soul, must be got and eaten in the sweat of our face, whereas both would have been had without labour if Adam had not sinned.

He found that the more he saw of the works done under the sun the more he saw of their vanity; nay, and the sight often occasioned him vexation of spirit v. It is feeding upon wind; so some read it, Hos.

The works themselves which we see done are vanity and vexation to those that are employed in them. There is so much care in the contrivance of our worldly business, so much toil in the prosecution of it, and so much trouble in the disappointments we meet with in it, that we may well say, It is vexation of spirit. The sight of them is vanity and vexation of spirit to the wise observer of them.

The more we see of the world the more we see to make us uneasy, and, with Heraclitus, to look upon all with weeping eyes. Solomon especially perceived that the knowledge of wisdom and folly was vexation of spirit, v.

It vexed him to see many that had wisdom not use it, and many that had folly not strive against it. It vexed him when he knew wisdom to see how far off it stood from the children of men, and, when he saw folly, to see how fast it was bound in their hearts. He found that when he had got some knowledge he could neither gain that satisfaction to himself nor do that good to others with it which he expected, v.

It would not avail, 1. To redress the many grievances of human life: "After all, I find that that which is crooked will be crooked still and cannot be made straight. Solomon thought to find out a nearer way to it, but he could not. The paths of learning are as much a labyrinth as ever they were. The minds and manners of men are crooked and perverse.

Solomon thought, with his wisdom and power together, thoroughly to reform his kingdom, and make that straight which he found crooked; but he was disappointed. All the philosophy and politics in the world will not restore the corrupt nature of man to its primitive rectitude; we find the insufficiency of them both in others and in ourselves. Learning will not alter men's natural tempers, nor cure them of their sinful distempers; nor will it change the constitution of things in this world; a vale of tears it is and so it will be when all is done.

To make up the many deficiencies in the comfort of human life: That which is wanting there cannot be numbered, or counted out to us from the treasures of human learning, but what is wanting will still be so. All our enjoyments here, when we have done our utmost to bring them to perfection, are still lame and defective, and it cannot be helped; as they are, so they are likely to be.

That which is wanting in our knowledge is so much that it cannot be numbered. The more we know the more we see of our own ignorance.

Who can understand his errors, his defects? Upon the whole, therefore, he concluded that great scholars do but make themselves great mourners; for in much wisdom is much grief, v. There must be a great deal of pains taken to get it, and a great deal of care not to forget it; the more we know the more we see there is to be known, and consequently we perceive with greater clearness that our work is without end, and the more we see of our former mistakes and blunders, which occasions much grief.

The more we see of men's different sentiments and opinions and it is that which a great deal of our learning is conversant about the more at a loss we are, it may be, which is in the right. Those that increase knowledge have so much the more quick and sensible perception of the calamities of this world, and for one discovery they make that is pleasing, perhaps, they make ten that are displeasing, and so they increase sorrow. Let us not therefore be driven off from the pursuit of any useful knowledge, but put on patience to break through the sorrow of it; but let us despair of finding true happiness in this knowledge, and expect it only in the knowledge of God and the careful discharge of our duty to him.

He that increases in heavenly wisdom, and in an experimental acquaintance with the principles, powers, and pleasures of the spiritual and divine life, increases joy, such as will shortly be consummated in everlasting joy.

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Login [? Did you forget your password? Register a new BLB account. Complete the form below to register [? First Name. Password Must be at least 6 characters. Re-type Password. Thank you for registering. These are definitely the words of the Preacher , but in this apologetically oriented sermon his focus on God is indirect.

It scarcely refers to the law of God, the only possible reference being in It scarcely refers to the nation of Israel only in Why these omissions? He is appealing to universally observable facts. Also the account in is strongly reminiscent of Solomon; almost every phrase has its parallel in the narratives concerning Solomon. This rules out any successor to the matchless Solomon.

King in Jerusalem : From his royal standing, Solomon had the wisdom, freedom, resources, and standing to write this work.

In a sense, only Solomon could write this book. He had both the wisdom and the resources to work through these problems. With every gift and power at our command, it would be strange if we should come back empty-handed.

When Solomon wrote this, he did so in a style understood and appreciated in his day. Ecclesiastes is the only biblical example of this old literary tradition. Yet you yearn for life like a man of wealth. Little can be done. Vanity of vanities : The Preacher begins his sermon with his first conclusion though not his ultimate conclusion.

Looking at life all around, he judges it to be vanity — nothing, useless, meaningless. Jeremiah ; Zechariah Vanity of vanities : To strengthen his point, the Preacher judged life to be the ultimate vanity, the vanity of vanities. This Hebrew phrasing is used to express intensity or the ultimate of something, as in the phrase holy of holies. This phrase or something quite like it will be used about 30 times in this short book. It is one of the major themes of Ecclesiastes.

All is vanity : To further strengthen the point, Solomon noted not only that life is vanity , but that all is vanity. It seemed that every part of life suffered from this emptiness. We see from the first two verses that Solomon wrote this from a certain perspective, a perspective that through the book he will expose as inadequate and wrong.

My life is filled with meaning and purpose. Therefore Ecclesiastes is filled with what we might call true lies. Since that perspective is wrong, it is not true that all is vanity. Yet Solomon makes us think through this wrong perspective thoroughly through Ecclesiastes. Many moderns judge life to be equally futile. What profit has a man from all his labor : Using the language from the world of business, the Preacher asked a worthy question. He knew that life was filled with labor — but what is it worth?

What does it profit? Jesus expressed a similar thought in Mark For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? There is a singular vanity in this splendid misery. In which he toils under the sun : This is the first stating of an essential theme through Ecclesiastes. This phrase will be repeated more than 25 times through the book. 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; 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. One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever : Using several examples, the Preacher observes that nothing seems to change very much in the seemingly unending cycle of nature.

Coffins and cradles seem the main furniture, and he hears the tramp, tramp, tramp of the generations passing over a soil honeycombed with tombs. The sun also rises… The wind goes toward the south… the rivers run into the sea : From what Solomon could observe under the sun , these unchanging cycles expressed the unchanging monotony of life, leading to its vanity and meaninglessness. Creation is his…. But, says the Preacher, take away its God, and creation no longer reflects his glory; it illustrates the weariness of mankind.

They may recede, or dry up, or ebb; but if not, still they will never satisfy…. But in Christ there is perennial interest…. We need not go outside of Him for new delights; and to know Him is to possess a secret which makes all things new. All things are full of labor; Man cannot express it. The eye is 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, And there is nothing new under the sun. It has already been in ancient times before us. Those that have taken warning to turn and live, should warn others not to go on and die. He does not merely say all things are vain, but that they are vanity.

This is the text of the preacher's sermon, of which in this book he never loses sight. If this world, in its present state, were all, it would not be worth living for; and the wealth and pleasure of this world, if we had ever so much, are not enough to make us happy.

What profit has a man of all his labour? All he gets by it will not supply the wants of the soul, nor satisfy its desires; will not atone for the sins of the soul, nor hinder the loss of it: what profit will the wealth of the world be to the soul in death, in judgment, or in the everlasting state?

All things change, and never rest. Man, after all his labour, is no nearer finding rest than the sun, the wind, or the current of the river. His soul will find no rest, if he has it not from God.



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