The Vanity of Our Living

Scripture Reading: Ecclesiastes 2:3-11

“Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done And on the labor in which I had toiled; And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun.”—Ecclesiastes 2:11

The Bible tells us God gave Solomon more wisdom and understanding than anyone in the history of humankind (1 Kings 3:12). In addition, God granted Solomon riches and honor, and 1 Kings goes on to report Solomon’s wealth, administration over Israel, building projects and the acclaim given to him.
 
Near the end of his life, Solomon recorded the book of Ecclesiastes which chronicled his lifelong lessons learned. Solomon spoke of pursuing pleasure, developing knowledge, amassing property and wealth, and entertainment through various pursuits. Solomon declared, “Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, For my heart rejoiced in all my labor; And this was my reward from all my labor” (v10).
 
In the end, he determined all he had accumulated, all that he had achieved and all that he knew through his wisdom, he failed to be satisfied. Solomon lamented “Then I hated all my labor in which I had toiled under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who will come after me. And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool?” (v18-19).
 
Today we seemingly work harder and longer, and operate under increasingly more stress as we try to prepare for the future, even work to leave a legacy for future generations. Yet, Solomon speaks from his unlimited wisdom to tell us to be careful, the work we do will not fulfill us. The material legacy we leave to others may be squandered. The pursuit of pleasure will not result in gratification.

After all his experiences, Solomon concludes the greatest wisdom of his living with, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).