The author of Ecclesiastes was a "preacher," (1:1) which could also be translated "assembler," which designated someone who assembled the people publicly in order to instruct them in the way of Yahweh. This assembler had "acquired great wisdom" (v.16), which may suggest Solomon (or perhaps a "king over Israel in Jerusalem" (v.13) after Solomon). Either way, the author of the book of Ecclesiastes was a preacher of wisdom who greatly valued the process of applying knowledge to life.
So, he came up with a grand experiment to test his wisdom and to find clarity, meaning, and fulfillment in life. He determined to experience all possible pleasures "under the sun" (1:14). He sought out laughter, wine, and celebrations (2:2-3). He built houses, vineyards, parks, and gardens (vv.4-5). He amassed great riches and material wealth, both herds of livestock and precious metals like gold and silver (vv.6-8). He had all sorts of parties and denied himself no pleasure (vv.8-10). In the end, his conclusion was "all was vanity and a striving after wind" (v.11).
He did make a few unexpected conclusions along the way, however. On the one hand, he concluded "What a heavy burden God has laid on men! I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind" (1:13-14), but then he discovered he actually found some pleasure in his work of building houses and planting gardens (2:4). In fact, he actually said, "My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor" (2:10)!
One pleasant surprise we can take away from this grand life experiment is that work is a gift from God. Like building houses or gardens, we need to find things in our work that we enjoy, and press more deeply into them. We need to aspire to excellent work. We need to make goals, build progress, and work hard, for in so doing, we may be surprised just how much satisfaction God will give us in all our work under the sun.
So, he came up with a grand experiment to test his wisdom and to find clarity, meaning, and fulfillment in life. He determined to experience all possible pleasures "under the sun" (1:14). He sought out laughter, wine, and celebrations (2:2-3). He built houses, vineyards, parks, and gardens (vv.4-5). He amassed great riches and material wealth, both herds of livestock and precious metals like gold and silver (vv.6-8). He had all sorts of parties and denied himself no pleasure (vv.8-10). In the end, his conclusion was "all was vanity and a striving after wind" (v.11).
He did make a few unexpected conclusions along the way, however. On the one hand, he concluded "What a heavy burden God has laid on men! I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind" (1:13-14), but then he discovered he actually found some pleasure in his work of building houses and planting gardens (2:4). In fact, he actually said, "My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor" (2:10)!
One pleasant surprise we can take away from this grand life experiment is that work is a gift from God. Like building houses or gardens, we need to find things in our work that we enjoy, and press more deeply into them. We need to aspire to excellent work. We need to make goals, build progress, and work hard, for in so doing, we may be surprised just how much satisfaction God will give us in all our work under the sun.
