Ecclesiastes 4 Under the Sun
Solomon looks at several issues that are under the sun. Inequality of power, man’s constant desire for more, two over one, and the limits of wisdom.
There is quite a bit that Solomon looks at in this short chapter. Some of his musings are dark while others speak of hope. I’m curious how he got from one topic to another. What linked these thoughts in his mind? I’m pretty sure that a random shuffling of notes written down by Solomon didn’t lead to this arrangement. Some days, I wonder what leads my thoughts from one topic to another! Let’s follow the trail he laid down, for I firmly believe the Holy Spirit is the TRUE author of all the bible works.
Solomon starts out looking at the people who are being oppressed. This could be the worker, the slave, the prisoner, the poor, or any man who finds himself on the ‘wrong end’ of the exercise of power. This can even happen in the school-yard with the bully.
For whatever reason, the one with the power decides to exercise that power with cruelty or undue strength. This is the very nature of oppression. One who is under authority of another where power is not being exercised with the intent to be punitive is not under oppression. The father who loves his child and applies appropriate discipline is still in a position of authority but the child is not under oppression. The abusive father is oppressive in his application of his authority.
I don’t know anyone who willingly puts themselves in the position of being oppressed. We submit to rightly exercised authority on a daily basis but resist oppression. Solomon says the one who is dead, or better yet not even born, is better off than a person under oppression. I can’t totally disagree with this outlook. What I can say though is that not all people in authority are cruel to those under them. Yes, the unborn and the dead are free of oppression but joy, happiness, and growth are also absent in their lives. Often times, the oppression we endure and later escape leads to enormous growth in our lives. I want the opportunity to grow, even if it is a rough road through life.
Solomon turns next to working. He sees work, including training in a skill, as founded only by envy of those around you. Who hasn’t started in the work world because of seeing something you desire and lack the ability to acquire? Even my first babysitting job was taken on so I could have money of my own to spend as I wanted. Also, the authority offered in such a position appealed to me. When my parents would leave us children alone, they put my older sister ‘in charge’. She seldom was able to correct bad behavior of any of us. I took up for her instead and tried to keep my brother in check. In a babysitting job, I was the one in authority when the parents were away. I didn’t have to ‘fight’ to prove my right in making decisions or demands.
Training for a position of authority or even a job skill grows out of a realization that there are things you lack and need to learn if you are ever going to face life on your own. Today it’s called “adulting.” Many people don’t acquire the skills needed to survive outside their parent’s home because mom and dad took care of everything for them. LET & HELP your children grow up. Yes, it’s easier to do the task yourself, but then your child will never learn to do it on their own. Washing laundry, doing dishes, cooking a meal, planning a menu, shopping for groceries, managing money, and even checking the important fluids in a car are skills that need to be taught in the teen years at the latest. Use a little ‘envy’ if you need to. These skills are vital for your child to learn.
TOO much striving after goods, money, or power is not good. There has to be a place of contentment. Without it, there is NEVER going to be any rest. A singular focus on ‘getting ahead’ of everyone else leads to a solitary existence. It’s hard to have a relationship with someone who only spends time at work, shutting everyone and everything else off. People get lost in the pursuit of money and power. Only those who offer a way to more of either power or money enter into the obsessed person’s life.
Solomon asks great questions here; especially to the one who keeps wanting more. “What are you going to do with it? Who will you share it with? What good does it do for a man who is alone?”
My husband has told me many stories of how his wife used to get angry with him for not being home more often. He was working as many hours as he could to bring home money for his family. This friction of him being angry with her for wanting him home played a big part in their eventual divorce. He saw her as always seeking more money, which he was trying to provide, but missed her cry for relationship instead. I wonder what would have happened if they had figured that out. Would they have remained as two?
Solomon makes a good case for having someone alongside you. When I was a single mother, I had no one to help for many years. I struggled on alone because I was afraid of bringing someone into my children’s lives that wouldn’t stick around. God waited for me to be ready before providing me with someone who would weave a ‘strand of three’ with me, using God as our anchoring third strand. I wanted a wedding ring depicting this but we were never able to find one that truly resembled this relationship, or that we could afford. That’s ok, because our hearts carry that impression anyway.
The last thing Solomon addresses is the rise to power of a wise youth verses a foolish king who refused to listen to advice. When reading this story, it reminded me of Joseph in Egypt. Joseph was originally the son of a wealthy man, Jacob/Israel, but he was sold into slavery by his brothers. He was then poor and even ended up falsely imprisoned. Then he found himself in the place of great authority. He ruled with wisdom but generations later, the Egyptians would “not rejoice in him.” They despised his people and his God. And the “old king” of that day, Pharaoh, refused to listen to wisdom. Yes, it was part of God’s plan, but it is still a recounting the same kinds of events Solomon is warning about. I wouldn’t count Joseph’s story as vanity.
God does raise up those who the world would consider most unlikely. What He does and why He does it are sometimes left as mysteries, for a time. God calls for us all to have an impact on the world around us for His Kingdom. Sometimes we are in the position of the oppressed. Sometimes in the position of one in power. Always we are called upon to learn of the tasks God would have us do. To train for service. Most are called and given another to walk with them. Those who are called to ‘walk alone’ don’t truly walk alone. God NEVER abandons His children. He also provides support along the way when He sends you out. Don’t be afraid to stand as one with wisdom, even if your beginnings are humble. God raises up whom He chooses. He doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. Whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God. Only He knows the true measure of what He has called you to do. Rejoice that He has that much confidence in you!
Father God, thank You for the path You have set down in my life. Thank You for the opportunities to learn new things and to grow from even the hardest lessons. I know my journey hasn’t always stayed exactly in the middle of Your path, but You NEVER failed to bring me back when I wandered off course. Quite often, those ‘wanderings’ brought about some important lessons. Thank You that they weren’t ‘striving after wind.’ Keep me walking and learning Father until the day You bring me home. There is still so much I want to see!
