Instrument-4-Christ

I thought about studying verses 7-12 today, but after reading through the six verses, I thought it might be more beneficial to break it up and spend more time on the smaller sections. So here’s today’s passage: “Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun. There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.”

This passage leads into the following verses which talk about the concept of two being better than one and three being even better. But here Solomon sees a man who has no one to help him but yet he works and labors and toils non-stop. All he wants is more and more, and nothing ever appeases his desires.

All his work is in vain because he’s doing it all by himself, he keeps getting but keeps wanting, and in the end he keeps nothing. What a miserable life! What’s the point in working for something if it isn’t what you want anyway? Does this man truly want riches? No. When he gets them, he no longer want them. He wants something more- something else! So he never truly gets what he wants, and therefore he never truly wants what he gets! So what’s the point? There is none. It’s all vanity.

I’m more of an independent learner/doer, so I like to do things by myself. But do I spend my time on useless endeavors? Do I keep trying to do things and gain things that profit God nothing, thus wasting my time? Am I stealing from myself by using my energies on useless things? If I steal from myself, I’m effectively stealing from God.

I should use my time and resources, especially when I do things alone, for God’s glory so that I’m not making a waste of my own life on things that I really don’t even want and God definitely doesn’t.

Vain is the man who keeps wanting more,
Vain is the work that keeps getting more,
Vain is the life that keeps nothing more,
Than that which is laid in heavenly store.

Blessed is the man who wants what he gets,
Blessed is the work that

In this passage there is a contrast between two men. The first man works and presumably enjoys the benefits of his work. The second man is lazy and simply looks at the first man’s work with envy. “This also is vanity and grasping for the wind.” Why? Because no one gains anything by just looking at the labor of others and envying them.

In fact, as verse 5 says, “The fool folds his hands and consumes his own flesh.” He sits there and does nothing while his life wastes away. What a miserable way to spend one’s life.

Verse 6 confused me until I also looked at Proverbs 15:16. Solomon says in verse 6, “Better a handful with quietness than both hands full, together with toil and grasping for the wind.” Previously in Proverbs, Solomon said, “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD, Than great treasure with trouble.” So Solomon is contrasting contentment with little to trouble with riches.

So in this passage, a person should do his own work instead of wasting his life envying those who work and have profit. But it’s pointless to work too much or dedicate one’s self to obtaining too much wealth. Both the lazy man and the man who work too much waste their time on vain exploits.

What about me? Do I waste my time by not doing anything? Or do I waste my time by doing too much unnecessarily? As with many areas of life, it’s all about balance and seeking God’s will in everything I do.

Better to work than to rest one’s eyes,
Better to work than to fold one’s hands.
But those who have little are also wise,
And fools are they who exceed life’s demands.