I need to hammer out the irony of my comments in the “Who Am I?” post about being a “hound on the scent of meaning,” to only kick off my book studies with Ecclesiastes, best known for deeming everything to be meaningless. You’ll need to wrestle with this book as you read it, but we’ve already affirmed 2 Timothy 3:16, that these words are inspired for equipping you for every good work. Ecclesiastes falls into a tradition of being “God-breathed” or “inspired” for the purpose of equipping us for every good work. Ecclesiastes is not just about meaninglessness, so come explore with me.
What Ecclesiastes Is (and Isn’t)
Ecclesiastes only seems nihilist. Nihilism is present and becomes a predominant theme for meditation. If you have not heard of nihilism before, it’s the belief that nothing ultimately has meaning. Ecclesiastes is not promoting nihilism, however. The prominent role of nihilism is meant to establish a narrow understanding of what truly gives life meaning. The phrases “meaninglessness” or “chasing after the wind” are used to exhaustively list everything that is not worth our priority.
Now, often, Ecclesiastes is taken as a set of proverbs, but it isn’t. Ecclesiastes is more like an autobiography of the Teacher’s pursuit of wisdom. The problem? The Teacher finds that nearly every pursuit is pointless, a waste, resulting in nothing. And guess what? He isn’t wrong. The Teacher is not melodramatic, and he is not having some sort of crisis. Rather, the Teacher is more sober than many of us could ever imagine being.
Chasing After the Wind
The Teacher begins by stating, “There is nothing new under the sun.” What a truth! Here’s the reality: there is absolutely nothing new in the world; everything that is discovered or will be discovered already existed. Similarly, everything that we create and think of? It has been thought of and tried before in some way. All our creations, and all our toiling? It’s all been done before.
The world is not an infinite vat of growth and newness. No, it is cyclical, and the Teacher intends for us to consider this fact more deeply. You are a part of a larger scheme that will go on with or without you. Your successes and failures, they pass away. Julius Caesar or Alexander the Great, while remembered for their conquests, are but dust in the ground, unable to truly enjoy the legends that have been made of their lives.
What must be considered is whether it is valid to have any ambition or pursuits. The answer seems to be “maybe.” We’ll discover that it actually doesn’t matter what your pursuit is, whether it’s a particular field (politics, religion, or economics, to name a few) or a particular trajectory (innovative or “tried and true”); the fact is that once you obtain that pursuit, and the chase is over… it then leaves you. Thus, the point of Ecclesiastes is that all of our pursuits and ambitions are simply “chasing after the wind.”
All your dreams, your passions, and even your fears: chasing after the wind and meaningless. In the Christian tradition, these are inspired words. We are called to wrestle with the text, believing it has a serious and unadulterated purpose in our lives to confront very difficult questions of ourselves and God.
Honest, Not Hopeless
Heading into this study, you might be feeling like the Teacher of Ecclesiastes is Lumalee from The Super Mario Bros. Movie, who says, “Time, like hope, is an illusion. There is no escape. The only hope is the sweet relief of death.” Well, that’s not the full picture. I want you to consider that Ecclesiastes is simply very honest about the realities of life on Earth, and it’s meant to make you consider the usefulness of the things you pursue.
Ecclesiastes challenges us to pull our sacred cows out and slaughter them. It talks about our children, our careers, among other very important aspects of our lives, and not so subtly reminds us: None of these things will last; they will all come to an end, like vapour in the wind. There is an endless supply of idols looking to engulf your mind and cause you heartache and worry. Good things are often the most powerful distractions from pursuing the Kingdom of God.
Enjoy Today, Fear God
I propose to you that Ecclesiastes emphasizes two things: enjoy today, and fear God. That’s the point. There are a few things in the book that never get considered meaningless or a chasing after the wind: eating, drinking, and enjoying our toil, along with fearing God and keeping his commandments. These things are oriented to living in the present and fearing God. Our ambitions and pursuits are healthy when they’re held in fear of God and enjoyed in the present.
Ecclesiastes is not just a book telling you to be present in the moment. It calls you to be present with gratitude to God, recognizing that ultimately, God is the only thing that lasts. Everything else returns to null, and that which is good is fulfilled in God. Being present in the moment is its very own act of worship, as it recognizes that God gave us today to experience in the fullness that it has to offer, both enjoyment and sadness.
Living in This Moment
When it comes to this idea of chasing after the wind, I am feeling it. At the time of writing, I just finished a two-day trip with my children that was packed with activities. Now we’re on the train headed home, and all the moments that we just experienced together? They’re essentially gone, now subject to our memory. We like to think that they continue to live on, and to some extent, they do, but those moments? I’ll never experience them again, and that’s so good! Because tonight and tomorrow morning, we’ll be given a whole new set of experiences that God will grant us.
Ecclesiastes is simply focused on you experiencing what you’re given at this very moment, whether it’s something hard, or something to enjoy. You only have today in which to be faithful. Faithfulness is only ever a decision made in the present moment.
What would the Spirit have you do today? What about this moment? If you made plans, I think it’s likely that you’re meant to execute those plans exceptionally well, and enjoy them if they’re enjoyable, or be sad and tired if that’s how they make you feel. But be in that moment being obedient to what you know to be true of God, as well as his leading and challenging through the Spirit. I pray that your life would be made simple over the next few months as you cast away your pursuits and simply do and experience what has been given to you each day.
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