Lesson 10

Two Things You Can Count On

Ecclesiastes 9:1-18

Chapter 9 turns a corner in the Book of Ecclesiastes. Up to this point, Solomon has devoted himself chapter after chapter to an expose' of emptiness. In effect he has said, "I've tried all these things and they do not satisfy. Allow me to save you the trouble- my listener, my reader. And now, let me introduce to you things which have substance - the things you can count on. These things are reliable. I know. I've been there." "I considered all this in my heart, even to declare all this" (v.1a) or, in other words, "After careful and thoughtful reflection, I am here to tell you ..." Tell us Solomon! We want to hear! He has two main points to make in chapter 9. First ...

Death Is Unavoidable, 9:1-10.

Death is a fact of life. Any discussion of life must include a consideration of death. Most people don't like to think or to talk about death. We avoid the subject. We disguise death as much as we can. We are reluctant to say, "David died." It is easier to say, "Paul passed away." A poet wrote,

"Oh why do people waste their breath

Inventing dainty names for death?"

I remember the first time that Leah ever went to a funeral home. She didn't know what to expect in seeing a dead person. She said, "He looks like he is asleep." That's what we want to see. We surround a coffin with life - flowers and plants - and doing everything to make the deceased look as though he is alive and sleeping. I have seen only one dead body which had not yet been taken to the mortician. Some of you will recall, two and a half years ago, when my grandmother died. It was on a Sunday. As I walked into my home after Sunday morning services, the phone was ringing. The message was that grandma was having difficulty breathing and I should come immediately to the nursing home. I phoned my day and told him, he told me he would call the rest of the children and come immediately. I rushed to the nursing home and into grandma's room. She had died a few minutes earlier. The nurse had wanted to delay me entering the room until she had time to improve the looks of the body. But I walked into the room before she had time to catch me. There was nothing to disguise the stark reality of grandma's death.

Most people do not like to be confronted with the reality and inevitability of death. We prefer to soften that reality as much as possible. But, friend, all of us must come to terms with the truth that death is unavoidable. We know that it is truth but we'd rather not think about it. Like Scarlett O'Hara, we tell ourselves, "I don't want to think about today. I'll think about that tomorrow." Or like Woody Allen we might say, "I'm not afraid to die, I just don't want to be there when it happens." There is a certain natural fear of death. Sociologist Ernest Becker wrote, "Of all things that move men, one of the principal ones is his terror of death" (From The Denial of Death). The Bible speaks of the fear of death as a bondage (Heb. 2:15). But you don't need a preacher to tell you that death is unavoidable. The newscaster, the doctor, and the preacher all have the same message. The Bible tells us this over and over. Gen. 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. Psalm 89:48 What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Romans 5:12 ...so death passed upon all men... James 4:14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. Heb. 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. Solomon has spoken often of death in this Book of Ecclesiastes (see 1:4; 2:14-17; 3:18-20; 5:15-16; 6:6; 8:8). And in our text, the first ten verses tell us again that death is unavoidable. Death is not an accident but an appointment that every person will keep. Death is not a respecter of persons. Death has no favorites - young and old, rich and poor, educated and ignorant, Christians and atheists all die. Verses 2-3 remind us of our common destiny on earth.

In light of the inevitability of death, Solomon points out 4 important truths.

The righteous are in the hand of God, v.1. There are two important meanings to that phrase "the hand of God." First, it reminds us of the sovereignty of God. If we say, "It's out of my hands" we mean that we have no control or power over what happens. But Solomon reminds us that though it may be out of our hands, it is in the hand of God. We do not know what awaits us in the future - love or hatred, blessing or sorrow. But God is never out of control. He is sovereign over the lives of his righteous and wise children. But this phrase also reminds us of our security in God. Jesus said, (John 10:28-29) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. The only safe and absolutely secure place for anyone to be is in the Father's hand. And that's where the righteous are. It is significant to notice, that no such thing is said about the unsaved. The saved and the unsaved have a common destiny on earth (death) but totally different destinies in eternity.

Evil is in the heart of man, v. 3b. "The heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead." Evil and insanity reside in the human heart! We have all heard of the doctrine of depravity. "There is none righteous, no not one" (Rom. 3:10). "For all have sinned ..." (Rom. 3:23). "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). That's depravity. But have you ever heard of the doctrine of insanity? "Madness is in their heart." What an awful mixture- meanness and madness. It's true isn't it? Think about the moral insanity of our day or the suicidal insanity. Or, how about materialistic madness? It is a mad, mad, mad, mad world! People do insane things. Like walk away from their family. We are all prodigals who do crazy and corrupt things, who have to "come to ourselves" before we will hasten to the Father.

