Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

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Summary

  • A look at two of the issues related to how we are to live: 1) God's sovereignty, and 2) the problem of injustice.


Details and/or Comments

  • Events in the world occur in "cycles." They are a part of God's over-all plan for the world. (Some of the cycles are simply a part of nature; others are the consequences of human sin.)
  • There is beauty, purpose and design in God's sovereignty; but at the present (in this world of sin), we cannot fully understand how it all works together (though we long to do so). But we can trust God and reverently fear him. We can pursue the joy he offers us and do what is right.
  • What about the injustice and oppression that hinder our pursuit of joy? God will someday judge all people - both the righteous and the wicked. God's very nature and character assures us of this! In the meantime, God reminds us of our mortality - which is a warning of our need to get ready for death, as well as a reminder that this injustice cannot go on forever.
  • Death is a barrier we cannot see across in either direction. Because of this:
  1. We cannot see the future judgment from our present vantage point.
  2. Nor can we, after death, look back across this barrier to see anything that may be happening "under the sun"! This fact reinforces our need to enjoy God's gift of joy now, rather than waiting until later!


Scripture

Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

Scripture Passage Comments and Links
Ecc 3:1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:

Ecc 3:2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

Ecc 3:3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

Ecc 3:4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

Ecc 3:5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

Ecc 3:6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

Ecc 3:7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

Ecc 3:8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.

In this present world, there is pattern and design. This includes the various items in this section (14 pairs) that seem to go in cycles. These are "facts of life," whether or not we want them to happen. Some of them occur simply because of the nature of creation; others because of the presence (and effects) of sin in the world. (This list of "cycles" would have been somewhat different, if sin had not entered the world. But because of the effects of sin, various aspects related to the "burden" of life are now present.)

If nothing else, these things should teach us that we are not in control! There is a time "allotted" for everything. (God's sovereignty is implied, though not directly stated, in these verses. But direct statements are made in some of the following verses.)

Ecc 3:9 What profit has he who works in that in which he labors?

Ecc 3:10 I have seen the burden which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.

Ecc 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can't find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end.

When examining the basic issue of "meaning in life," there are certain things we cannot understand (or control), and there are other things we can understand (and respond to). (Wisdom will acknowledge the differences between these two categories!)

Things we cannot fully understand, or else cannot control:

  1. We have been given a "burden" to bear (one of the consequences of human sin).
  2. God is in control, and there is "beauty" or design to what he is doing. His sovereignty is purposeful, not random; and guarantees that everything will fit together as it ought, "in its time." (Some aspects of it are seen in the cycles described above. However, we will not always recognize it at the present, because some aspects of it will not happen until the final Day of Justice. At the present, horrible things may occur, like the injustice and oppression mentioned below.)
  3. We desire to make sense of these things - a desire that won't be fully satisfied until eternity arrives. But we simply can't see the "full picture" of how it all fits together. (We are going to have to trust God and wait until the end, when God brings everything to account - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.)
  • Providence - the main way that God accomplishes his purposes in this world. (We won't understand these purposes until eternity arrives.)
Ecc 3:12 I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice, and to do good as long as they live.

Ecc 3:13 Also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy good in all his labor, is the gift of God.

Ecc 3:14 I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; and God has done it, that men should fear before him.

Ecc 3:15 That which is has been long ago, and that which is to be has been long ago: and God seeks again that which is passed away [OR: God calls the past to account].

There are certain things we can understand and respond to:
  1. The best goal we can pursue in this "burden" of life is to enjoy the fruit of our labor (understood as being a gift from God), and to do good. (This conclusion was already described in Ecclesiastes 2:24-26; and the concept of "doing good" parallels the concept of "pleasing God," mentioned in that passage.) God has no obligation to give us this gift, but to whatever degree possible, we should pursue it.
  2. We should acknowledge God's sovereignty and respond properly to it. Instead of trying to fight it (which we cannot succeed in doing), we should respond with a trusting, reverential fear! (This is quite different from the terrifying fear that will someday be experienced by those who choose rather to be his enemies, by refusing to have the trusting, reverential type of "fear.")
  3. In God, past, present and future are interrelated. This fact is related to his sovereignty, the "cycles" of life, etc.; and will brought to completion at the final Day of Justice (when the injustice mentioned below will be dealt with).
Ecc 3:16 Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.

Ecc 3:17 I said in my heart, "God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work."

