Ecclesiastes 2 - The Vanity of Pleasure

 

Ecclesiastes 2 – The Vanity of Pleasure

 

Solomon indulged in everything the world had to offer; wild living, wisdom, work, and wealth. Even these, not designed by God to provide an ultimate source of meaning, could not fulfill him.

 

No one in Israel’s history was richer in possibilities for various pleasures than Solomon’s, and no person was ever in a better position to make the most of them. Yet his attempts to gratify the flesh did not gratify his soul (Proverbs 14:13). “What spoils the pleasures of life for us is our hunger to get out of them more than they can deliver.” (Derek Kidner). God’s people will never know joy or learn satisfaction unless it is understood as a gift from God. In Him, everything makes sense.

 

Solomon was known for his extravagant construction project, including the glorious temple that was named after him (I Kings 7:1-12). Yet even he could never build enough buildings or make them great enough to fulfill the longing of the soul.

 

According to I Kings 10:14 Solomon received 666 talents of gold each year. The special treasures he gathered for himself came from kings and the provinces.

Those who think ultimate, external meaning is in the accomplishment of life will be disappointed. No matter how carefully they manage their riches, they cannot control what the person who comes after them will do with those riches. Believers must not slip into the mind-set of evaluating life on what can be accumulated. Instead, they should set their affections on things that are above.  (Psalm 49:10).

 

Life must be understood for what it is, a gift from God and not be mistaken as the ultimate end. While life offers a measure of enjoyment, full and permanent joy is found only in God. So the best thing is to change one’s perspective and be satisfied with what we have. (I Tim. 6:17).

Those who decide to serve God are the first in line to receive wisdom, knowledge and joy (James 1:5).

 

 

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