Who is the wealthiest person in the world? How you answer this question depends on how you define wealth. Is wealth purely a number? Or is it much more than that? Most people are aware that money does not equal happiness. So then what is the value of riches and fame? In Ecclesiastes 5-6 Solomon considers the value of riches, fame, and possessions in his quest for the meaning of life. Once again, he finds that these things are bitterly disappointing. I believe Solomon turned back to these common pursuits because he knew his own heart, and he knew that most people would think that these things would satisfy. Many of us believe- “If I only had more… then I’d be happy.” But King Solomon, the man who literally had it all, says otherwise. In Ecclesiastes 5:8-6:12 Solomon gives three facts about wealth and honor:

The first fact is wealth and honor are vanity because people are corrupted by sin (Eccl. 5:8-17). Because of sin, every level of man’s authority is corrupt. The wealthy and powerful are wicked. Powerful people violate justice and righteousness. Although a good king is very beneficial, they are few and far between. Because of sin, man has an insatiable desire for more. Possessions and money are temporary. Often the more money you have, the more problems you experience. Money is fleeting. Solomon is reminding us that the wealth of this world will never satisfy your soul. The wealthy have no peace, so therefore they cannot rest. Because of sin, death ruins the promise of wealth. All riches are lost in the grave. You came into this world with nothing, and you’ll take nothing with you when you die. Living for wealth is striving after the wind.

Next, the second fact is wealth and honor can be enjoyed with God (Eccl. 5:18-20). Solomon takes a sudden turn in this discussion. After explaining the vanity of worldly wealth, he turns to the positive side. The things of this world can be enjoyed but they must be enjoyed with God. To enjoy our possessions, we must recognize that the common things in life are from God. Life itself is a gift from God, so we need to give Him the glory for all we have. So, when we sit down for a delicious meal, we praise God in prayer because food is a gift from God. We also need to recognize that the riches and blessings of this life are from God. Our money, houses, cars, clothes, jobs, intelligence, and abilities are gifts from God. We must accept these things as gifts and rejoice in God’s graciousness. This is why God desires us to be content and humble. Solomon is showing us that life with God is enjoyable. When we have a relationship with our Creator, we find true satisfaction.

And finally, the third fact is wealth and honor without God are vanity (Eccl. 6:1-12). In contrast to the one who walks with God, someone who has great wealth, but doesn’t have the God-given ability to enjoy it, is miserable. Wealth and honor without God’s blessing are vanity. This shows us God’s sovereignty even over the feelings and emotions of mankind. God controls everything and that includes our emotions and desires. If someone tries to find joy without Him, they will fail. A long and wealthy life without joy is vanity. Solomon says in verse 3 that if someone lives a long life with children, possessions, and wealth but has no joy, then they’re worse off than the stillborn child.

Furthermore, without God, man’s labors are vanity. We toil to fill our belly, but our appetite is never satisfied. No matter how much we eat, we will still get hungry. Both the fool and the wise cannot find satisfaction in this world. Solomon says it’s better to be content with what you have, than to constantly desire more. And finally, Solomon concludes this discussion with the reality that man cannot help himself. Man is weak and powerless. We can’t change the past and we have no power over the future. We can’t fix our greatest problem. 

Wealth and honor will never satisfy your soul. But God can! Solomon is pointing us to God. Only God can give you true joy and meaning in life. The good news is, we can have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. If we trust in Christ for salvation, then we are reconciled to God. We can enjoy this life when our sins are forgiven by the blood of Jesus at the moment we put our faith in Him alone. As Christians, we can trust God with our money, possessions, and abilities because He’s in control. God knows what’s good for us. He knows what tomorrow will bring. He can fix our problems. So, we should submit to God, acknowledge our weaknesses, and trust our Creator.

