Living with Eternity in view.
 

Ecclesiastes 4 – 5:1-7

1. Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun: And look! the tears of the oppressed, But they have no comforter. On the side of their oppressors there is power, But they have no comforter.
2 Therefore I praised the dead who were already dead, More than the living who are still alive.
3 Yet, better than both is he who has never existed, Who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.
4 Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbour. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.
5 The fool folds his hands And consumes his own flesh.
6 Better a handful with quietness Than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.
7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:
8 There is one alone, without companion: He has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his labours, Nor is his eye satisfied with riches. But he never asks,
“For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good?” This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.
9 Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labour.
10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.
11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
13 Better a poor and wise youth Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no more.
14 For he comes out of prison to be king, Although he was born poor in his kingdom.
15 I saw all the living who walk under the sun; They were with the second youth who stands in his place.
16 There was no end of all the people over whom he was made king; Yet those who come afterward will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Ecclesiastes 5: 1 – 7.
1 Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil.
2 Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be few.
3 For a dream comes through much activity, And a fool’s voice is known by his many words.
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed.
5 Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.
6 Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God.

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In chapter three, we saw the Preacher take a few moments to escape his “under the sun” thoughts and allow himself a moment of hope by looking beyond this life to the eternal.

In this next section, we see him return to reality.

1. Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun: And look! the tears of the oppressed, But they have no comforter.
 

On the side of their oppressors there is power, But they have no comforter.

Solomon considers all of men’s oppressors.

Men are oppressed from all places. Men are oppressed by rulers, workers oppressed by employers. The poor by the rich, the man in the street, by bureaucracy.
We even see oppression of people by their own, poor oppressing poor. We see racial oppression and oppression of age.
From all angles there is oppression.
From a Godless perspective, there is no justice.
Again, without divine judgement, this is something that men have to endure with no hope of justice.
 

2 Therefore I praised the dead who were already dead, More than the living who are still alive.

What a hopeless situation. The Preacher again shows us the meaningless and futility of life without justice.

What a statement to make, “I praised the dead”.

The word “praised” is (shâbach), to address in a loud tone, that is, (specifically) loud; figuratively to pacify (as if by words)
It is as though, he is shouting, that the dead are better off not being here to experience all this oppression.

Then Koeleth goes on to make a bolder statement.

3 Yet, better than both is he who has never existed, Who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.

People in hopeless situations say, “I would be better off dead”. More still, “I wish I had never been born”.

We see advertisements on TV asking for support, for families that are selling their children into what can only be described as slavery. These children are locked in tiny rooms, making things to sell on the open market. They are only let out every five weeks. If they do not produce enough they are beaten.
Could it not be said about these children, “it would be better had they never been born”.
These children will probably never have a normal decent life.

I remember my grandmother going through a very bad time. In just a few years, seeing her daughters marriage split up and leaving two young boys behind. She had to give her home up to look after her grandchildren. Thrust into a situation that she had not created for herself, living with her son in law, with who she did not get on, but with little choice.
In her late sixties and with not much of a future to look forward to, but worry and strife, when really she should have been enjoying her retirement.
I remember her saying to me as a boy, “I wish I was dead”, she felt there was nothing to live for.
Eventually, the despair and the circumstances, caused her to take her own life at 67 years old.

How many people find themselves in similar situations. No hope and without God in the world.

The Preacher’s great despair over the injustice of oppression in an “under the sun” premise shows the moral necessity of an afterlife and a coming judgement.

Jesus told us that it is those who oppress and misuse their power who will ultimately endure punishment, not their victims (Matthew 18:6-7).
 

4 Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbour. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

It doesn’t matter how hard a man works, how successful he is, how he is admired or envied by his neighbours. The end is still the same.

What is the Preacher doing, what is the message he is trying to convey to his reader?

The Preacher himself is a not lost man. In fact, he can’t be – based on other things he says. But it seems that the Preacher is leading us through the mindset of a lost man. Or, how a lost man must feel when confronted with the meaninglessness of this life.

5 The fool folds his hands And consumes his own flesh.
6 Better a handful with quietness Than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.

These are strange verses. It can only be understood in context with the previous verse. The man who envies another in his work but settles for idleness and does not work. He wastes his time and talents and ends up in poverty.

Benson Commentary puts it like this.

Ecclesiastes 4:5. The fool foldeth his hands,  — Is careless and idle: perceiving that diligence is attended with envy, he runs into the other extreme. And eateth his own flesh — Wastes his substance, and brings himself to poverty, whereby his very flesh pines away for want of bread.

