THE ‘GOOD LIFE’ SCIENTIST

Posted by Angella Diehl, Webmaster on August 26, 2009 under PM Bible Study |

PM Home Bible Study Group; August 26, 2009 Ecclesiastes 2:1-26

Theme: Even in an abundant experience of ‘the good life’, inner fulfillment and satisfaction of soul cannot be found under the sun.

Unthinking, idle, wild, and young,
I laughed, and danced, and talked, and sung;
And proud of health, of freedom vain,
Dreamed not of sorrow, care, or pain;
Concluding in those hours of glee,
That all the world was made for me.
But when the hour of trial came,
When sickness shook this trembling frame,
When folly’s gay pursuits were o’er,
And I could dance and sing no more,
It then occurred how sad ‘twould be,
Were this THE ONLY WOLRD FOR ME.

— Princess Amelia of Great Britain
(cited in James M. MacDonald, The Book of Ecclesiastes Explained, New York: M.W. Dodd, 1856), p. 167.

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Imagine what it would be like if the richest and wisest man that the world has ever known gave himself over—to the fullest possible degree—to every pleasurable experience that could be had “under the sun” without reservation. Imagine if he carefully and objectively analyzed the experience? And imagine if he then recorded his conclusions for the benefit of the rest of humanity, so that everyone else could learn the truth about ‘the good life’? Who wouldn’t want to read his essay? Who wouldn’t want to know what he discovered?

The Holy Spirit has provided mankind with just such a journey in the second chapter of Ecclesiastes. Its human author (Solomon) was able to exceed all who were before him in possessions (v. 7), opportunities (v. 12), and enjoyment (v. 25). Given who it is that wrote these words, and under what circumstances they were written (that is, with the capability of experiencing all that this world could possibly offer to a degree that no one else will ever be able to replicate), this passage truly constitutes one of the most remarkable ‘documentaries’ in all of human history. It is the ultimate analysis of “the lifestyles of the rich and famous”. It is the authoritative journal of the world’s most qualified ‘good life’ scientist. And those who believe that meaning in life can truly be found apart from God are profoundly foolish to ignore it.

I. THE RESOLVE TO TEST ‘THE GOOD LIFE’ (vv. 1-3).

A. In 1:12-13, Solomon described his plan to put ‘the good life’ to the ultimate test. And now, he lays out before us the documentation of that test. Note that he purposed to test his own heart with “mirth”—that is, with “pleasure”; and to (literally) “look on goodness”. He wouldn’t simply philosophize about it; he would experience it first-hand!

B. But even before he gives us the chronicle of his experiment in happiness, he gives us the conclusion he came to. “But surely, this also was vanity”. In the end, he said of laughter, “Madness!”; and of mirth, “What does it accomplish?” (v. 2).

C. Nevertheless, he gives us the method and purpose of this great experiment in “the good life”. He lets us know that he searched his heart how to gratify his flesh “with wine”. If literal wine is meant, he only used it so far as it aided in his search for fleshly pleasure. “Wine”, on the other hand, may be a metaphor for the pleasures of “the good life”. He never allowed the experiment to get out of hand, however. He kept a hold on a heart of wisdom, so that he could analyze his experiences of laying hold on “folly”. He became, as it were, a careful ‘connoisseur’ of the very best of the good things that ‘life under the sun’ had to offer; so he could see what meaning and purpose there could be found in it all (v. 3a).

D. Note the practical intention of it all: “till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do under heaven all the days of their lives” (v. 3b). The results of his careful study were to be put to the best possible use for the good of mankind! How wise it would be to pay attention to what he discovered!

II. THE EXPERIMENT CHRONICLED (vv. 4-11).

The experiment itself is chronicled in terms of :

A. His accomplishments (vv. 4-6).

1. Solomon said that he made his works “great” (4a). Truly, when you read the story of his life in the historical books of the Old Testament, you’d have to conclude that no king accomplished more than he did.

2. He built “houses” (4b). Note that, among the houses that he built in his experiment, the temple is not mentioned. This was because the temple was built at the command of God; and it would not be right to include it in his experiment of the pursuit of happiness.

3. He planted all kinds of “vineyards” (4c). He had wine in abundance.

4. He made “gardens and orchards” for himself; and in them “planted all kinds of fruit trees” (v. 5).

5. He made “water pools from which to water the growing trees of the grove” (v. 6). The richness of his gardens, and the fruitfulness of his orchards, would have been constantly maintained; and the situation for it all would have been extremely beautiful and peaceful.

B. His acquisitions (vv. 7-8).

1. He acquired “male and female servants” (v. 7a). It’s said that, with all the appliances we use today, the average household would have needed fifty hired servants to accomplish it all in the past; and Solomon had ample servants to make his life easy and pleasurable (see 1 Kings 9:21).