What does it mean to fear God? Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” If we want to be wise, then we need to understand this truth. In Ecclesiastes 5:1-7, Solomon describes three actions that demonstrate the fear of the Lord. Last week we saw that to fear God is to worship Him in humility. This week we’ll discuss the other two actions:

To fear God is to honor Him in prayer (Eccl. 5:2-3). Solomon warns us to not be rash or hasty with our words, especially when we’re talking to God. We don’t want to disrespect God with our words. Solomon is teaching us a lesson about prayer. When we talk to God in prayer, we need to carefully choose our words. Solomon says this is important because “God is in heaven and you are on earth.” God is transcendent. That means He is above all others. He is distinct from everything else. No one can compare to Him in power, wisdom, and authority. God is holy. He is perfectly good. As we’ve seen, man is not. Mankind is corrupted by sin. We should keep this distinction in mind when we address God. When we pray, we talk to the Sovereign Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. So, heed Solomon’s warning and let your words be few.

On the other hand, the fool is careless with his words. The fool is always talking and never shuts his mouth. Likewise, his prayers are filled with empty words and selfish demands. Jesus talked about this in Luke 18. Christ condemns those that come to God with arrogance and selfish desires. Christ commends those who humble themselves and approach God with reverence. We must be careful with our words in prayer. We don’t want to be the fool who heaps up empty phrases with no reverence for God. We want to honor God in our prayers by approaching Him with humility and awe.

Finally, to fear God is to promptly obey Him (Eccl. 5:4-7). Solomon demonstrates the necessity of quick obedience with the example of making vows. In those days, vows were made to God as a promise of obedience. They were usually made before a priest of the temple. In Deuteronomy 23, God’s people were warned about the seriousness of making a vow before God. Verse 21 says, “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin.” Solomon is reminding God’s people to keep their vows with swift obedience.

The fool will make rash promises before God. God is not pleased when we fail to keep our promises because it’s contrary to His nature. He’s a covenant-keeping God. That means, the primary way that He interacts with His people is based on His promises. So when we fail to keep our promises, we’re acting against His holy nature.

We need to be careful with what we promise. If we don’t promptly obey God, then we subject ourselves to retribution. God will punish the disobedient and dishonest. We need to remember Proverbs 10:19 – “When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.” Thoughtful words and diligent obedience demonstrate the fear of God.

We must fear God in humble worship, honorable prayer, and diligent obedience. Christians must seek to obey God with diligence. This means we need to study God’s Word so that we can live His Word. Our words are often vain and careless, but God’s Word is eternal, true, and powerful. To fear God is to obey Him by obeying His Word. All of God’s actions are to bring His people to fear Him. Our purpose on this earth is to fear God.

Mankind is sick. We’re all infected with the deadliest disease in the world. It’s not COVID-19 or malaria or cancer. This disease has killed more people than anything else. So, what’s our diagnosis? Sin. We’re all infected with sin. And this infection is terminal. King Solomon witnessed the nasty disease of sin as he searched for meaning. In Ecclesiastes 4 he writes about the corruption of mankind. In the last two weeks we learned that God’s plan will never fail because He controls all things. One day God will judge mankind and make all things new. But for now, we live in a sin-cursed, sin-dominated, and sin-infatuated world. Solomon proves that mankind is corrupted by sin with two facts:

The first fact is man’s authority is corrupt (Eccl. 4:1-3). The powerful oppress the weak. Governments are known for being corrupt, dishonest, and oppressive. Most of human history is dominated by tyrannical governments that abused their power for selfish gain. As Solomon looked at the history of the world, it was clear to him that people with power are often oppressive. But it’s not just governments, husbands have abused their families, employers have mistreated their employees, and social elites have abused and mocked the outcast. The truth is man uses power for evil because we’re corrupted by sin.

Sadly, man is getting worse. Everyone that has lived has seen the evil of mankind. Solomon says the dead and non-existent are better off because this world is only getting worse. Man is not getting better! Even with the great advances in technology over the last hundred years man is not becoming good. The internet has provided man with access to all kinds of profanity. The advances in transportation have also led to an increase in human trafficking and drug trade. Although things like the internet and transportation are not bad in and of themselves, man has found a way to use them for evil. 

