THE LIMITS OF KNOWLEDGE

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on July 15, 2009 under PM Bible Study |

PM Home Bible Study Group; July 15, 2009
Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

Theme: “Wisdom”, limited to life under the sun, cannot satisfactorily answer the ultimate questions of life.

The great thesis of Solomon’s book is found in 1:2-3; “‘Vanity of vanities,’ says the Preacher; ‘Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.’ What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun?” In verses 4-11, he gave evidence of his thesis; and much of what remains in the book is the proof of it.

His project—that of proving this remarkable thesis—is an ambitious one. It’s certainly not one that the people of this world would want to hear. And so, it stands to reason that he should give a defense for why anyone should listen to what he has to say. And so—before he begins to chronicle his experiences of searching for meaning “under the sun”—he gives a defense in verses 12-18 of (1) his qualifications, (2) his method, and finally (3) his conclusion in summary.

As has been said before, Solomon’s identity as the true author of this book is crucial to the integrity of its conclusion. No one else but Solomon—the son of King David—could legitimately make the claim to engage in such a project. And because it’s the argument of this study that Solomon truly is the author of it, and because it also holds that the Holy Spirit preserved this book as a revelation from God that fallen man needs, then we would be very foolish to ignore what he has to say!

I. SOLOMON’S QUALIFICATIONS (vv. 12, 16).

A. In verse 12, the author—again—uses the name “Preacher” or “Teacher”. But he also establishes that he “was king over Israel in Jerusalem.” This verse is very crucial to establishing the identity of the writer. Those who would suggest that it was another “king” that Solomon would have to account for the fact that the writer claims to be the king of Israel “in Jerusalem”. After the time of Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was divided—the northern kingdom of Israel being given over to Jeroboam, and the southern kingdom of Judah being retained by Solomon’s son Rehoboam. After Solomon’s time—that is during the time of the divided kingdom—the city of Jerusalem would not have been considered to be in Israel, but rather in Judah. So for the king to be a king over Israel “in Jerusalem”, and to be the son of David (see 1:1), it would have to be Solomon. (It’s true that many scholars have doubted Solomon’s literal authorship, and have suggested that the author is only ‘pretending’ to be Solomon for rhetorical reasons. But for a defense of Solomon’s literal authorship, see the study notes on 1:1-11.) The importance of Solomon’s literal authorship is shown in that he is “king”. Solomon’s rule of forty years was a time of remarkable peace and prosperity. There were no enemies that Solomon had to fight; and there were no distractions of a military nature. Solomon, quite literally, had unlimited leisure to pursue the questions of life to the full. In addition, he also had the unlimited wealth to experience everything that a man could experience (see 1 Kings 3:13; 4:20-28; 10:14-29).

B. In verse 16a, he gives further explanation of this. He says, “I communed with my heart, saying, ‘Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem’”. As the Bible teaches us, God gave Solomon wisdom that exceeded that of any man (see 1 Kings 3:12; 4:29-34). His reputation and fame for wisdom caused people from all over the world to seek him (1 Kings 10:24). Even the Queen of Sheba traveled from afar to hear him and test his wisdom. Her first-hand experience with him caused her to conclude that his wisdom “exceeded the fame of which I heard” (1 Kings 10:7). There truly was no one more qualified to explore the great question of the meaning of life under the sun. When he said, “My heart has understood great wisdom and knowledge (v. 16b), his claim can be taken to more true of himself than it could be of anyone else in human history—with the exception of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

C. The importance of this cannot be stressed enough. As Solomon says in 2:12, “For what can the man do who succeeds the king?—Only what he has already done.” No one will ever be able to search out the question of meaning of life under the sun better than Solomon already has. So, how much better to not even try; but to instead, listen to the conclusions he has come to? How many fruitless searches in life would have been avoided if Solomon had only been heeded!

II. SOLOMON’S METHOD (vv. 13a, 17a).

A. Solomon says, “And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven” (v. 13a). To have “set” his heart suggests an earnestness sincerity in the search. This was no half-hearted endeavor for him—no mere ‘hobby’ of philosophy. This was something that he gave himself to with all his being; because only he could truly do so. He is the ultimate, human ‘philosopher’; because no one else could have truly set his heart to the task as he did—with unlimited financial resources, and a capacity for wisdom that was greater than all.