When God's sovereignty is mentioned, people often raise questions about all the injustice in the world. How should we respond? We should acknowledge that injustice does exist. We should also acknowledge that the very nature and character of God demands that it be dealt with. Therefore...
  1. Based on the nature and character of God, we can say with confidence that God will someday judge the world. The "time" (v. 1) will come. (For justice to not occur, God would have to deny his own nature and character, something he cannot do!)
  2. Based on the nature of his sovereignty (purposeful and with design, v. 11), we can say with confidence that the time will come in which all things will "fit together" appropriately. (Among other things, this includes the fact that righteousness will be rewarded and wickedness will be punished. But we could expand it to include concepts such as the observation mentioned in Romans 8:28, that God will use all things to accomplish good in the lives of those who love him.)

The New Testament tells us that people know in their consciences that they deserve to be judged for their sins - Romans 1:32; 2:14-15. This leaves all people without excuse.

Ecc 3:18 I said in my heart, "As for the sons of men, God tests them, so that they may see that they themselves are like animals.

Ecc 3:19 For that which happens to the sons of men happens to animals. Even one thing happens to them. As the one dies, so the other dies. Yes, they have all one breath; and man has no advantage over the animals: for all is vanity.

Ecc 3:20 All go to one place. All are from the dust, and all turn to dust again.

Judgment is coming (previous verses). In the meantime, God makes us aware of our mortality - the fact that we will someday die. (It's also a reminder that this injustice will not occur forever.) In this matter, we are no better than the animals. Though we bear the Image of God (which animals don't), our bodies will return to the dust just like theirs do.

Psalm 49:12 says a similar thing: "But man, despite his riches, doesn't endure. He is like the animals that perish."

Ecc 3:21 Who knows the spirit of man, whether it goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, whether it goes downward to the earth?"

Ecc 3:22 Therefore I saw that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works; for that is his portion: for who can bring him to see what will be after him?

Don't take v. 21 out of context! These verses emphasize that death is a "barrier" that we cannot see across in either direction! It is not an explanation of what happens to animals and humans after they die (though differences may be implied).

In our present life, we cannot see across the barrier of death (to see what will happen after death):

  1. We cannot see, by our present observations (in life "under the sun"), what differences may occur in the destinies of animals and humans after death.
  2. Though Scripture tells us that there are differences (even in Ecclesiastes, such as in 12:7), we cannot observe them during our life "under the sun."

After death, we cannot look back across the barrier of death (to see what is happening in life "under the sun"):

  1. Therefore, now is the only time we can respond to life "under the sun" - that is, to enjoy the results of our labor, as a gift from God, etc. (Don't throw away the opportunity!)
  2. This is the same final conclusion as seen in chapter 2 and earlier in this chapter. Even though injustice may hamper our efforts, this is still the highest good we can strive for "under the sun."
  3. The focus here is not on issues related to the "afterlife"; for we are examining the present, not the future. Yet occasionally in Ecclesiastes, we are reminded that something will happen in the future - such as in v. 17, above, as well as in 12:13-14 - and now is the time to get ready.



1:1-18  •  2:1-26  •  3:1-22  •  4:1-16  •  5:1-7  •  5:8-20  •  6:7-9  •  7:10  •  8:1-8  •  9:1-2  •  9:7 - 10:1  •  12:7  •  12:13-14

Scripture Passages
(Only books that have relevance to this study have active links. The others are in italics.)

Genesis  •  Exodus  •  Leviticus  •  Numbers  •  Deuteronomy  •  Joshua  •  Judges  •  Ruth  •  1 Samuel  •  2 Samuel  •  1 Kings  •  2 Kings  •  1 Chronicles  •  2 Chronicles  •  Ezra  •  Nehemiah  •  Esther  •  Job  •  Psalms  •  Proverbs  •  Ecclesiastes  •  Song of Solomon  •  Isaiah  •  Jeremiah  •  Lamentations  •  Ezekiel  •  Daniel  •  Hosea  •  Joel  •  Amos  •  Obadiah  •  Jonah  •  Micah  •  Nahum  •  Habakkuk  •  Zephaniah  •  Haggai  •  Zechariah  •  Malachi

Matthew  •  Mark  •  Luke  •  John  •  Acts  •  Romans  •  1 Corinthians  •  2 Corinthians  •  Galatians  •  Ephesians  •  Philippians  •  Colossians  •  1 Thessalonians  •  2 Thessalonians  •  1 Timothy  •  2 Timothy  •  Titus  •  Philemon  •  Hebrews  •  James  •  1 Peter  •  2 Peter  •  1 John  •  2 John  •  3 John  •  Jude  •  Revelation

—— To avoid any copyright issues, all Scripture is either from a public domain translation (such as the World English Bible), my own translation, or a combination of these. ——
The name "Yahweh," when present in an Old Testament passage, represents the Hebrew name for the God of the Bible.
Unless otherwise noted, all notes and comments are © by Dennis Hinks.
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