The second fact is man’s motivations are evil (Eccl. 4:4-16). Solomon describes three sinful motivations. First, man is often motivated by envy. Our work, art, and skillful labor is motivated by covetousness. Our lack of satisfaction with our own lives leads us to think that everyone else has it better. So, we envy people’s money and possessions and work tirelessly to get what they have. Solomon says this is vanity. 

Solomon gives two extremes of man’s sinful lifestyles: laziness and living solely for work. Both are foolish. Laziness is sinful. The fool folds his hands, refuses to work, and because of it he’s forced to eat his own flesh. The other person overexerts himself because he’s chasing after more. He works tirelessly to get ahead and acquire more things for himself. Wisdom is being content with little and not overworking yourself trying to earn much. 

Second, we see that man is often motivated by selfish greed. This is also vanity. Solomon describes a life of endless toil and dissatisfaction. The point is selfishly pursuing riches will never satisfy. Greed is vanity because it’s a waste of time. Man works so hard his whole life to have a “good” life but wastes his life in the process. Our selfish greed drives others away and causes loneliness. We’ve all seen the movies with the husband that is always working and never home and eventually he loses his family because of it. Greed only brings loneliness and pain.

The third evil motivation that drives man is the pursuit of prestige. This motivation is vanity because power, prestige, and fame are temporary. Being popular and well-liked is a fleeting commodity. Solomon illustrates this with a short story about a king who ascended to the throne from poverty. This is a classic rags to riches story. At first the king was well-liked by his people. But eventually he forgot his roots and became proud and foolish in his old age. He refused to listen and take advice. The kingdom that once loved him would look forward to his successor because their king had become foolish. Fame and prestige are temporary and fleeting. 

This is the sad state of mankind. Man’s authority is corrupted by sin. Instead of using it for good, we use it to oppress the weak. Man’s motivations are evil. Because of sin, we are separated from God. We have no hope in ourselves. Our hope must come from someone else. Although power and evil desires corrupt mankind, there was one person that was never corrupted by sin. That person was Jesus Christ. But Jesus was no ordinary man. He is God in human flesh. He came to this earth to die for our sins so that we could have eternal life with Him. He is our only hope. God is all-powerful and will judge those that use their power for evil. He will also comfort those that turn to Him in their affliction. So, if you’re tired of searching for comfort and relief in this world, then turn to Christ. Jesus Christ is the only hope for your soul. He is the only One that can fix your problem with sin because He can forgive your sin. Jesus is our only hope.

It’s no secret that our world is full of wickedness. Prisons are full. The court system is swamped with cases of all kinds of illegal activity. The news is filled with fresh stories of corruption in government, religious groups, and social elites. However, this rampant wickedness is nothing new. Ecclesiastes 3:16 says, “Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.” Solomon observed the world around him and all he saw was evil. This is a puzzling fact considering that Solomon just wrote about the sovereignty of God and His control over everything. Last week we learned that God has a time and purpose for everything on this earth. So then why is there so much wickedness? In Ecclesiastes 3:16-22, Solomon addresses this question with the third fact about God’s sovereign plan for the world.

The third fact is, God will judge everyone on this earth. Governments are corrupt. Judicial systems are corrupt. Society is corrupt. From our perspective, we wonder, “If God has a plan for everything, then why is there so much evil?” Solomon reminds us in verse 17 that God has a plan for evil- “I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work.” The fact is judgment is coming. Everyone has a divinely appointed judgment. Everyone is accountable to God and will stand before Him in judgment. God will deal with sin. He will punish the wicked for their sin. If you reject God and live for this world, then He will not be merciful on judgment day. Everything has a time, even judgment. So, although wickedness prevails right now, God will judge mankind and put an end to sin.

