What is the meaning of life? Why do we exist? Does life have purpose or are we just pointless animals doomed to oblivion? Every human being has asked some form of these questions. We wonder if there is significance to our existence because we desperately crave meaning and purpose. Because without purpose, our lives are just pitiful blips in the vast universe.
How someone answers this fundamental question determines everything about their life. Many philosophers have tackled this question, but their answers vary and often fail to bring true satisfaction. Some philosophers embrace humanism, the idea that humans are basically good and can fix their own problems. These people believe that there is a spark of goodness in humanity that must be educated or focused on to fix the problems we face in the world. However, such naïve claims were squashed in the world wars of the 20th Century. After witnessing the brutal power of man, many people rejected the idea that we are basically good. Although with the recent advances in technology, such ideas are resurfacing.
Some philosophers that are not satisfied with these answers embrace nihilism, which rejects any absolute truth or purpose to human life. Like many secular philosophies, such a view is impractical to the highest degree. Even those that embrace this view must contradict their own thinking on a daily basis. If life has no meaning or purpose, why would we even ask the question? Why would we eat, sleep, love, or live? A monkey doesn’t ponder the meaning of life. A bacterium on the bottom of your shoe doesn’t question its significance in the universe. Then why are humans cursed to face this question?
Thankfully, the Bible is not silent on this matter. In fact, there’s a whole book in Scripture devoted to this question. In Ecclesiastes, the author (King Solomon, in my humble opinion) is tackling this very question. Throughout the book, King Solomon considers the different answers that man gives for his purpose in this universe. However, Solomon determines these philosophies to be “vanity.” The term “vanity” is used frequently throughout this book. Our 21st Century minds may think of a magazine or place when we see this term, but its definition is very important. According to Strong’s Complete Dictionary, “vanity” means, “something transitory and unsatisfactory, empty.[1]” Solomon illustrates this term with the phrase, “striving after wind.” If I went outside on a windy day and tried to grasp the wind in my hands, I’d be considered crazy. No matter how hard I try, I can’t grab the passing wind. This picture describes man’s attempts to find meaning and satisfaction in this world. Man lives “under the sun” and his life is a brief moment of endless striving.
Because of sin, man has rebelled against his Creator and desperately tries to find meaning in this world. However, the creation can never replace the Creator. Therefore, this world with all its pleasures, philosophies, and possessions can never truly satisfy your soul. And thus, the premise of King Solomon’s book, Ecclesiastes.
[1] James Strong, The New Strong’s Complete Dictionary of Bible Words (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1996), 350.