The righteous are secure in God's hand but who is righteous? No one! "There is none righteous, not even one." We must become righteous. And the only way to become righteous is for God to impute His righteousness within us. That's what happens when we repent of sin and trust in Jesus Christ. 2 Cor. 5:21 For he hath made (Christ) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Romans 4 tells us that God imputed righteousness within Abraham on the basis of faith, and that He does the same for us.

After you die, it's too late to get saved, vss.4-6. Where there is life, there is still hope, v. 4. There is hope of salvation if you are alive. But after you die, it is too late. There will be no second chance, no purgatory, no halfway house. Life, then is the time for decision, the time to prepare for eternity. Dogs were not domesticated during ancient Bible times. They were wild, vicious scavengers that ran in dangerous packs. The Jews hated dogs. To be called a dog was a terrible insult. Lions were considered proud and noble beasts. They were the symbol for the tribe of Judah. But Solomon says that a "living dog is better than a dead lion." From an earthly viewpoint, once you die your knowledge of things in this life is gone, your memory is wiped out (v. 5) and your human, physical emotions, the ability to love or hate or envy are also perished (v. 6). That is not to say that the grave is the end - certainly in both heaven and hell there is knowledge and feelings. Solomon's point is that after you are dead, it's too late to do anything about your life. You cannot add to your eternal reward or inheritance then. While you are living is the only time to prepare for eternity.

If you are prepared to die, you are able to really live, vs. 7-10. These verses are great counsel for how to really live 365 days a year. Instead of dreading death, we should live life! Solomon starts with the phrase "Go thy way" which means "Don't sit around and brood about dying or think about living. Get up and go live!" Enjoy your meals, v. 7. Verse 8 says to always wear white and don't be afraid to splurge with ointment (perfumed fragrance). Is that to be taken literal? Jews wore white and wore perfume for special occasions. Solomon is saying, "Make every occasion special." Enjoy your marriage, v. 9. If you love your wife (and you should, Eph. 5:25), enjoy living with her. This is the greatest human relationship that this world has to offer. Enjoy your work, v. 10. Work hard and do your very best. You won't be working, humanly speaking, in the grave. The first important lesson which Solomon makes is that death is unavoidable.

Life Is Unpredictable, 9:11-18.

Not only is death undeniable, life is unpredictable. There is a great deal of uncertainty to life. Prov 27:1 Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. James 4:14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. Things don't always turn out the way you would think. Ability is no guarantee of success, vs. 11-12. The swiftest doesn't always win the race, the strongest doesn't always win the battle, the smartest doesn't always earn the most money. We are all the victims of circumstance. Like fish caught in the net or birds captured in a snare, bad things happen to mean at inopportune and unpredictable times.

To illustrate this point, Solomon tells a little parable, vs. 13-15. In the story, one would predict that a little city with few men would quickly fall to a mighty king who spared no expense building big bulwarks. But that's not what happened. For the battle is not always to the strong. The little city was delivered. The hero was a poor but wise man. Once again, we would predict that this man would be rewarded bountifully by the grateful city. Yet he was completely forgotten. "Neither is there bread to the wise." I get the idea that Solomon used a real event that he knew about to illustrate the unpredictability of life.

He makes his applications in verses 16-18. First, although it is better to be smart than to be strong, even wisdom will not make you popular nor prestigious. He is not necessarily heard best who screams the loudest, v. 17. Wisdom is better than the weapons of war, but one wicked person can destroy a lot of good. Boy, is that ever a true statement. Adam sinned a brought the fall of the whole human race. Achan sinned and brought defeat to the whole nation of Israel. Absalom sinned and led a nation into civil war. The power of one man to reek havoc on many is undeniable. It just goes to show you how unpredictable life is.

The inevitability of death and the unpredictability of life are two very important discoveries which every person should make. We should "come to terms with reality."

Death is unavoidable and life is unpredictable. Knowing that, there are these four things to remember. The righteous are secure in the hand of God. Evil and insanity are in the heart of man. After you die, it is too late to be saved. And if you are prepared to die, you are able to really live. You need to think about dying.

I once read the testimony of a woman who finally convinced her unsaved husband to go to church with her. She prayed so hard that the pastor would preach a message that would touch his heart and lead him to salvation. Well, the pastor was preaching through Genesis and was in chapter 5. Genesis 5 is a genealogy. The whole chapter! The pastor read the chapter and made some applications about some of the men's lives. Needless to say, the woman was very disappointed. But to her amazement, during the invitation, her husband walked the aisle and was saved! She couldn't believe it! Afterward she asked him what, in the sermon, had brought him to salvation. He answered, "As the pastor was reading about all those men, the Bible kept saying, 'And he died.'" (Genesis 5 uses that phrase eight times). "I got thinking about it and it occurred to me that I am also going to die. I need to be ready for eternity." How about you? Are you prepared to die? Are you ready to face eternity?