Ecclesiastes Part 15

Now in Ecclesiastes chapter 8, Solomon tells us to exercise wisdom and righteousness to help reduce and manage problems in many cases, maintain proper perspective, and find joy in life and ultimate reward from God. Although few men are truly wise, we should not give up striving to live a life guided by God’s wisdom daily! In verse one, the change of face here reflects a new face on the problems discussed in previous chapters. There is a serenity that comes with things starting to make sense and with trusting that God knows what He is doing when things still do not make sense.

The next set of verses concerns following kingly authority, or human government, as a matter of life and death (verses 2–9). We know that no person is perfect, so we should not expect that corrupt people coming together to form a government would result in righteous rule. As also stated in Romans 13, we are expected to show honor and respect to governing authorities. We can also think of this as an analogy for following God. If we aim to please Him, we are like servants to the Royal Court of a King, striving to obey our Lord. Furthermore, servants do not always know their Master’s plan, as mentioned in verse 4. Therefore, it is better to obey or be a law-abiding citizen (within the limits of God’s ultimate law) rather than not.

Solomon says to keep the king’s command, not “My command,” with him being the king referenced. This is because the instruction referred to obeying the king in general, whoever he was, or to obeying whatever human authority was in power. Needing to give such instruction without any self-serving appearance could be part of why Solomon referred to himself as the Preacher throughout the book rather than as king.  

Note that the obedience to the king is “for the sake of your oath to God.” It is possible that a type of pledge of allegiance to the king or kingdom among the general populace was customary at that time. Or it could be that all the men of Israel took an oath as part of the nation’s military. Or possibly the reference is to a general promise to obey God, with this including the requirement of following Israel’s divinely appointed king, or maybe even any nation’s ruler, since, as Paul later points out in Romans 13, all governing authorities are in power because of God and are to be obeyed except when there is a conflict with God’s law, which must come first (Acts 5:29).

For the time being, we are subject to human rule. We should respect and follow that rule, with the benefits of doing so and the avoidance of an approach that will bring more trouble to us than would otherwise ensue. The apostle Peter likewise tells us to be careful regarding both divine and human authority: 

“Fear God. Honor the king” (1 Peter 2:17).

The beginning of verse 5 says that the person who keeps the king’s command “will experience nothing harmful.” This does not mean anything bad will ever happen to the person. Nor does it mean that the person will be afforded protection by the government, though he or she well may, as all do to some extent. Rather, the meaning here is that prudent, law-abiding citizens will receive no punishment from the government. The message here is: Do your best to stay out of trouble!

Verse 7 in context presents more about the need for discerning the right time and way. If one does not know what will happen, how can he learn when it will happen? The wise are observant for the opportune circumstance in which to speak or act as it presents itself.

The beginning of verse 8 says that no one can retain the spirit in the day of death. Some translate the word ruach here as “breath” (of life) rather than “spirit,” but that would not change the point here. Others see ruach here as meaning “wind,” and take the statement to mean that just as the wind is beyond our control, so is death. By any of these interpretations, many see here a statement about not being able to withstand the inevitability of death. But in context the wording continues the warning about not getting into trouble with the government. “‘Death’ is ultimately in the power of God but is also in the king’s hands” (New American Commentary, note on verses 7–8). The point is that if the king puts you to death for rebellion or crime, life is over. Then the final line, “…and wickedness will not deliver those who are given to it,” would tie back to the turn to wrongdoing in verse 3. And this is further tied back to the warning in Ecclesiastes 7:17: 

“Do not be overly wicked, nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time?” 

A turn to lawlessness will not stave off the punishment of death. It will hasten it.

The problems of human government must be navigated with wisdom and righteousness to improve life where possible and to avoid making matters worse than they already are.

We then come to Ecclesiastes 8:9. The words “There is” are in italics in the NKJV, showing they have been added to the original wording which was necessary in this case. And one ruling another to that one’s own hurt here is evidently a mistranslation. The Tyndale Old Testament Commentary notes: “‘To his hurt’ (Heb[rew]) is not to his own hurt (AV [Authorized or KJV]) but to the hurt of the one under the abuser of power” (note on verse 9). The New American Commentary quotes an alternate translation of the verse: 

“All this I have seen and have given attention to every deed done under the sun while man rules men to their hurt.” 

This is the terrible human condition of today.

Wisdom Literature is a course taught at ABC by Dr. Urwiller. Recordings from the 2018–2019 class year are available to listen to on the ABC website.

UYA Team | uya@ucg.org  

United Young Adults (UYA) primarily serves the 18–32-year age group for the United Church of God. There are three main areas of contribution to the lives of the young adults: Promoting Spiritual Growth, Developing Meaningful Relationships, and Making the Most of Your Talents. The Know Your Sword series is a daily expository message introducing God’s Word from a trusted perspective.