2. What’s more, he had servants born into his house (v. 7b); which would have been even more devoted to his service (see Genesis 14:14).

3. He had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were before him in Jerusalem (v. 7c; see also 1 Kings 4:22-28)—a sign of great prosperity!

4. He had gathered for himself silver and gold and “the special treasures of kings and of the provinces” (v. 8a). He not only had the wealth of other kings at his disposal; but may even had had museums built to store and display it all.

5. He had acquired male and female singers (v. 8b). There was music and entertainment all the time.

6. He acquired the “delights of the sons of men” (v. 8c); which may refer to the means of sensual pleasures.

7. He had “musical instruments of all kinds” (v. 8d; see also 2 Chronicles 5:12-13). The literal translation of this is “wife and wives”; which may speak of his many wives and many concubines.

C. His abundance (vv. 9-10).

1. He experienced overwhelming “greatness” (v. 9a).

2. He experienced unsurpassed “excellence” or “increase” (v. 9b).

3. He kept his wisdom in the midst of it all (v. 9c).

4. He didn’t keep himself from whatever his eyes desired (v. 10a). If he wanted it, he never said, “No; I can’t afford it.” He didn’t withhold his heart from any pleasure.

5. And in all of it, his immediate experience was to rejoice in all his labor and see it as his portion (v. 10b).

D. His accounting (v. 11).

1. Finally, he “looked” on all the works that his hands had done and on the labor in which he had toiled (v. 11a)—which suggests that nothing more of it could be done, and nothing could be added to it; and that it was now time to examine it all and take stock of the experience.

2. And the great tragedy was “indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun” (v. 11b). None of it satisfied the yearning in his soul. What a contrast these words are to the words spoken by God at the completion of all His works (Genesis 1:31)!

III. THE ANALYSIS OF THE RESULTS (vv. 12-23).

A. First, Solomon concluded that wisdom is definitely better than folly during life under the sun (vv. 12-14a). “Wisdom” here probably means what it means in 7:25—that is the understanding of the ‘reason’ of things. Wisdom is as better than folly as light is to darkness. There’s no advantage in being a fool!

B. But as good as wisdom is over folly in this life, it is still no advantage at the end of life (vv. 14b-16). The same end occurs to the wise man as to the fool. In a strict “under the sun” sense, the death of one is not “better” than the death of the other. No one remembers the fool; but no one remembers the wise man either. Both are equally forgotten “under the sun”.

C. The vanity of it all increases hatred, or bitterness, or dissatisfaction (v. 17). The more Solomon thought about it, the more he despaired.

D. What’s more, even all that he had acquired by his great wisdom must be left to someone else; and he had no control over who it might be (vv. 18-21). This increased his bitterness toward his works all the more! On the one hand, it will all go to someone who hadn’t worked for it as hard as he did (see Psalm 49:10-11) And on the other hand, it may go to someone who will squander it all in foolishness (as was, indeed, the case!— see 1 Kings 12:1-24).

E. What, then, does even the richest, and wisest, and most prosperous man in the world gain for all his labor “under the sun” (vv. 22-23)? The labor causes him sorrow; and even his sleep is robbed from him as he tosses and turns in the night over the care of it all. What, in the end, is the gain? It’s all “vanity”!

IV. THE CONCLUSION DRAWN (vv. 24-26).

A. Solomon—the “good life scientist”, who was able to experiment with “the good life” more than anyone before or after him—concludes that it is better to enjoy the food, drink and work you have right now as a gift from God (vv. 24-25). This is a conclusion he repeatedly comes to throughout this book (see 3;12, 13, 22; 5:18-20; 7:14; 8:15; 9:7-10; 11:9). This conclusion of “life under the sun” is a key theme of this book!

B. Solomon notes that the ability to be content with what God has given us as our lot in life is a precious gift from Him (v. 26a). How much better it is to learn to want all you have, than it is to have all you want (see Ecclesiastes 4:4-6; 1 Timothy 6:6-10).

C. The man who is a sinner before God simply collects what he has in order that it may all be given to the man who is good in God’s sight (v. 26b). All this ‘collecting’ in the end is an exercise in “vanity”.

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What Solomon learned the hard way is what we can learn simply by believing what God’s word already says! Our Lord has taught us that, even in an abundance, life does not consist in the things we possess (Luke 12:15). We were not made to live apart from the hope of eternity with God! True happiness will never be found strictly “under the sun”. Rather, it’s found in laying up a treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21); and in seeking first the kingdom of God (v. 33).

May we each take to heart what Solomon’s father, David, once wrote; “O my soul, you have said to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord, my goodness is nothing apart from You’” (Psalm 16:2). A relationship of love with our Creator, through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, is the only place where the truly satisfying “good life” is to be found. Solomon’s great experiment should warn us not to bother looking for it anywhere else!