Stuff of Earth - Ecclesiastes #5

Ecclesiastes 2:1-11

I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with mirth; therefore enjoy pleasure”; but surely, this also was vanity. I said of laughter—“Madness!”; and of mirth, “What does it accomplish?” I searched in my heart how to gratify my flesh with wine, while guiding my heart with wisdom, and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do under heaven all the days of their lives. I made my works great, I built myself houses, and planted myself vineyards. I made myself gardens and orchards, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. I made myself water pools from which to water the growing trees of the grove. I acquired male and female servants, and had servants born in my house. Yes, I had greater possessions of herds and flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me. I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the special treasures of kings and of the provinces. I acquired male and female singers, the delights of the sons of men, and musical instruments of all kinds.

So I became great and excelled more than all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.

Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.
I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure,
For my heart rejoiced in all my labor;
And this was my reward from all my labor.
Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun.

If it is possible to receive full satisfaction from pleasure and possessions, Solomon would have figured it out. 1 Kings chapters 4 & 10 give a more detailed account of what he collected and lavishly spent over the years. He and his household had the privilege of eating and drinking to their heart’s content every day. His servants labored over massive herds, flocks, gardens, and orchards. They built anything Solomon dreamed of building, from the first temple to his grandiose palace, traveling far and wide to retrieve the best materials for these projects. He received gold, silver, horses, and much more from his subjects and tributary kingdoms in that day. From 1 Kings 11:3, we read that Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines.

We also understand from 1 Kings 11 that Solomon’s wives and concubines persuaded him to worship the gods they worshipped, and he “did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord” (1 Kings 11:6). However, if we can be willing to remove the immoral element from this, we still see that pleasure and possessions alone cannot satisfy. This is truly “grasping for the wind.” Like the wind, the desires of this life will eventually blow away.

The only true satisfaction of this life and eternity is Jesus Christ. He is “the bread of life,” “a spring of water welling up to eternal life,” and “living water” (John 6:35, 4:14, 7:38). When we trust in Him for salvation, He will become this endless spring that will lead us to Heaven.

In Christ Alone,

Dan