Sermon Tone Analysis

*/The Futility of Human Endeavor/*

I received a request this week to speak with a young couple.

They were evacuees from New Orleans fleeing from Hurricane Katrina.

They had 5 children ages 1-12 years.

They were living with the husband’s sister in a nearby suburb.

Like so many others, they had lost their home and jobs.

The wife was depressed.

She said that she felt like a charity case and felt even worse every time some one did some thing for them.

She said they were able-bodied people who could do things for themselves, if some one gave them the opportunity.

But there was no use.

They were stuck and She had nothing to live for.

When I reminded her that God had spared her life and the lives of her family for a reason, she said that she knew that.

And the only reason she was still hanging on was that she was unsure about her 12 year-old’s salvation.

I told her that there was more.

She was not a charity case, she was a God’s child and He had put her in the place of favor.

It was Him blessing her.

She knew this but just couldn’t get it.

She had lost hope.

This morning we’re going to begin a new study.

I don’t know how far we will get this morning… We’re going to look at man’s wisdom and begin a study in the book of */Ecclesiastes./*

Ecclesiastes is different from any other book of the Bible.

It is part of the category known as “wisdom literature” (with Job and Proverbs).

Wisdom literature focuses on man - the creature, his life on earth, and how hard it is for man to understand the ways of God.

It has nothing to do with covenant, Israel, redemption, prophecy, sacred history, or the temple.

Ecclesiastes goes beyond the other wisdom literature to emphasize the fact that human life and human goals, apart from God, are futile and meaningless.

*Who wrote this book?*

The author does not give us his name.

But he does describe himself and some of his experiences.

·       He called himself “son of David”

·       12 times he refers to himself as “king in Jerusalem” (1:1, 12),

·       He referred to the problems of “official bureaucracy” (4:1–3; 5:8; 8:11; 10:6–7).

What does that mean?

That his kingdom was huge and it took many people to run the government.

·       He oversaw a large standing army and extensive government agencies.

·       He carried on many costly building projects and lived in luxury at court (1 Kings 9:10–28 and 10:1ff; 2 Chron.

1:13–17).

·       Not only did somebody have to manage it all but somebody had to pay for it!

That would lead us to conclude?

Solomon

 

When we think of Solomon we think of 2 things

·       great wealth

·       great wisdom (2:1–11, and 1:13; see 1 Kings 4:20–34 and 10:1ff).

Solomon trusted in his wisdom rather than in the guidelines given in God’s Word.

To unify the country, Solomon ignored the original boundaries of the twelve tribes of Israel and then divided the nation into twelve “tax districts.”

Each one was managed by an overseer (1 Kings 4:7–19).

In time, the whole system became oppressive and corrupt; and after Solomon died, the people begged for relief (2 Chron.

10).

When we study Ecclesiastes, remember this background of exploitation and oppression.

We also know that Solomon was raised in a godly household.

After all, his father was David.

We know David taught Solomon to be a humble servant and seek God’s wisdom and help (1 Kings 3:5–15).

But we also know that as he grew older, Solomon allowed his heart to turn away from God and to the false gods of the many wives (700 wives and 300 concubines) he had taken from foreign lands (1 Kings 11:1ff).

Was he like King Xerxes in the book of Esther?

Did he just like women?

History tells is that these marriages were motivated primarily by politics.

Solomon sought alliances with the nations around Israel.

Solomon wanted to make Israel the greatest nation in the world.

Now that intention is very good.

But the motivation and execution shows that he did it himself – without regard for God’s direction.

He was a wise man, he didn’t need God.

Now when you do things in your own strength, what happens?

God becomes jealous.

And no amount of money or authority can stop divine judgment.”

Solomon’s latter years were miserable because God removed His hand of blessing (1 Kings 11).

In fact the only reason Solomon maintained his throne was because of God’s promise to David.

After Solomon’s death, the nation divided; and the house of David was left with but two tribes, Judah and Benjamin.

We know that Solomon wrote 2 other books: Proverbs (Prov.

1:1; 1 Kings 4:32) and the Song of Solomon (1:1) during the years he faithfully walked with God.

Because of the tone of this book, Ecclesiastes appears to be written near the end of Solomon’s life.

It is a series of reflections of his life’s experiences and the lessons he learned.

Proverbs was written from the viewpoint of a wise teacher (1:1–6), and Song of Solomon from the viewpoint of a royal lover (3:7–11); but when he wrote Ecclesiastes, he called himself “the Preacher” (1:1, 2, 12; 7:27; 12:8–10).

Side note: interesting to note that Jews read the book of Ecclesiastes at the annual Feast of Tabernacles, which celebrates the autumn festival of harvest.

I thinks its neat that we would be studying this book at this time.

Ecclesiates 1:

1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

The word for /Preacher/ in Hebrew the word is Koheleth (ko-HAY-leth).

It is an official title given to a speaker who calls an assembly (see 1 Kings 8:1).

And we know that the Greek word for “assembly” is ekklesia.

So, Ecclesiastes is the written record of the sermons given by the preacher.

2 “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “Vanity of vanities!

All is vanity.”

OK Bible scholars, what does it mean when we see a word or phrase repeated.

The author is making a point.

This is important!

Pay attention!

Did you hear me the first time?

Solomon used the word “vanity” thirty-eight times in this book.

It is the Hebrew word hebel, meaning

·       “emptiness, futility, vapor.”

·       Whatever disappears quickly and leaves nothing behind

·       Whatever does not satisfy is hevel, vanity.

When he considers his wealth, his works, his wisdom, or his world, Solomon comes to the same sad conclusion: all is “vanity and vexation of spirit” (2:11).

3 What advantage

Another translation for advantage is /Profit.

/This is used ten times in Ecclesiastes (1:3; 2:11, 13 [excelleth]; 3:9; 5:9, 16; 7:12 [excellency]; 10:10, 11 [better]).

This word is unique to the Old Testament and only found here.

It means “that which is left over.”

It may be translated “surplus, advantage, gain.”

Solomon used the literary device of contrast often.

Our first example is the word “profit” it is the opposite of “vanity.”

Look for more examples as we continue.

3 What advantage does man have in all his work