Solomon uses the rest of the chapter to address the implied response, “Okay, prove it! We believe that God is good and that He has a plan for everything, but how do we know that He will deal with sin?” The answer is death. Death is the proof of the coming judgment. Death is a reminder from God that we are accountable to Him. Everything we say, do, or think will be judged after death. Death is the penalty for sin, and everyone dies. No one can escape death.

Man dies just like the animals. The beasts of the earth die and return to the ground. Likewise, man dies and there’s nothing he can do to stop this coming disaster. One day your heart will stop beating and your lungs will stop breathing, and you’ll return to the dust. “All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return” (v. 20). Death is a mystery. Death is frightening. Almost every 5-year-old has asked their parents, “What happens when we die?” Solomon’s answer is clear- when you die, God will judge you. 

Solomon isn’t afraid of the hard questions. He doesn’t sugarcoat the question or the answer. His answer to the problem of evil is- God will judge sin, and death is proof of this coming judgment. But we can’t miss the final verse in this chapter. Ecclesiastes 3:22 – “So I saw that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for that is his lot. Who can bring him to see what will be after him?” This is a shocking twist after discussing the inevitable nature of death and judgment. Solomon gives us a glimpse of hope. Our only hope is to live for God.

Although death is coming, life can be enjoyed with God. He created life. He knows what’s best for His creation. If we work and live for God, then our lives will not be in vain. Enjoying God’s plan for life brings true satisfaction. We can’t count on the future because we’re not promised tomorrow. So Solomon points us back to verse 14 and the need to fear God. 

Our plans fail, but God’s plan will never fail. He has a time for everything, a purpose for everything, and everyone will face His judgment. He has a purpose for the sin and suffering of this world. He has a plan. So don’t live for yourself or for this world. Recognize that life is a gift of God and use your life to serve the Eternal Creator and Sovereign King.

Have you ever made plans just to have them fail? When I was sixteen, my family went camping in Watkins Glen, New York. We planned to stay for two nights and enjoy a nice vacation together. However, the weather had other plans. It rained the whole second day we were there, and everyone quickly became miserable. So, after very little discussion, we packed up and drove home to have a pizza party. Our plan failed. Human plans fail because there’s too many things outside of our control. We can’t control the weather, other people, or the future. Unlike us, God controls everything, and His plan will never fail. In Ecclesiastes 3, Solomon shows us that God has a sovereign plan for everything and our lives are included in it. To prove this point, Solomon gives three facts about God’s sovereign plan for the world. Today we’ll look at the first two:

The first fact is, God has a time for everything on this earth (Eccl. 3:1-8). In this list of times, the point is- everything has a divinely appointed time. Solomon lists common events like birth and death, planting and harvesting, killing and healing, building up and breaking down, mourning and dancing, war and peace, etc. These common events happen all around the world, and yet every single one of them is a part of God’s plan. He is fully aware of each event because He planned them all. God has total control over time. Theologians refer to this as God’s Providence. Solomon says, “for everything there is a season.” Every event in history is a part of God’s eternal plan. He is the Ruler of the Universe and the Author of History.

The second fact in this chapter about God’s sovereign plan is that He has a purpose for everything on this earth (Eccl. 3:9-15). Considering God’s control over time, Solomon explains that everything has a divinely appointed purpose. In verse 9, Solomon practically asks the question, “What’s the purpose of man’s existence?” To answer this question, he states that God has made everything beautiful in its time. Man can labor all he wants but can’t control time. But God is beyond time because He created it. So, the beauty of everything’s time is that God has planned it for a greater purpose. 

In verse 11, we see that God has given man a desire for purpose. He has put “eternity into man’s heart.” That means we desire significance in the universe. We look at the big picture and wonder, “Why am I here?” We long for meaning because God has put this in our hearts. We’re never satisfied with the things of this world because they’re passing away. We’re bound by time, but our souls are set on eternity. Ultimately, this is a desire for God Himself. This desire to have meaning and purpose is not bad. Sadly, because of sin it has led people away from God. But God gave us this insatiable desire for Himself because God is the highest good and meaning can only be found in Him. In verses 12-13, Solomon concludes that man should use his life to please God and enjoy life as a gift from God. Instead of trying to find joy in this world, we can find it in God. Instead of trying to satisfy our desire for meaning with vanity, we can rest in the grace of God. Life can be joyful and good when we have a relationship with our Creator. 

