Overview of the Book of Ecclesiastes

Moore's Corner Church

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The overview of the week for this Sunday is the book of Ecclesiastes. It begins like this.

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The words of the preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem, vanity of vanity, says the preacher, vanity of vanities, all is vanity.

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Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon, the third king of Israel, and he's writing about life under the sun.

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That's a phrase that gets repeated life under the sun.

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He says in chapter one, verse 14, I have seen all the works that are done under the sun and indeed all is vanity and grasping for the wind.

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His point is that life without the Lord, a life not lived for God is vain.

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It's empty. It's meaningless. You're born, you live for a while, you die, you're forgotten.

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Now that might sound like the most depressing thing you've ever heard. And yet I think that is his exact point.

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He knew and Solomon knew what he was talking about. Solomon had everything. He had wealth, he had fame, he had power, and none of it made him happy.

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Now Solomon started out very well. He was blessed by God. God gave him wisdom and everything that a man could want.

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But Solomon, over time, he began to drift away from the Lord. So Ecclesiastes represents the painful autobiography of a man who for much of his life squandered

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God's blessings. For so long, he lived for his own personal pleasure rather than for God's glory.

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And he's writing these things as a way to warn future generations to not make that same mistake.

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He ends the book with these words in chapter 12. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter.

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Fear God and keep his commandments for this is man's all.

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For God will bring every work into judgment including every secret thing whether good or evil.