03/19/2021 – Day 306 – Ecclesiastes 3 – 4// “The longest time man has to live, has no more proportion to eternity than a drop of dew has to the ocean.” D.L. Moody
It is mathematical, is it not? What is 120 years divided by eternity, but the limit that approaches zero.
I find myself for the first time in memory of our year , at odds with the commentators that I reference most often, Matthew Henry and John Gill are probably the most prominent of late. I feel that they are trying to explain these verses away, and try to transform them into a fully mature Christian worldview that comes by way of the Holy Spirit. Solomon was given the gift of wisdom early on his kingship. But as I explained last week, he squandered it by marrying foreign wives to the faith. And also, the Jewish faith in 900 b.c. had a very shallow belief in God’s eternal kingdom , and the after-life.
Let’s review for example 3: 19 – 21: “For what happens to the sons of men also happens to animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies the other. (note: Does this acknowledge man having an eternal soul?) Surely, they all have one breath; man has no advantage over animals, for all is vanity. (Note – So I die like a dog?, nary a judgment?) All go to one place:: all are from the dust, and all return to dust. Who knows the spirit of the sons of men, which goes upward, and the spirit of animal, which goes down to earth?” (At least there is a suggestion of a soul, and ours is going up… But the animal “spirit” is not a soul.)
Now let’s focus on Matthew Henry’s commentary on the above verses: “It is certain that the spirit of spirits, who made it; it dies not with the body, but is redeemed from the power of the grave, Psalm 49:15. The soul of a man is then like a candle taken out of a dark lantern, which leaves the lantern useless indeed, but does itself shine brighter.”
If he were here, I would say indeed Matthew, that this conveys our christian worldview in the full context of Holy Scripture. We are redeemed from the grave by Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection, in substitutionary atonement for our sins. And Psalm 9:15 is an old testament verse that definitely speaks to man’s eternal soul: “But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave, For He shall receive me.”
But Solomon is not writing in substance nor tone that mirrors a Christian worldview. Solomon is pointing out the futility of the Jewish belief that if you love the Lord, fear the Lord, you will be blessed with a great life in terms of this world. But Solomon is rightly pointing out that he has been down that road and found it all vanity. A review of 4:8: “There is one alone, without companion; He has neither son nor brother, Yet there is no end to all his labors, 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.”
Soli Deo Gloria!