Morning Devotion - Eccl 9

Read Ecclesiastes 9

The wisdom of God is beyond us. This simple point from the end of chapter eight is central to our service of God.

Ecclesiastes 8:16-17 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on earth, how neither day nor night do one's eyes see sleep, then I saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. However much man may toil in seeking, he will not find it out. Even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out.

From that central observation we now begin our journey out of the third cycle of the book, the section that especially deals with the pursuit of wisdom. In chapter eight we had an observation about kings and then about joy. We hear two different but parallel observations in chapter nine which come to us in the reverse order as we head toward the conclusion of the book.

First, concerning joy, it is a gift from God that is to be enjoyed, despite the fact that all men are headed toward the grave. Even the righteous and wise will face death. The same looming event happens to all men. Though that we are in the sovereign hand of an almighty and personal God, we experience our lives as those who seem to be in the grip of time and chance, with only the certainty of death at the end. Yet we have bread, wine, garments, oil, a wife, work, thought, knowledge, and wisdom given to us in this fleeting world from the God who is able to accept us and our works. Bodies in the grave cannot enjoy these good gifts, so enjoy them today.

Second, concerning kings, Qoheleth makes another observation about kings in this futile world. that a poor wise man can have more power by wisdom than a great king, though everyone may forget the wisdom of the poor man. This is part of the fleeting frustration of the present age. The key player in saving a city from the power of a great king may be a wise poor man who is easily forgotten. A man's best deed might actually do more to preserve life and joy than all of the loud speeches of the famous, but this does not guarantee that the key idea that was softly spoken will be remembered. The wise advice might save the day, but the man who was in fact instrumental in these critical events may be quickly forgotten.

A man can live his life in a vain attempt to cling to what cannot be kept. A man can long for recognition from his fellows and it seems to elude him. At the end of it all he seems to have nothing left and is soon forgotten by history. If he lives long enough, even the people who might tell great stories at his funeral may all be gone. Two of the most admirable people I have every met, great in their service of God and man, had almost no one at their funerals. Even the man who seems to make his mark is soon forgotten, but few seem to even rise to that level.

If this present life were everything, what an injustice and futility it would all seem to be. How is it that anyone could have hope? Yet we do have not only the temporary joys of the good things that God gives to us day by day, but also the "solid joys and lasting treasure" known by Zion's children. Because the Lord of heaven has come as a poor man, because he has given up all earthly joys including his own life in the accomplishment of his sacred covenant task, now we have a sure hope that cannot be taken away from us. Because of the wisdom and power of Jesus, our labor in the Lord is not in vain, and even our death is precious in the Lord's sight.

Today remember the fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and remember the promise that He is the first to rise among what will be a great resurrection host. Enjoy the good gifts of God, even doing your small part for peace, order, and goodness, knowing that the suffering that we face here below is not worthy to compare with the unfading glory which shall one day be revealed.