Ecclesiastes 2:18-26 Work Weary
Solomon laments over the fact that all he has worked for will eventually be passed to another who may not care for it as he did. He is weary of working to benefit someone else.
I’m curious about Solomon. Most parents work hard so they will have something to pass on to their children. Solomon is lamenting the idea of not being master of what he has made forever. Does he not care about his children? I imagine he must have MANY of them because of all the wives and concubines he had. Does he leave their care and future in the hands of their mothers? Did he prepare any inheritance for them or train them in any trades? THEY would be the ones who come after him to rule and care for all he has made.
Solomon worked hard! His greatest project was building the Temple of God. But Solomon engaged in MANY other building projects. He rebuilt cities that had been broken down and refortified others. He even had Hiram of Tyre teach the people about sea trade. I have no doubt that he invented MANY new ways of doing things also.
But for all he accomplished, Solomon was still distressed about what would become of it after his death. Solomon had no illusions of living forever. Maybe if he did, he wouldn’t have been so distraught. Instead, he worried about what would become of all that he had accomplished after he died. Let me put in my ‘two cents’ here; NOTHING LAST FOREVER. Some things will last longer that other things, but nothing is indestructible.
Yes, it is nice to see what you have worked so hard for stand for at least a while. It speaks of your effort, determination, creativity, and ingenuity. What Solomon had created would stand for some time. But he was correct in correct in thinking that the one who ruled over what he had created might not be wise. His son, Rehoboam, was a very unwise king. Even his first acts as king were that of a fool. It was the basis for the split between the Northern Kingdom and Judah.
Here is something that was just whispered to me. If GOD intends for it to stand for eternity, IT WILL. And if God’s plan calls for it to crumble, IT WILL also. Don’t worry so much about who will inherit it afterwards. Build, create, craft, imagine, inspire, and do it ALL to the glory of God! Let Him worry about sustaining it after you are gone.
As for Solomon’s lament concerning working, if you are doing it to the glory of God, it has eternal consequences. And, as the saying goes, if you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. For those who don’t love what they do, love who you are doing if for instead. Then it becomes a joy instead of a job.
Father God, thank You for the job I do. Some parts of it are more enjoyable than others but in all I do, I give praise to You. You placed me in this life as a wife, a mother, a grandmother, and a care giver. You gave me talents to share and other talents to carry me through in the days that are harder. You fill my life with purpose and joy. You give me the wisdom I need to complete the tasks set before me. I trust You to make stand what YOU have invested in, no matter how hard Satan tries to tear it down. And I fully believe that my family is part of Your plan. You put them into my hands. I put them back into Yours.
