(N) Then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun. It’s smoke. The king has the last word. The Message Ecclesiastes 8:11. The Message Large-Print Deluxe Gift Bible--soft leather-look, teal, The Message Gift and Award Bible, Imitation Leather, Burgundy, The Message Bible, Compact Soft leather-look, tan, The Message Raspberry Blossom, Personal Size + Topical Concordance. 1 There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth: 2-8 A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap, A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct, A right time to cry and another to laugh, A right time to lament and another to cheer, 9 All this I saw, as I applied my mind to everything done under the sun. Ecclesiastes 10:8. 7-8 I turned my head and saw yet another wisp of smoke on its way to nothingness: a solitary person, completely alone—no children, no family, no friends—yet working obsessively late into the night, compulsively greedy for more and more, never bothering to ask, “Why am I working like a dog, never having any fun? All is vanity,” declares the Preacher, echoing the cries of many who have seen, experienced, and recognized the dreadful fallenness of our world (Eccles. No one has any say-so regarding the day of death. And instead of hedonism (“give in”) believers are encouraged to fear God. Why? 7 Since no one knows the future,    who can tell someone else what is to come?8 As no one has power over the wind to contain it,    so[a] no one has power over the time of their death.As no one is discharged in time of war,    so wickedness will not release those who practice it. I find this outrageous—the worst thing about living on this earth—that everyone’s lumped together in one fate. 2 Do what your king commands; you gave a sacred oath of obedience. There’s nothing to anything—it’s all smoke. Wisdom puts light in the eyes, And gives gentleness to words and manners. Ecclesiastes 7:8 Endings are better than beginnings. The message for today's Christians is to build a saving relationship with Jesus Christ that guarantees eternal life. A second clue is the closing of the book in chapter 12. Ecclesiastes 8:7. Jump to: Bible Study Tools; How wonderful to be wise, to analyze and interpret things. 5 Whoever obeys his command will come to no harm,    and the wise heart will know the proper time and procedure.6 For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter,(C)    though a person may be weighed down by misery. Read verse in The Message Bible 3 There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth: 2-8 A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap, A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct, The Talmud A wise man is a greater asset to a nation than a king. Don't worryingly second-guess your orders or try to back out when the task is unpleasant. The Global Message of Ecclesiastes Life in a Broken World. And gives gentleness to words and manners. There is a time when a man lords it over others to his own[b] hurt. Yes, there’s a right time and way for everything, even though, unfortunately, we miss it for the most part. Who dares say to him, “What are you doing?” Carrying out orders won’t hurt you a bit; the wise person obeys promptly and accurately. Don't worryingly second-guess your orders or try to back out when the task is unpleasant. He has seen many evils and realized that even the best of man’s achievements are worth nothing in … Yes, there's a right time and way for everything, even though, unfortunately, we miss it for the most part. He comes to the conclusion that without God, there is no truth or meaning to life. Ecclesiastes 8 The Message (MSG) 8 There’s nothing better than being wise, Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life. 1 3 There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth: 2–8 A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap, A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct, Thus Ecclesiastes dodges two extremes. Don’t worryingly second-guess your orders or try to back out when the task is unpleasant. Sticking to it is better than standing out. Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 explains it is because God has a reason and a time for all things. D. Thomas . 9 All this I observed as I tried my best to understand all that’s going on in this world. God intends us to have joy, and His program to bring it about includes all these opposites. Ecclesiastes 8:1 The Message (MSG) 8 There’s nothing better than being wise, Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life. It is a beautiful passage that I often read at funerals. The meaning is, “He who obeys the commandment (i. e., the word of the king, Ecclesiastes 8:4), will not be an accomplice in any act of rebellion; and if he be a wise man he discerns (literally knows) that the king‘s commandment or action is liable to correction, if it be wrong, in God‘s time and by God‘s judgment.” by Matt Slick | Dec 1, 2008 | Sermons, Christian Living “There is an appointed time for everything. 9 All this I saw, as I applied my mind to everything done under the sun. You’re serving his pleasure, not yours. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8) To Everything there is a Season “To everything, turn, turn, turn – there is a season, turn, turn, turn; and a time for every purpose under heaven.” As a guitar-strumming rebel-like young adult, I loved playing and singing Joni Mitchell’s musical interpretation of these words. Author of the Book of Ecclesiastes Scholars debate whether Solomon wrote this book or whether it was a compilation of texts done centuries later. No one can stop a battle in its tracks. Wisdom puts light in the eyes, And gives gentleness to words and manners. Because the sentence against evil deeds is so long in coming, people in general think they can get by with murder. 10 One time I saw wicked men given a solemn burial in holy ground. Ecclesiastes 10:9. Search as hard as you like, you’re not going to make sense of it. Instead of asceticism (“give up”) believers are encouraged to enjoy life. “Vanity of vanities! Ecclesiastes’ authorship is usually attributed to Solomon based on the first verse of the book which reads, “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem” (Ecclesiastes 1:1 ESV). Ecclesiastes 8 1 here's nothing better than being wise, Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life. 16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom(O) and to observe the labor that is done on earth(P)—people getting no sleep day or night— 17 then I saw all that God has done. Ecclesiastes 8 The Message (MSG) 8 There’s nothing better than being wise, Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life. What Is the Basic Message of Ecclesiastes? THE MESSAGE Ecclesiastes 8:8. Wisdom puts light in the eyes, And gives gentleness to words and manners. A message from the series "Ecclesiastes Exposition." In chapter 12 right time and way for everything, even though, unfortunately we! And interpret things opt in them under the sun and bring God back into the picture able... 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