Ecc 7:4 | KingComments | STEP | With Ecclesiastes 7, a new section begins in this book. We can see this when we look at the form in which the Preacher in the first part of this chapter, , expresses his observations. He does so in a form of so-called “better … than” proverbs, a form we also find in the book of Proverbs ( ). We have to learn what really matters in life. This means that we know how to distinguish the better or the more excellent things from what may be good, but is still of inferior quality to the better ( ). This distinction is best seen when we look at the end of a case. Therefore, it is wise to keep an eye on the end of everything we do, both with ourselves and with others ( ). Look for example at the end of the rich man and the poor Lazarus ( ). In the same way, today’s beautiful Babylon, which is the roman catholic church, does not show its true nature. We see its true nature at its end, when judgment comes on it ( ). In view of this, and also of ourselves, this may be our prayer: “LORD, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days; let me know how transient I am” ( ). In Israel, a name means a lot more than a name tag or a label. A name expresses how a person is, his personality and character. “A good name” ( ) is given after a period of time and based on a certain behavior. That good name remains even after death. The smell of “good oil” is only temporary, although the smell is pleasant for the time it lingers. It is not about good versus bad, but about better versus good. Better here has the meaning of more useful, of having more benefit. The Name of the Lord Jesus is “an ointment poured forth” of which the fragrance remains forever ( , Darby Translation). The good name of Mary remains in connection with her act of anointing the Savior ( ). That the day of a person’s death is better than the day of his birth is only true if Christ is not involved. For those who know Christ, to be with Christ, or to depart, is “very much better” ( ), but life with and for Him is also of great significance. The Preacher speaks of this perception as being done under the sun, without looking behind the horizon. He looks at life on earth without considering the truth that “it is appointed for men to die once and after this [comes] judgment” of God on the committed sins ( ). The confrontation with death, which a funeral always brings, is useful because it is precisely then that the reality of man’s fragile and transitory existence becomes manifest ( ). Death leads us to think about life. A funeral also makes us think about that of our own. We can learn more from the day of a person’s death than from the day of his birth. A feast at a birth and the feastings in life are not necessarily wrong, but they do not make us serious. Festive occasions are not the most suitable occasions to reflect on the seriousness of life. The excitement prevails. At sad events the mood is thoughtful and one is more inclined to think about the meaning of life. Then we will get to pray with Moses: “So teach us to number our days; that we may present to You a heart of wisdom” ( ). At a funeral we are determined by the inescapable reality that death is “the end of every man” in his existence on earth. Sooner or later every man will have to deal with it irrevocably. It is extremely stupid to close the eyes to it. The Preacher points out that the living must take it to heart. Do something with that reality that will affect you too one day. Man should not live thoughtlessly as if his life on earth will never end. As long as he lives, he should focus his thoughts on that. To the house of mourning and death belongs sorrow and not laughter ( ). Here it is about the right state of mind at the thought of the fragility of existence. People do not want to be sad. Life should be joyful. People do not want to be confronted with pessimism. Everything must be wonderful. It is the masquerade of man who does not want to offer any space for grief because that puts a damper on the cherished feeling of happiness. What really is going on in the heart is seen more clearly with a sad face as a result of inner sorrow than with the mask of the smile that often hides a lot of misery. That it goes well with the heart, means that grief makes the inner life better suited in order to arrive at the right judgment about life. That is the result when death is looked in the eye. Outward sadness and inner joy can go hand in hand in the life of the believer. Paul says: “As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing” ( ). He is sad because of the outward circumstances, but always rejoicing because the Lord is always present. That means God is not an enemy of joy. He calls His own to rejoice, but in Him ( ) and before Him ( ). Without Him there is no real joy under the sun, but only a surrogate of it. People get the giggles with a comedian’s play on words or also because of his biting satire about the most sacred things. How wicked is the heart of those men. The wise understands that grief has a blessing in it ( ). Therefore his mind (literally: heart) is “in the house of mourning”. He does not have to be there physically, but he lives in the awareness of the finite nature of the existence of man on earth. The heart is the center of one’s existence, the place where considerations are taking place. The wise man will think about death. He allows those thoughts and worries about it; he is not running from it. The fool seeks only pleasure; that is what his heart is after, that is what he is looking for. You can find him in all kind of places where there is something to celebrate, where it is fun to be, where there is no pessimism, but where you can have a good laugh about the jokes that are told. He is blind to spiritual matters. The pleasure of the world results in God being forgotten or even rejected. The previous observations about grief because of death and about joy that denies grief in fact mean the “rebuke of a wise man” ( ).The Preacher who has grown wise, has passed on what really matters in life and that is death. If we listen to his words and take them to heart, it will be of great benefit to us. It is better that we humiliate ourselves now and go into the ‘house of mourning’ so that our hearts can be exalted in the long run, than the other way around. If we want to be serious about God’s plan in our lives, we have to deal with wise people who want to help us live our life in the most valuable way possible. They cannot take away all our grief or solve all our questions and problems, but they can give us clues on how to deal with them. Listening to the song of the fools is done to override grief and death. The fool does not talk about such sad things, and if he does, it is to make fun of them. The comedians can offer entertainment and laughter for a moment to forget the sorrow for a moment, but their talk does not make any sense and does not give any support for life. What fools have to offer is like thorn bushes that burn: you hear a momentary crackling noise, you see fire for a moment and you feel a gust of heat, but it is all extremely short-lived ( ). The fire flares up for a few seconds and is out again. The crackling of the thorn bushes has no effect on the cooking pot hanging above it. It is foolish to think that the pot will come to the boil, because that takes a good and long burning fire. Thorns do not even make the pot warm. So it is with the laughter of the fool. It is vehement and short and disappears quickly, without leaving any impression. Whoever thinks he can keep death at a distance with laughter is really foolish. The Preacher concludes that the fool’s laughter is “futility”, empty, without effect. How many people there are who should be called fools because they mainly pursue things that only bring some outward laughter, while being blind to the essentials of life. Man is a poor judge of what has real and lasting value.

