Ecclesiastes week 7: Growth is Better than Ease
July 31, 2022
Ecclesiastes 7:1-14
This little section of Ecclesiastes is a series of proverbs. Most proverbs in the Hebrew tradition basically followed a pattern of “A is better than B.” They are not difficult to understand, for the most part. Sometimes there are cultural things that need to be explained. Sometimes we lose something reading them in English. Many Hebrew proverbs used clever words plays, rhyming, and alliteration. And, typically, there is no way to make those things come across in an English translation. So, sometimes we just have to miss out without learning ancient Hebrew! Feel free to do so.
The constant theme throughout this first half of the chapter is that we should choose the better things in life, and often the things that are really better in life are not the things most people would assume are better.
I often read the first few verses of this chapter at funerals. The point of them is that there is value in sorrow. There are things to be gained from difficulty.
“Going to a funeral and remembering a deceased person’s life is better than perfume.” That might seem like a strange comparison, but there’s a reason for it. When a guest came into a home for a banquet or party, they would be anointed with perfume. This was a courtesy, but it also served a practical function. People didn’t bathe very often, so if you were going to crowd fifty people into your home, you might want some perfume going on. The point of the proverb is that funerals are better than parties. There are several similar proverbs in the verses to follow, and the point of all of them is that preparing for death is better than seeking after brief and momentary happiness.
Funerals and times of mourning remind us that life is short. “Everyone dies, but not everyone goes to a party.” Many people try to avoid the thought of death. Over the years I’ve heard a few people say to me when someone dies, “You won’t see me at the funeral. I just can’t handle funeral.” Well, I hate to break it to you, but we all go to at least one funeral. Death is a certainty. The wise prepare for it. They prepare for it in terms of their relationships with others. They make sensible preparations for when they are gone. They don’t wait to tell people important things, in case they don’t get another chance. And they prepare for it spiritually. They make sure they are in right relationship with God so they can face him someday.
There are things we learn facing death that we can’t learn otherwise. And sorrow and difficulty help us to grow and develop as people. One of the things we know from exercise science is that muscles that aren’t used atrophy; they waste away. In a similar way, ease does not help us become better people. There is value in suffering. Suffering
and difficulty are like a refining fire in our lives. They help us to develop some of the best character traits, like wisdom, empathy, compassion, and perseverance. Often, the deepest and most enduring joy is that which is born out of hardship and sorrow.
The next verses remind us that hard to hear wisdom is better than easy to hear foolishness. “A wise man’s rebuke is better than a fool’s flattery.” Wise people surround themselves with people who will tell them the truth, what they need to hear. Fools like “yes men.”
Back in the early spring, I saw reports coming out about what Vladimir Putin was hearing from his advisors. He expected to roll into Ukraine and take the whole nation over in a matter of days. His army was only prepared with supplies for a few days, we are told. And things didn’t go to plan. They stalled out and then were pushed back. And the rumor was that his advisors were not telling him the truth about how poorly the war was going. I’m not saying Putin is a fool, but… the shoe fits.
Flattery is like the crackling of nettles or thorns burning under a kettle, QOHELETH says. Weeds and thorns were often used for cooking. After all, they were available. And there wasn’t much else to do with them. The thin wood of thorn bushes would burn quick and hot, with a loud crackling sound. But they didn’t burn very long. There was no substance to them, just as there is no substance to flattery.
Flattery, and its cousin, bribery, can both undo a person’s wisdom.
Next, it is better to finish than it is to start. Perseverance is better than enthusiasm. So many things in life are easier to begin than they are to complete.
Jesus tells us that discipleship is one of them. We have to “count the cost” and be sure we are willing to follow through. He tells two parables about a man building a tower and a king going out to war. Before you start building, before you go out to war, be sure you have the resources to finish the task. And we’re back to Putin again…
Patience, perseverance, and hard work may not be as attractive as enthusiasm, but they accomplish far more in life.
Next, patience is better than anger. “Don’t be easily annoyed. A fool’s heart is full of vexation.” Anger can serve a purpose in life. But only if our anger is for the right reasons, and only if our anger motivates us to bring about change. Patience is far more valuable.
Next, honesty is better than nostalgia. “Why were the old days so much better?” There is a constant allure of the “good ol’ days.” The “good ol’ days” were better 3000
years ago, in the time of Solomon. They are still better today. I think the issue is that we are all prone to a “selective memory.” We remember the things we want to remember and often ignore the bad. The “good ol’ days” were almost certainly not as good as we remember them being!
In 40 years or so, people will look back on this time right now as the “good ol’ days.” I don’t know why they will. It surely won’t be for the covid pandemic, or the highest inflation in four decades, or the war in Ukraine, or our fine national leadership. But for some reason, they will call this time, right now the good ol’ days.
The truth of the matter is that nostalgia is often a way for us to ignore the problems of the present and live in an imaginary ideal time that never really existed.
Next, wisdom is better than wealth. That doesn’t stop people from wanting the latter more than the former, but it is true. After all, how many inheritances and fortunes have been lost due to foolishness!
This section wraps up in verses 13-14. I think the point QOHELETH is trying to make is that we don’t know the future. It’s in God’s hands but hidden from us. So the best we can do is to make the most of the time we have. We can and should enjoy the good times, when they come. But we shouldn’t count on them to last. And when the hard times come, we should grow in them.
I think the best summary of the section is this: Growth is better than ease. A challenging life that pushes us to reach our potential is better than a life of ease or comfort that leaves us as less than we could have become.
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