Then in verses 14-15, we see God’s purpose for everything. Solomon describes God’s actions. Everything God does is eternal and secure. Nobody can change what God has done. Nobody can add to or subtract from His power. Then Solomon says, “God has done it, so that people fear before him.” Spoiler alert! Solomon just gave away the ending. This is the conclusion to the whole matter. What is God’s purpose for everything He does with mankind? All of God’s actions are to bring people to fear Him. We’ll talk more about what it means to fear God later, but for now we will summarize it as knowing, trusting, and obeying Him. His actions should cause us to fear Him. His actions are final. Nothing can thwart His plan. No one is more powerful, more knowledgeable, or better than God. So, we should fear Him.

God is sovereign over time, and He has a purpose for all of time. He can handle everything in your life. So don’t worry about friends, finances, or your future. God is in control. Life does have purpose because God created it. Therefore, the purpose of life is to fear God. That means the purpose of your existence is to fear God. You were created to know, trust, and obey God. Sin has separated us from God, but thankfully Christ paid for our sins on the cross so that we can be forgiven and restored to a relationship with God. Do you know Christ as your Savior? Are you trusting in Jesus for salvation? Only He can reconcile us to God and provide true joy. 

What do all these people have in common- Julius Caesar, George Washington, Betty White, and Steve Jobs? They’re all dead. Each of them was wealthy, successful, and powerful, but all of them died. Last week we looked at the vanity of pleasure. We concluded that the things of this world can never bring true satisfaction because they don’t last, and they don’t fix our problem with death. Death is the problem we all face in this world and Solomon is wrestling with the question: “Can life have meaning?” Today we’ll look at the rest of Ecclesiastes 2 and discover that the meaning of life cannot be found in this world, but it can be found in God. As Solomon examines the vanity of this world in Ecclesiastes 2, he gives three facts about life.

The first fact is found in verses 12-17, where Solomon says that living for this world is vanity because death comes to all. Solomon considered wisdom and foolishness and discovered that wisdom is more profitable. Walking in light is better than walking in darkness. Wisdom will get you money and success. Foolishness will get you in prison or killed. So, wisdom is better but ultimately death comes to all. 

It doesn’t matter how smart you are, or how rich or poor, you will die someday. Death comes to all by age, tragedy, or disease. Death is no respecter of persons. Therefore, no amount of success in this world will give you satisfaction and meaning because it won’t help in the end. Both the wise and the fool will be forgotten. Most people that live on this earth are forgotten when they die. Those that are remembered are only ideas or statues, not living people. A life spent on the vanity of this world is miserable because life without God is meaningless.

The second fact is, living for this world is vanity because everything you work for will be given away (Eccl. 2:18-23). Everything you earn will be given to someone else when you die. You don’t know what they’ll do with your possessions because you’ll be dead. They might waste your riches or invest them, but it doesn’t matter because you’ll be gone. Possessions and wealth are vanity because they don’t last forever. No matter how hard you work for something, you can’t take it with you when you die. This world can only offer sorrow and frustration. We work all our days only to reap sorrow. We toil day and night to find rest only to be frustrated.  

The third fact is, living for God brings true joy and satisfaction (Eccl. 2:24-26). Finally, we have some good news. Solomon shifts to the answer to our problem. Instead of giving up on life and being completely hopeless, Solomon turns to God for the answer. The truth is, we can enjoy life and work if we live for God. God is the ultimate source of joy and satisfaction. There’s nothing better for a person than a relationship with God. We can enjoy life, work, and success when we are living for God.

