Ecclesiastes 1 - 2

The Preacher or “the one who speaks to the assembled”

Did he have many horses?

1 Kings 10:26-11:13, “Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.”

Did he take many wives?

1 Kings 11:3, “He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray.”

Did his wives lead him away from God?

1 Kings 11:5-9, “He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done. On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods. The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.

Did Solomon accumulate much gold?

2 Chron. 9:20 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s day.

1 Kings 9:15, “Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer.”

It would appear to me that Solomon may have slacked off on his Bible study. He didn’t study Torah or if he did, he ignored the teachings he didn’t like, such as the restrictions on accumulating wealth and women. He should have highlighted Deut. 17:16-20. Perhaps he should have had posters around the palace saying:

DO NOT BUY LOTS OF HORSES!

DO NOT HOARD GOLD!

DO NOT MANY WOMEN, ESPECIALLY FOREIGN ONES!

HAVE YOU REVIEWED DEUTERONOMY THIS WEEK?

A world-weary Solomon wrote the Book of Ecclesiastes around 935 B.C., when the glory of his kingdom was already beginning to fade and he himself was entering his later years, (the eight stage of development according to Erik Erikson). Here he is reviewing the values that he lived by and questioning the long-term contribution he hoped to have made to the world. He hoped to help others to avoid the despair that comes from regret, bitterness, and disappointment with one’s life and fear of impending death. Perhaps his disappointment came from remembering more clearly his later years when he drifted away from God than his earlier years when he was known for great wisdom and massive construction projects such as the temple and palace.



This theme of late life reflections, the brevity and sometimes futility of some our lives has been expressed in many songs. Here are the lyrics of two. Notice the wording in bold print.

Is That All There Is?

(made famous by the singer Peggy Lee)

I remember when I was a little girl

Our house caught on fire

I'll never forget the look on my father's face as he

Gathered me up in his arms and

Faced through the burning building out on the pavement

And I stood there

Shivering in my pajamas and

Watched the whole world go up in flames

And when it was all over

I said to myself

Is that all there is to a fire?

Is that all there is

Is that all there is?

If that's all there is my friends

Then let's keep dancing

Let's break out the booze and have a ball

If that's all there is

And when I was twelve years old

My daddy took me to the circus

The greatest show on Earth

There were clowns and elephants, dancing bears

And a beautiful lady in pink

Tights flew high above our heads

And as I sat there watching

I had the feeling that something was missing

I don't know what, but when it was over

I said to myself

Is that all there is to the circus?

Is that all there is

Is that all there is?

If that's all there is my friends

Then let's keep dancing

Let's break out the booze and have a ball

If that's all there is

And then I fell in love

With the most wonderful boy in the world

We'd take long walks by the river or

Just sit for hours gazing into each other's eyes

We were so very much in love

Then one day, He went away

And I thought I'd die, but I didn't

And when I didn't, I said to myself

Is that all there is to love?

Is that all there is

Is that all there is?

If that's all there is, my friends

Then let's keep

I know what you must be saying to yourselves

If that's the way she feels about it

Why doesn't she just end it all?

Oh, no, not me

I'm not ready for that final disappointment

Because I know

Just as well as I'm standing here talking to you

That when that final moment comes

And I'm breathing my last breath

I'll be saying to myself

Is that all there is

Is that all there is?

If that's all there is my friend

Then let's keep dancing

Let's break out the booze and have a ball

If that's all there is

The lyrics of this song are written from the point of view of a person who is disillusioned with events in life (a house fire, going to a circus, a failed love, imagined death). After each event, good or bad, she expresses her disappointment in the experience. She suggests that we "break out the booze and have a ball—if that's all there is," instead of worrying about life.

The next song is:

He Went to Paris

(by Jimmy Buffet)

He went to Paris looking for answers

To questions that bothered him so

He was impressive, young and aggressive

Saving the world on his own

But the warm summer breezes

The French wines and cheeses

Put his ambition at bay

Summers and winters scattered like splinters

And four or five years slipped away

Then he went to England, played the piano

And married an actress named Kim

They had a fine life, she was a good wife

And bore him a young son named Jim

And all of the answers and all of the questions

He locked in his attic one day

'Cause he liked the quiet, clean country living

And 20 more years slipped away

Well, the war took his baby, the bombs killed his lady

And left him with only one eye

His body was battered, his world was shattered

And all he could do was just cry

While the tears were falling, he was recalling

Answers he never found

So he hopped on a freighter, skidded the ocean

And left England without a sound

Now he lives in the islands, fishes the pilin's

And drinks his green label each day

Writing his memoirs, losing his hearing

But he don't care what most people say

Through 86 years of perpetual motion

If he likes you he'll smile, then he'll say

"Jimmy, some of it's magic, some of it's tragic

But I had a good life all the way"

And he went to Paris looking for answers

To questions that bother him so

He is healthy and energetic with an idealistic if not unrealistic view of life, wanting very much to make a big difference in the world.

In time he gets distracted by the pleasures of life, settles down with a wife and son, putting aside his unanswered questions and unfulfilled dreams.

He endures a degree of success and endures several tragedies but as he looks back at his life, he says he had a good life all the way.