B. His object of study was “all that is done under heaven” (that is, the activity of mankind viewed strictly “under the sun”, and without consideration of higher and transcendent realities. And his method of doing so was twofold. First, he set his heart to “seek” by wisdom all that is done. To “seek” in this sense meant to investigate the root of a matter—to truly understand it. And second, he “searched out” by wisdom all that is done. To “search out”, here, meant to test and to try it out from all angles. A good way to think of it is as a two-fold method of “exploration” and “experimentation”. He not only carefully studied all the possible dimensions of life; he actually tasted of them firsthand. (See 2:1-26, where he details his experiences of “searching” and “seeking out” the matters of life under the sun.)

C. He also “set his heart” to know wisdom in all its dimensions. He didn’t simply stick to the safe subjects. He says that he set his heart “to know wisdom and to know madness and folly” (v. 17a). He tried pleasure (2:1). He tried laughter and madness and mirth (2:2). He tried fleshly gratification—laying hold of folly while still keeping a heart of wisdom that would objectively examine the experience (2:3). He didn’t keep himself from anything he desired (2:10). There was no stone he left unturned in his search for meaning under the sun.

III. SOLOMON’S CONCLUSION (vv. 13b-15, 17b-18).

A. He hints at his conclusion first in verse 13b; when he calls all that is done under heaven “this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised.” When Solomon refers to humanity, he doesn’t use the plural “men”. Rather, he uses the singular word “adam”. This reminds us that the experiences he is examining are the experiences of the fallen sons of Adam—tainted by the curse. He recognizes that the experience is from God; but his description of it all is that it is “burdensome”. It’s all labor without evidence of purpose—if viewed strictly “under the sun”, and apart from God. All that happens is that man is “exercised” or “afflicted” by it all. He has seen all the works that are done under the sun, “and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind” (v. 14).

B. The fact that it is the experience of mankind fallen in Adam perhaps helps explain what he says in verse 15. First, he asserts—in frustration—that “What is crooked cannot be made straight . . .” This is a phrase that is also used in 7:13; and it suggests that this is a condition that God has allowed man to be in. Man is frustrated in trying to make something good out of what is crooked; and he can’t make it straight. The history of humanity proves that you cannot make a perfect world out of fallen people. What’s more, “what is lacking cannot be numbered”. The gaps cannot be filled. The missing links in the chain cannot be found. How frustrating—to know things are not as they should be “under the sun”, but be unable to make it right; to know things don’t add up, but not be able to find the missing quantities “under the sun” that make it come out even! Not even the wisest of all men was able to do it!

C. All of Solomon’s efforts led him to the sad conclusion that “this also is grasping for the wind” (v. 17b). The whole research project was unsatisfying. Wisdom—”under the sun”—didn’t yield answers. In fact, if anything, it added to the pain and frustration. He says, “For in much wisdom is much grief, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow” (v. 18). The more about life “under the sun” that a man knows, the more he knows that it isn’t as it should be. The research project only added to the painful sense of the vanity of it all. The knowledge Solomon gained—viewed strictly apart from what is “above the sun”—only made him more keenly aware of his misery.

* * * * * * * * * *

Two very important conclusions must follow from this. First, if the wisest and most capable of men could not find meaning for life by looking strictly “under the sun”, then it must be that meaning is to be found elsewhere than in the strict horizontal experiences of mankind. There are only three possible options: (1) that meaning is capable of being found “under the sun” without the consideration of God (which this book seeks to prove is not the case), (2) that there is no meaning “under the sun” (which is a position that the human spirit cannot endure—since the fact that our hearts crave for meaning suggests that there truly is a meaning that matches the hunger of the soul), and (3) that meaning must be found “above the sun”. This last option is the very conclusion that the book leads to (see 12:13-14).

And second, if the wisest of men could not find a satisfactory answer through strict human “wisdom”, then it must be that the answer is found beyond that to which human wisdom can reach. It has to be that the answer to the meaning of our existence is found beyond ourselves—”revealed” from above by the God who made us for Himself.

Praise God; the search for meaning is over when a woman or man enters into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ! As the Bible tells us that in Jesus—the Son of God incarnate—is “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossi 2:3). But it also warns us, “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power” (vv. 8-10).