September 2, 2009
we never really get away with disobedience—it always catches up with us!
Ecclesiastes 8
Mary Birdlebough
Central Truth
Wouldn't it be great if we were able to see our lives from God's perspective (through the lens of truth), so that we would be able to identify immediately the consequences of sin and the inevitable destruction caused by seemingly minor and harmless diversions from the pursuit of Christ?
Key Verse | Ecclesiastes 8:11
When a sentence is not executed at once against a crime,
the human heart is encouraged to do evil.
(Ecclesiastes 8:11)
Ecclesiastes 8
Keep the King's Command
1
Who is like the wise?
And who knows the interpretation of a thing?
A man's wisdom makes his face shine,
and the hardness of his face is changed.
2 I say: 1 8:2 Hebrew lacks say Keep the king's command, because of God's oath to him. 2 8:2 Or because of your oath to God 3 Be not hasty to go from his presence. Do not take your stand in an evil cause, for he does whatever he pleases. 4 For the word of the king is supreme, and who may say to him, “What are you doing?” 5 Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way. 3 8:5 Or and judgment 6 For there is a time and a way for everything, although man's trouble 4 8:6 Or evil lies heavy on him. 7 For he does not know what is to be, for who can tell him how it will be? 8 No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death. There is no discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it. 9 All this I observed while applying my heart to all that is done under the sun, when man had power over man to his hurt.
Those Who Fear God Will Do Well
10 Then I saw the wicked buried. They used to go in and out of the holy place and were praised 5 8:10 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts forgotten in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity. 6 8:10 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a vapor or mere breath; also twice in verse 14 (see note on 1:2) 11 Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil. 12 Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. 13 But it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow, because he does not fear before God.
Man Cannot Know God's Ways
14 There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity. 15 And I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun.
16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on earth, how neither day nor night do one's eyes see sleep, 17 then I saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun. However much man may toil in seeking, he will not find it out. Even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out.
Footnotes
[1] 8:2 Hebrew lacks say[2] 8:2 Or because of your oath to God
[3] 8:5 Or and judgment
[4] 8:6 Or evil
[5] 8:10 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts forgotten
[6] 8:10 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath”; also twice in verse 14 (see note on 1:2)
Dive Deeper | Ecclesiastes 8
Solomon certainly knew what he was talking about in Ecclesiastes 8:11. Slow consequences can breed an attitude that says, "I got away with it once, so I can get away with it again." I can relate to that all too well! My mind is amazingly deceitful—even if it is just deceiving itself. Time and time again, I think I can get away with disobedience, and for a time it seems like I do, but then reality hits.
In fourth grade I remember receiving a call from one of my friends in the neighborhood that the house across the street from hers was on fire! I didn't even stop to think before I hopped on my bike and rode the six blocks to her home to watch. It was like nothing I had ever seen. After about an hour of taking it all in—watching the firemen and checking out the fire truck—I rode my bike back home anxious to tell my family all about it. In all of the excitement, I forgot that I was only permitted to ride my bike one block away by myself and not the six blocks to my friend's house. I told my parents the story with much enthusiasm and then the question came, "Where was the fire?" When I thought about my answer, I realized I had been caught. I had broken the rule. Suddenly, my enthusiasm was gone!
Sometimes, I wish my disobedience to Christ and my disregard for Him would be caught just as quickly and clearly—before I mess up any further. If the consequences of my actions (most importantly, the impact on my relationship with Christ) were so blatantly obvious, it would be a lot harder to get so far off track, and perhaps the consequences wouldn't be as severe. Therefore, I must daily check my heart and view each action through the lens of truth (God's Word) because my heart is deceitful and always ready to convince me that I can get away with it. And I am realizing that I am not that difficult to convince.
Discussion Questions
1. What does God's Word teach about the future results of sin patterns in your life that have yet to manifest themselves in painful consequences to you?
2. Do you routinely deceive yourself about your selfish motives and actions?
3. Do you ever look at others who apparently have yet to experience the consequences of a life apart from God and become enticed to try to get away with seemingly minor disobedience?