With that background, let’s get into the text of Ecclesiastes: 

Ecc. 1:1, “The words of the Teacher, son of David, king of Jerusalem.” The author identifies himself as the son of David. Son can mean grandson or a more distant relative. But he is described as having great wisdom (1:16), wealth (2:8), many servants (2:7), opportunities for carnal pleasures (2:3), and very extensive building projects including the temple and his palace. You don’t have to be a detective to figure out it’s Solomon who is writing this book.

Ecc. 1:2, “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”

He gets right to the point, the bottom line. This is like a medical journal article which has an “executive summary” at the beginning to give you the “bottom line” of his research findings. Or, like a military briefing where the commander wants the “bottom line up front.” If you want to know more, you can read the entire article, or the commander can ask questions.

I would think Solomon might have opened with an introduction, much like the Apostle Paul did. Paul would usually introduce himself, greet his audience before jumping into the subject at hand, let alone the conclusion. Here’s an example of one such introduction by Paul. “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, by the command of god our Savor and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy my true son in the faith.”

If Solomon had used a format similar to that of the Apostle Paul, it might sound more like this. “Solomon, son of David and King of Israel, to the chosen people of God. As I’ve grown older, I’ve become more aware that my time left is dwindling like sand in an hourglass. This has led me to reflect on my life and how I’ve spent my time, energy, and money. I’d like to share with you my conclusions and how I arrived at them.”

Since I wasn’t Solomon’s source of inspiration nor his editor, I’ll accepts what he wrote, as he wrote it.

In the second verse of the very first chapter Solomon uses the word meaningless four times. It’s obvious he feels very strongly about this point that he is making.

Verse 3, “What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun.” He goes on to describe how the earth remains long after a man is dead. The rivers continue to flow to the sea, etc.

You will see the term “under the sun” several times in this book. It means “on the earth” or “apart from God.” If this life is, as the song lyrics claim, is all there is, then there is cause for despair. Another similar term used in this book is “under heaven.” Again, these terms refer to a secular viewpoint that this life is all that there is, a godless view with no hope or fear of an afterlife.

In the movie Shadowland, the story of C.S. Lewis’s later years, his wife, who was dying of bone cancer, said, “Jack, you’ve always said that our real lives haven’t begun yet. You’d better be right.”

A secularist would claim that Lewis was wrong. He would claim that you live, you die, and that’s it. If the King of Israel, with his wealth and power can’t find satisfaction, what hope is there for those who are born with serious handicaps or live a life of pain and poverty? Solomon experienced everything he desired. He said, “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.”

1:10, “Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look! This is something new”? He then goes on to say how quickly we are forgotten (verse 11).

Isn’t that the truth? Solomon built great structures and acquired huge quantities of gold, etc. yet this was nothing new. Pharaohs, kings, czars, dictators, presidents and prime ministers have been doing this for years.

When we die, we are forgotten within a few generations. Hopefully, the influence that we have had on others (the good influences) travels down through the generations, but we ourselves are soon forgotten.

Solomon had wealth, wisdom and time to explore every area of study that interested him. He then made a study of wisdom.

In Ecc. 1:12-13 he speaks of his study of wisdom all “that is done under heaven.” Verse 17, “I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom . . . but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.” Verse 18, “for with much wisdom comes much sorrow, the more knowledge, the more grief.” None of Solomon’s “under the sun” studies brought him lasting satisfaction.

Secular wisdom brings sorrow and frustration. There are hundreds of “isms” out there to study, each one having their own apostles declaring that they are correct and everyone else is in error. In the scientific realm, the more you know, the more you know how little you know. The more astronomers study the heavens, the more questions they have. The more a biologist studies living creatures, the more he realizes he doesn’t know.

Solomon then moved into other areas to pursue pleasures. He tried laughter (today he would be going to comedy clubs). He tried wine (2:1-3), which is a commonly taken road to happiness. He then he moved onto creating great projects: home construction, planting vineyards, fruit trees. He amassed huge numbers of slaves, herds of animals, gold and silver. He’s doing what he was told NOT to do in Deut. 17. Perhaps today he would have had mansions, both summer and winter, a classic car collection, art collection, a huge wine cellar, etc. He goes on to say in 2:10, “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor.” Yet, even this didn’t bring him lasting pleasure. Verse 11, “Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”

Whether one accomplishes much or little, he came to realize verse 14, “that the same fate overtakes them both (the wise and the fool). Verse 16, “For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die.”

Solomon was so frustrated that he says, verses 17-18, “I hated life, because the work that is sone under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind . . . I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to one who comes after me.”

Building and accumulating things that would end up being inherited by someone who probably wouldn’t appreciate them took the pleasure away from his efforts. Verse 19, Solomon goes on to say, “Who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool.”

Imagine if you have amassed a collection of some items of great value and your son is an irresponsible fool who might sell off these items and squander the money. That would take some of the pleasure out of your hobby.

Verse 22-23, “What does a man get from all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.”

I knew a man who always had to have expensive man toys. He owned a motorhome, a boat, a motorcycle, and always had a new car which he made payments on. Though he had earned three pensions, he couldn’t retire because of the monthly payments he had to make for these items. He was an indentured servant, a slave to the debt that he accumulated. And even if he had everything paid off, he would still be concerned about protecting and maintaining these items. Even at night “his mind does not rest.”

Chapter 2:24, “A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment. To this man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness.” God wants us to enjoy this life, but to live it in the light of the next one.