Setting – There is a time for everything and every living thing dies a physical death
Content – Solomon outlines that there is a time for different things. Not everything has the same response or action, such as, (v. 7a NLT) “A time to tear and a time to mend”.
Once again Solomon asked the question (v. 9 NLT), “What do people really get for all their hard work?” So he has pondered this question (v. 10 NLT) “I have thought about this in connection with the various kinds of work God has given people to do.” We see that (v. 11a NLT) “God has made everything beautiful for its own time.” Also God (v. 11b NLT), “has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end.” Solomon’s pondering left him to (v. 12 NLT) “concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they can.”, and (v. 13 NLT) “people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” He also realizes (v. 14 NLT) “I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God's purpose in this is that people should fear him.”
Solomon finds that there was evil in the court of law (v. 16), but God’s judgment will true and (v. 17 NLT) “In due season God will judge everyone, both good and bad, for all their deeds.”
So why does God allow sin to continue, (v. 18 NLT) “Then I realized that God allows people to continue in their sinful ways so he can test them. That way, they can see for themselves that they are no better than animals.” From here Solomon sees that humans aren’t any different than animals because both physically die (v. 19-20 NLT) “For humans and animals both breathe the same air, and both die. So people have no real advantage over the animals. Both go to the same place--the dust from which they came and to which they must return.”
Solomon concludes (v. 22 NLT) “So I saw that there is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is why they are here! No one will bring them back from death to enjoy life in the future.”
Application – Things is life warrant different responses, a time to cry a time to laugh. This can be freeing and frustrating. Freeing because each circumstance doesn’t require the same response (life has variety), frustrating, because we don’t always know the correct response.
Solomon ponders the same question everyone human asked, why are we here and what’s our purpose. Without an eternal view, we aren’t any different than the animals, they live, eat and die, same with us. But God “has planted eternity in the human heart” we have more to live than this life. But this still begs the question, while we’re here, what is our calling? From an Old Testament view “people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” From a New Testament, we serve others and life by His Spirit. But we are still to realize that God has gifted us with fruits of our labor. God has provided man the ability to create and manage (Gen 3:17) “Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life”, and (Gen 1:26) “and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” The reality of physical death is sure, for both animals and humans. We can agree with Solomon’s conclusion “I saw that there is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is why they are here!”
I’m not always happy with my work, but I can, and should, enjoy the fruits of my labor.
Content – Solomon outlines that there is a time for different things. Not everything has the same response or action, such as, (v. 7a NLT) “A time to tear and a time to mend”.
Once again Solomon asked the question (v. 9 NLT), “What do people really get for all their hard work?” So he has pondered this question (v. 10 NLT) “I have thought about this in connection with the various kinds of work God has given people to do.” We see that (v. 11a NLT) “God has made everything beautiful for its own time.” Also God (v. 11b NLT), “has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end.” Solomon’s pondering left him to (v. 12 NLT) “concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they can.”, and (v. 13 NLT) “people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” He also realizes (v. 14 NLT) “I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God's purpose in this is that people should fear him.”
Solomon finds that there was evil in the court of law (v. 16), but God’s judgment will true and (v. 17 NLT) “In due season God will judge everyone, both good and bad, for all their deeds.”
So why does God allow sin to continue, (v. 18 NLT) “Then I realized that God allows people to continue in their sinful ways so he can test them. That way, they can see for themselves that they are no better than animals.” From here Solomon sees that humans aren’t any different than animals because both physically die (v. 19-20 NLT) “For humans and animals both breathe the same air, and both die. So people have no real advantage over the animals. Both go to the same place--the dust from which they came and to which they must return.”
Solomon concludes (v. 22 NLT) “So I saw that there is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is why they are here! No one will bring them back from death to enjoy life in the future.”
Application – Things is life warrant different responses, a time to cry a time to laugh. This can be freeing and frustrating. Freeing because each circumstance doesn’t require the same response (life has variety), frustrating, because we don’t always know the correct response.
Solomon ponders the same question everyone human asked, why are we here and what’s our purpose. Without an eternal view, we aren’t any different than the animals, they live, eat and die, same with us. But God “has planted eternity in the human heart” we have more to live than this life. But this still begs the question, while we’re here, what is our calling? From an Old Testament view “people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” From a New Testament, we serve others and life by His Spirit. But we are still to realize that God has gifted us with fruits of our labor. God has provided man the ability to create and manage (Gen 3:17) “Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life”, and (Gen 1:26) “and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” The reality of physical death is sure, for both animals and humans. We can agree with Solomon’s conclusion “I saw that there is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is why they are here!”
I’m not always happy with my work, but I can, and should, enjoy the fruits of my labor.
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