God will bless those that please Him and curse those that reject Him. Why is God the only One that can satisfy your soul? Because He created it! Those who seek to worship and serve their Creator will find wisdom, knowledge, and joy. God blesses those that please Him. But those who reject God and continue in their sin will be cursed to a life of misery and vanity. Here’s the cold hard truth- if you live for this world, your life will be meaningless! But if you live for God and seek His glory, your life will have eternal value.

Death is our problem in life. The Bible tells us that we all die because of sin. Sins separates us from God, and the penalty for sin is death. This is why we can’t find meaning and purpose in this world. Nothing this world can offer will save you. We must look to God for salvation. Only God can satisfy your soul because He created you. He made you to worship and enjoy Him forever. True joy can only be found in God. 

Thankfully, we can have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. If you confess Christ as your Lord and Savior, believing in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom. 10:9). God offers salvation through His Son. So don’t fall into the trap of trying to replace God with the worthless things of this world. Don’t worship the creation over the Creator. Seek God’s glory above all and you’ll find true meaning and joy.

“They have it so good! If I only had more… (fill in the blank), then I’d be happy.” Does that sound familiar? Maybe you’ve said something like this before. Our 21^st Century American minds are incredibly materialistic. For instance, when you get a surprise bonus at work, where does your mind immediately go to? Is it a vehicle, a project around the house, or a vacation? We tend to think more money means more happiness. But this idea couldn’t be further from the truth. How do I know? Because God said so in Ecclesiastes 2:1-11.

Remember, Solomon is on a quest for the meaning of life. In this passage, he described his test of pleasure and self-indulgence. As we examine this section, we need to keep in mind that Solomon’s net worth was estimated to be around $2 trillion dollars in today’s currency. According to Forbes.com, that’s wealthier than Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates combined! Solomon had it all. He was the richest man to ever walk the earth. However, those riches didn’t provide meaning and satisfaction. The truth is the pleasures of this world cannot provide the meaning of life.

Solomon used his wealth to experience all this world had to offer. He tried substances. He cheered his body with wine and planted great vineyards. He tried to find meaning in great accomplishments. In verses 4-8, we have a list of all his amazing works. He built houses and made great gardens with pools and trees. Solomon had servants and livestock. He gathered silver and gold and many treasures. He entertained himself with singers, dancers, and mistresses (700 wives & 300 concubines). Solomon held nothing back from providing himself with fun, entertainment, and pleasure. In verse 10 he says, “Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure…” King Solomon had everything he wanted. Surely this was satisfying, right? Not even close.

In verse 11, we see Solomon’s conclusion to the test of self-indulgence, “Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.” You can have all that this world offers, and it will prove empty! You’ll probably never be as rich as Solomon, so take his word for it – the pleasures of this world are vanity. They will never satisfy your soul. Pleasure, fun, and happiness are not the meaning of life.

The pleasures of this world cannot provide satisfaction and meaning. Alcohol, drugs, and foolishness cannot provide meaning and happiness. Money, possessions, and sex cannot provide meaning and happiness. Only God provides true satisfaction and meaning. King David stated in Psalm 16:11 – “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” The meaning of life is only found in the Creator of life. And by His goodness and grace, He offers eternal joy to those who call upon Him in faith.

Road trips are exciting. Many of us have childhood memories of packing the whole family in a car, traveling to a beach or campground, and enjoying a nice family vacation. There’s always a mix of emotions at the start of a long road trip. The kids are excited, the parents are usually overwhelmed, and mom is always nervous. If you’ve ever been on a road trip, then you know it’s vital to prepare. You need snacks, gas, money, directions, clothes, and extra socks. The book of Ecclesiastes is like a long road trip. Solomon is on a quest for the meaning of life. The first chapter lays out the map, introduces the guide (King Solomon) and the supplies for the journey. Last week we looked at Solomon’s introduction where he pointed us to the vanity of this world. As we noted, Solomon is hinting at the fact that the meaning of life can only be found in God. Today we’ll discuss Solomon’s first stop on his journey for the meaning of life in Ecclesiastes 1:12-18.

