Ecclesiastes 1-2 [summary notes]
All is vanity [1v1-11]
"What does man gain by all the toil and which he toils under the sun?"
A lot of toil seems pretty meaningless.
"A generation goes... comes... but the earth remains... The sun rises... the sun goes down... the sun hastens to the place where it rises... The wind blows to the south... and goes around to the north... around and around it goes... and returns... All streams run to the sea... but the see is never full...What has been is what will be... what has been done is what will be done... there is nothing new under the sun... All has already been in the ages before us..."
Many things in nature and the world never change.
"All things are full of weariness a man cannot utter it, a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing."
Our desires are not satisfied here, the world is a weariness.
"There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of later things to be those who come after."
Most of the things that happen on earth are forgotten.
The vanity of wisdom [1v12-18]
"I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind 'What is crooked cannot be made straight'."
A lot of what we do on earth is an unhappy business (fighting for survival, arguments, illness). Many things on earth are pretty meaningless struggles. Many things that are dysfunctional on earth cannot be fixed.
"I have said in my heart, "I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge". And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this is also a striving after wind. 'For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.'"
Wisdom can lead you to realize how meaningless some things are, wisdom can make you angry, and wisdom can make you depressed. The pursuit of joy through wisdom alone is not guaranteed.
The vanity of self-indulgence [2v1-10]
"I said in my heart... I will test you with pleasure... I said of laughter 'what use is it?''... I searched how to cheer my body with wine and how to lay hold on folly... I made great works and houses and vineyards... I bought slaves and had great possessions... I gathered silver and gold and treasure... I had many concubines and singers... So I became great and surpassed all who were before me and whatever my eyes desired I did not keep in them... my heart found pleasure in all my toil until I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it and behold it was all vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun."
There is a joy to be had in the world's things, but if we make them everything then they'll lose all meaning. Often it is only when we take the time to reflect on what we've prioritized that we see the lack of meaning in certain things.
The vanity of living wisely [2v12-17]
"I saw that there is more gain in wisdom than in folly, as there is more gain in light than in darkness. The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness."
Being wise is somehow better than being foolish, right?
"And yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them. What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so wise? I said in my heart that this also is vanity. There is no enduring remembrance of the wise or the fool. So I hated life, for all that is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind."
Whether you are wise or a fool you will not be remembered forever. If your aim is to be remembered, you're likely to find life a burden, upon reflection.
The vanity of toil [2v18-26]
"I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool?... So I gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labours because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it.... What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? For his days are full of sorrow and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest."
We all must leave behind our earthly possessions to another person, and we may not agree with how that person uses them. Striving to create some great legacy is not a reliable source of joy - and the sorrow, anger and stress that comes from your work will likely overwhelm you.
"There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God. For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God."
Finding joy in our toil is a good thing, God knows that life is a vexation and sorrowful. But we do need to keep God at the centre of our lives.
