Video Transcript: Theme and Development

As we've taken a look at the wisdom literature of the Old Testament, we've gone through a  general survey of what it means to have wisdom, literature, wisdom, with God and wisdom in  living for God. We've looked at the book of Job, we've looked at the book of Psalms, we've  looked at the book of Proverbs. Now we're going to focus our attention on a shorter book, but  one with a huge impact the book of Ecclesiastes, the book of Ecclesiastes might be  considered to be a college or university course in the meaning of life. It's truly one of the most profound books in the entire Bible. Now, it doesn't focus so much on theology in the ways that we often think of theology, that is, who is God, and how should we go about our lives day to  day, it focuses more on the meaning of life itself. The name Ecclesiastes comes from the  Greek translations of the book. And those were some of the most prominent at the time of  Jesus. Since the Septuagint. The translation of the Old Testament Hebrew into Greek was the  dominant expression of the scriptures at the time of Jesus. And the teacher in the Greek  version of the book is The Ecclesiastes, the person, the teacher or preacher who shows up  early in the book. In Hebrewssi, or dressor the one who speaks in the book is coalesced in  Hebrew, or Ecclesiastes, in the Greek language, and we take it across into our English  translations as the book of Ecclesiastes. The term qohelet means convener of an assembly for instruction, in other words, a teacher, someone who's a philosopher or teacher who gathers  others around her or himself in order to speak to them with wisdom about the experiences of  life and the meaning of life. And similarly, Ecclesiastes, that term means the same thing,  teacher or preacher. And so you'll see, sometimes the word translated as teacher and  sometimes preacher, both are fitting terms, as we think about the Ecclesiastes, who was the  author, likely Solomon because of the references, particularly in chapter one, verses one and  chapter one, verse 12. And chapter one, verse 16. And then again, the reference to him in  chapter 12, at the end of the book, the references to the teacher in Jerusalem, the King, the  leader, Solomon comes in, if Solomon wrote them, and I think he did, then probably  somewhere around 950 BCE, somewhere near the end of his life, I would think it looks like an  old man looking back on his life, it may be that the ideas were scribbled down, and that the  collection as a whole came together later. If that's the case, then probably during the time or  after the time of the exile. But I'm quite certain that this reflects Solomon, near the end of his  life, thinking about the things that he's gone through and trying to make sense of life in terms of his understanding of God, his understanding of the way that life has shaped the meaning of the Creator, and how we are to live in a world which is often compromised, convoluted, and in which God is not always immediately apparent to us. The reason for its inclusion of the Bible  is likely that link that direct link to Solomon and the wisdom of Solomon, and so it falls nicely  into the wisdom literature of the Old Testament. The big theme of it is that everything is  meaning less. And that theme is stated several times right up front, all is meaningless, or all  is vanity, Vanity of vanities in some translations, meaningless, all is meaningless. And again,  near the end in chapter 12, verse eight. The idea behind that meaninglessness is this that if  this world is a closed system, in which all is reduced to fate, and happenstance, then  everything is indeed tragedy and meaninglessness, simply because there's no purpose to it  all. We happen to be here not of our own volition. There's no outside purpose to that. We live  for a while, and a lot of what happens to us while we live is pretty nonsensical, and then we  die and so what and then it just goes on, everything is meaningless. However, a larger theme  begins to emerge. If there is a God, that life is brief, but it has meaning. And if we believe  that, then the instructions that we'll find near the end are to live boldly, to live joyfully and to  live godly, since even if we can't see God, eyeball to eyeball. It makes sense to live in ways in  which God who brings meaning to life intended for us to live. There are a number of different  kinds of literature within the collection. There are personal reflections like the king on his  throne and chapter two, there are rhetorical questions. Isn't this what happens? Or Wouldn't  you like to see this? Or don't you know this? There are proverbs lots of proverbs, very similar  probverbs to those we have in the book of Proverbs. And if this is indeed from the mind, and  voice and pen of Solomon, that stands to reason, because Solomon speaks in Proverbs and  communicates wisdom in Proverbs, so much of Ecclesiastes is formed in proverbial language.  And there's even the allegory near the end about how one grows older, in comparison to how  a house deteriorates. So it's a very interesting thing. It's important for us to be reminded, 

