Day 48 - Ecclesiastes 3:1 - Song of Songs 8:14

In today's section, we read:

the end of Ecclesiastes, and the Teacher's search for meaning
the Song of Songs, a love poem

Some thoughts that occurred to me today:

I really like Ecclesiastes, and have always thought that the issues it address as SO relevant for our age - the quest for meaning, and the feeling that all options and avenues are valid. But there are so many chinks of light in the despair and weltschmerz. Here are some of them:

3:11 "Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end" - we are given a glimpse of what God has in store for us, but by no means the whole picture (Deut 29:29)
3:14 "And I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God’s purpose is that people should fear him."
5:19-20 "And it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. 20 God keeps such people so busy enjoying life that they take no time to brood over the past."
6:9 - "Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind."
8:5-6 - "Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right, for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble."
11:7 - "Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning."

There are complaints, which seems contemporary - a lack of faith in the legal system (3:16; 5:8); injustice and oppression (4:1; 5:8; 8:11,13); envy of neighbours (4:7); what is the point (4:8); bureaucracy (5:8 - "every official is under orders from higher up, and matters of justice get lost in red tape and bureaucracy.")

I could relate to 5:10-15 about how the pursuit of wealth doesn't bring contentment. v13 was noteworthy in this regard "hoarding riches harms the saver."

There are various themes which carry over from Proverbs - guard your tongue, welcome for discipline, control your temper, work hard and don't be lazy.

7:20 cf Rom 3:23, also 7:29

9:9 - "Live happily with the woman you love through all the meaningless days of life that God has given you under the sun. The wife God gives you is your reward for all your earthly toil."

9:10 cf Col 3:23

The ingratitude in 9:14-15 is shocking.

Was 10:16 prophetic, as Jereboam was one of Solomon's officials?

12:1 "Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honour him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.”"

12:11 - "The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep."

Then it is summed up in 12:13-14 "That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad."

==== END OF PART ONE, PART TWO TO FOLLOW ====