Solomon had all the resources he needed to complete this quest. He was the king of Israel. Under his reign, Israel experienced unprecedented peace and prosperity. Certainly, if anyone could find meaning and fulfillment in this life, a king could. He used his resources to experience everything this world had to offer. Ecclesiastes 1:13 says he applied his “heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven.” As a king, Solomon had the money, power, and time to do anything he wanted.

In verses 13-14, He gives the conclusion of everything this world has to offer – it’s all vanity. He says, “It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.” Man has an insatiable desire to find meaning in the things of this world, but this desire only leads to frustration. God gave humans the desire for purpose. That desire has been corrupted by sin resulting in frustration and anxiety. Because of sin, mankind is so arrogant that we live our whole lives trying to escape death and God that we waste our lives on a futile task. Our efforts to know everything and to fix all our problems are constantly foiled. This world is full of vanity. The king saw enough to know that man doesn’t have the answer to the problem of death. Solomon describes this vain pursuit as “striving after wind.” This is a graphic picture of wasted effort and pointless striving. Nobody can grab the wind. It would be insane to chase the wind and try to catch it. Likewise, it’s irrational to try to find meaning in the empty things of this world.  

This world is vanity because it cannot be fixed by man. People are broken, culture is crooked, governments are corrupt, families are torn, and man can’t fix these problems. We can’t escape this vain world with wisdom or knowledge. We need a Savior. We need Someone who is powerful enough to fix all things, loving enough to help us in our brokenness, and faithful enough for us to rely on. We need God.

Solomon continues by describing the different tests he used to reach his conclusion. First, Solomon tested wisdom and experience for the answer to his problem. Solomon’s wisdom surpassed everyone else (Eccl. 1:16). Remember, God blessed Solomon with wisdom and fortune. He was smart, wealthy, and powerful. Wisdom is the ability to discern right and wrong. Knowledge is understanding facts, skills, and reasons. Solomon had both. He was brilliant. In modern terms, Solomon had a Ph.D. in the study of life.

Solomon was so thorough in his research that he even tried the opposite of wisdom by testing folly and madness. These were also vanity (Eccl. 1:17). He pursued both reason and foolishness for the meaning of life, but both were empty. Whether he sought the answer by knowledge or ignorance, both efforts were futile. 

Interestingly, Solomon doesn’t tell us how he tested wisdom and folly. We can speculate that he tested these by going to the people that employed such lifestyles. He probably went to the smart and sophisticated crowd to see what they had to say about the issue. After being disappointed, he moved on to the outcasts and wild crowd to see if they had the answer, but they weren’t helpful either. He ran with the nerds and the fools but neither of them had the meaning of life. Man’s wisdom and knowledge falls short. The “wisdom” from politicians, celebrities, or professional athletes will fall short. Man’s wisdom is vanity. 

The irony is the more you know, the more you realize you don’t know (Eccl. 1:18). When we study the world around us, we realize how small and insignificant we are. When we search out knowledge, we’re led to more questions than answers. As you learn about life, you realize there’s no escape from death. The wise man gains insight into the problems of the world and is more aware of his inability to fix those problems. If you take life seriously, then you can’t take it lightly. More knowledge means more frustration.

The fact is education, knowledge, and experience are not the meaning of life. Science can’t fix our problem with death. You can prolong your life with medicine and machines, but in the end, you will die someday. Knowledge is good, wisdom is helpful, but neither can give you meaning or purpose. A life full of experiences will not satisfy your soul. No amount of education, science, or good times will stop death from coming. So once again, we’re challenged to humble ourselves and look beyond this vain world. The meaning of life must be eternal, universal, and personal. Knowledge, wisdom, and experience are too inconsistent and inconclusive to solve your problems. That’s why we need God. Only He can fix our problems.