again, of what are the options when thinking about the meaning of life and there really are  three dominant worldview options. There is the possibility that the world in which we live, the  universe in which we live is a closed system, there's no external information or forces, no  God, or gods, all of human life is accidental and holds no more meaning than any other  object. And in that sense, even the Bible, although it may seem to be wise is merely  attempting to make sense out of nonsense. And the Bible is no more significant than any  other book that's ever been written. And somebody holds up an idea says, See, I've got the  meaning to life. And we all thumb our noses and say, Yeah, right. People have tried that  before. So too, with the Bible. Or secondly, there's the possibility that the world itself exists as a manifestation of intelligence, or God or Godness or being that somehow life and time are  the creative edge, that shape our existence in a closed system. And that human life is  meaningful, insofar as we go with the flow as we live with the values that structure the  system values larger than ourselves. But still, there's no ultimate meaning to our individual  lives, there's ultimate meaning to ultimate being. And the Bible is somehow a record and  reflection of those who have come to that understanding and can help us fall in line with that  rather than kicking against the system to our own detriment. Or, thirdly, here's a worldview  possibility as well. And this becomes important for the book of Ecclesiastes. The other two  worldview systems only bring us frustration and consternation because they lead to no  ultimate value for us. However, the book of Ecclesiastes says, maybe there's a third option,  maybe there's a God, maybe there's a God who is the creator of the world in which we live.  And it's not a closed system, but dynamically interacting with its creator. That existence is  planned and intended by God that human life is honored and, and compromised. Sure, but  redeemable that the Bible then becomes part of the larger dialogue between God and us in  which we are called back to our truest selves, to the redemption that God provides. That is  what the book of Ecclesiastes is about. Because it probes those other worldviews, and then  begins to focus on is there an alternative to worldviews, which only bring that kind of  frustration and meaninglessness. So the outline of the Big Book of Ecclesiastes is roughly this  there's a prologue in which all of life is declared to be meaningless, and an explanation of how that is achieved that perception that perspective, an old man who looks back at his life and  the lives of others and says, taken by themselves, everything is meaningless. And then a list  of things that make life mean even wisdom within that context or framework or that outlook is meaningless. pleasures are meaningless follies, meaningless toils mean, no matter what you  do, and then comes to it and what have you gained? Even if you work hard, you die and it's  left to someone else. There's an interlude on the bondage of time, a time to be born, a time to die a time to plant the time to pluck up, which is planted a time to reap a time to sow you  know, the bondage of time in chapter three. And here, there's a kind of switch back and forth  in Outlook. Are we looking at something that oppresses us? Or something that Marches us  onto something bigger and larger. And we'll see that the latter is the intention of of the writer  of Ecclesiastes a call to something bigger and more important. Return to that theme other  meaningless things oppression toil, friend lessness political advancement. So you win the  election, then what you people accuse you of various things and you find that your term of  office ends up not accomplishing what you want to do unfulfilled vows to God. So you want to  be religious and you try to do the right and then you realize that you haven't done the right  and everything falls apart, amassing wealth, and it goes nowhere because you die and you  can't take it with you. So in order in these meaningless reflections, reflections on the  meaningless things of life, perhaps to stay sane, we need to get some practical wisdom and  there come the many proverbs, how are we going to get practical wisdom by going with  wisdom rather than folly, the Proverbs, and then come the concluding reflections of the  teacher to all of these things. The meaning of life must be found beyond life, and what is  beyond life. If there is a God, it's found in God alone. All of life is progressing toward a  common end. So enjoy life while you have it, and be wise. And the summary themes are to  live boldly, live joyfully and live Godly cast your bread upon the water, you don't know where  the water will take it. Live the observe your Creator or live for your Creator in the days of your youth. All of that is restated again in the epilogue where that theme of meaninglessness now  is now tempered, and put into a context of a larger understanding of what meaning can be, 

plus some final reminders about all of these things. We'll look in more detail at some of those  things next time but for now, you might want to refer to my book Covenant Documents, to get that overview of what the book of Ecclesiastes is all about.