E-Mail: Ecclesiastes
This is an interesting e-mail exchange I had with my friend Maxey after my two entries about Ecclesiastes, “Ecclesiastes: Futility” and “Ecclesiastes: Meaning and Purpose.”
Maxey wrote:
Your information about Ecclesiastes was very good. As a matter of fact, I read the book first period, while my freshman students were watching THE ODYSSEY. I have always enjoyed Chapter 3:1-8. I guess we do live in a world of checks and balances, the good and the bad, the positives and the negatives---hopefully with more good people than bad ones.
We must realize that all of us must accept the truth, fear the Lord, and be accountable for our actions. It's too bad that we must FEAR so often in order to act properly.
Will you please explain Chapter 10:19 (A feast...)? I don't understand the part about the money.
Judy wrote:
I looked up Ecclesiastes 10:19 in several different translations, and here is the one that seems most likely to me--it's the NIV Readers version:
People laugh at a dinner party.
And wine makes life happy.
People think money can buy everything.
So it's probably not that money actually is the answer to everything, but that people think it is. What do you think?
Maxey wrote:
I understand now. The verse deals with man's thoughts, not God's. We often resort to food, alcohol, and the lust for money as an escape and alleviation for mundane problems. Instead, all we have to do is follow God and His ways, for He is the answer to everything. Sounds simple, doesn't it?
Judy wrote:
Yes, it does sound pretty simple. If only we could wrap our minds around this simple truth!
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