Matthew Henry in his commentary says:
Ecc 4:4-6 Solomon notices the sources of trouble peculiar to well-doers, and includes all who labour with diligence, and whose efforts are crowned with success. They often become great and prosperous, but this excites envy and opposition. Others, seeing the vexations of an active course, foolishly expect more satisfaction in sloth and idleness. But idleness is a sin that is its own punishment. Let us by honest industry lay hold on the handful, that we may not want necessaries, but not grasp at both hands full, which would only create vexation of spirit. Moderate pains and gains do best.

Ecc 7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:
8 There is one alone, without companion: He has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his labours, Nor is his eye satisfied with riches. But he never asks, “For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good?” This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.
12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Solomon turns his attention to a man who is alone in the world, he only has himself to care for.
No wife, no child, no family. For what is he working? What is the end of all his toil?
Self satisfaction maybe, or so that he can have a good life, or that he can be admired, have some status in life. This is all well in itself, but to what end?

He has no one to leave it to. What is it all for?
The answer comes back again, nothing, it is all in vain.

At least one can say two is better than one, for one can help the other, if one is sick the other helps. If one is down the other helps to build up but the one alone has no one to help.

 9 Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labour.
10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.
11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone?

When there is two or more, there is comfort in this life and there is strength and safety in numbers.

Again Koeleth is looking at this from an “under the sun” perspective. Thinking like this, there is no such thing as an eternal accomplishment and one does not even have the potential satisfaction of passing one’s accomplishments on to another.

The next section, Solomon begins with a proverb.
Better is a wise youth than an old and foolish king.
There are many proverbs expressing this sentiment. Better a live dog than a dead lion.

Ecc 4:13 – 16
13 Better a poor and wise youth Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no more.
14 For he comes out of prison to be king, Although he was born poor in his kingdom.
15 I saw all the living who walk under the sun; They were with the second youth who stands in his place.
16 There was no end of all the people over whom he was made king; Yet those who come afterward will not rejoice in him. Surely this

also is vanity and grasping for the wind.
 

It makes no difference who you are in this life, whether you are a king reigning over many, or master over few.
Whether one rises from obscurity, to be a king. It makes no difference. For when he is dead, no one will be bothered or will take any notice of him. This lasts only, as long as he is “under the sun”.

Koeleth says, Surely this also is vanity and grasping for the wind.

Again we are reminded of the words of the Lord Jesus.
Matthew 6:19,20
Do not store up for fourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 
20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.…

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Then, in chapter 5: 1-7, our mind is turned to the motivation of our life “under the sun”.
Do we think only about this life or about life beyond this short time we spend on this earth?
 

Ecclesiastes 5: 1 – 7.
1 Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil.
 

Whether one is only thinking about this life or if he is contemplating eternity, he is wise to think before he acts.
Men claim to be Atheists. They say there is no God. They have no proof that God does not exist.
The bible says that a man who says there is no God, is a fool.

Psalm 14:1 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”

They may use the same words back to a believer, by saying that a believer cannot prove that God does exist.
This is not the problem. If there is no God, then all men are in the same position.

However, if there is a God, the unbeliever is in a very precarious position.
The truth is, that the most a man can say is, “I don’t know if there is a God or not”.
This makes him an Agnostic. One who doesn’t know.

Which means, as Solomon says, “it is better to walk prudently”.

Whether  a believer or an Agnostic, one should aware beware of the consequences.
 

2 Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be few.

An old adage says, Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.

Believer and agnostic alike, basically are wise to watch their mouth.

Matt 12:34  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Another saying puts it like this.

When the tongue speaks, the heart is on parade.

Ecc 5:3 For a dream comes through much activity, And a fool’s voice is known by his many words.

The next verse again, applies to both the believer and the unbeliever.

4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed.
5 Better not to vow than to vow and not pay.

The Bible tells us that God is not slack concerning His promises and neither should we be.

“God does not take broken vows lightly. A broken vow may incur his judgement upon our endeavours. One who ‘swears to his own hurt and does not change’ pleases God (Psalm 15:4).” (Eaton)

We cannot say, I didn’t know what I was saying, it was a mistake, I said it out of ignorance.

6 Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God.

Christians are in a privileged position in that we know that God exists. Not only that but we have a relationship with Him through Christ.

We too are “under the sun”, for our allotted time.
We must make sure our attitudes are in the right place, looking to eternal things and not just here and now.

Knowing that God is holy and God is just and that we should live with eternity in view.
 

Memory Verse:
“For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”(2 Corinthians 5:10)

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