Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Ecc 4 to 10 - Be Wise and Fear God


I continue with my study on the book of Ecclesiastes, where I left off when I went for Christian Theology 1.

Scofield’s third division on the book of Ecclesiastes covers 7 chapters, from 4 to 10. The Qoheleth expounds in depth here the theme of vanity in the light of human suffering, hypocrisies, uncertainties, poverty and riches.

In summary, these are the headers found in the ESV:

4:1-16 Evil Under the Sun – the outrageous violence that takes place on this planet (4:1, The Message)

5:1-7 Fear God – For when dreams increase and words grow many, there is vanity; but God is the one you must fear. (5:7, ESV)

5:8-6:12 The Vanity of Wealth and Honour – For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun? (6:12, ESV)

7:1-29 The Contrast of Wisdom and Folly – God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (7:29, ESV)

8:1-9 Keep the King’s Command – For he does not know what is to be, for who can tell him how it will be? (8:7, ESV)

8:10-13 Those Who Fear God Will Do Well – I'm still convinced that the good life is reserved for the person who fears God, who lives reverently in his presence (8:12, The Message)

8:14-17 Men Cannot Know God’s Ways – you'll still never figure out the meaning of what God is doing on this earth. Search as hard as you like, you're not going to make sense of it. No matter how smart you are, you won't get to the bottom of it. (8:17, The Message)

9:1-6 Death Comes to All – Life leads to death. That's it. (9:3, The Message)

9:7-10 Enjoy Life with the One You Love – for God has already approved what you do. (9:7, ESV)

9:11-10:20 Wisdom Better than Folly – One day as I was observing how wisdom fares on this earth, I saw something that made me sit up and take notice. (9:13, The Message)

There is much evil. And since we are still stuck here in the now and not yet, we need to be wise and fear God. The wealth the honour, the things and the fame we have is nothing in comparison to Him. Know the Lord, and keep His word, live reverently in His presence, He is here. We are weak and life will come to an end. So why worry, cherish every moment with the people that God has given you to love, for this is the wisdom God gave us.

Maeghan
Picture by Rodolfo Clix

2 comments:

  1. As I am reading your post on your theology class and now this, I am thinking how amazing it is that they compliment one another in a way that can keep you spiritually grounded.

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  2. Know the Lord, and keep His word, live reverently in His presence, He is here. We are weak and life will come to an end. So why worry, cherish every moment with the people that God has given you to love, for this is the wisdom God gave us.

    This says it best, Meaghan!

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