‏ Ecclesiastes 7:4

Introduction

With Ecclesiastes 7, a new section begins in this book. We can see this when we look at the form in which the Preacher in the first part of this chapter, Ecc 7:1-14, expresses his observations. He does so in a form of so-called “better … than” proverbs, a form we also find in the book of Proverbs (Pro 12:9 ; Pro 15:16-17 ; Pro 17:1).

We have to learn what really matters in life. This means that we know how to distinguish the better or the more excellent things from what may be good, but is still of inferior quality to the better (Phil 1:10). This distinction is best seen when we look at the end of a case. Therefore, it is wise to keep an eye on the end of everything we do, both with ourselves and with others (Heb 13:7).

Look for example at the end of the rich man and the poor Lazarus (Lk 16:19-31). In the same way, today’s beautiful Babylon, which is the roman catholic church, does not show its true nature. We see its true nature at its end, when judgment comes on it (Rev 17:1-18 ; Rev 18:1-24). In view of this, and also of ourselves, this may be our prayer: “LORD, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days; let me know how transient I am” (Psa 39:4).

‘Better … Than’ Observations

In Israel, a name means a lot more than a name tag or a label. A name expresses how a person is, his personality and character. “A good name” (Ecc 7:1) is given after a period of time and based on a certain behavior. That good name remains even after death. The smell of “good oil” is only temporary, although the smell is pleasant for the time it lingers. It is not about good versus bad, but about better versus good. Better here has the meaning of more useful, of having more benefit.

The Name of the Lord Jesus is “an ointment poured forth” of which the fragrance remains forever (Song 1:3, Darby Translation). The good name of Mary remains in connection with her act of anointing the Savior (Mt 26:13).

That the day of a person’s death is better than the day of his birth is only true if Christ is not involved. For those who know Christ, to be with Christ, or to depart, is “very much better” (Phil 1:23), but life with and for Him is also of great significance. The Preacher speaks of this perception as being done under the sun, without looking behind the horizon. He looks at life on earth without considering the truth that “it is appointed for men to die once and after this [comes] judgment” of God on the committed sins (Heb 9:27).

The confrontation with death, which a funeral always brings, is useful because it is precisely then that the reality of man’s fragile and transitory existence becomes manifest (Ecc 7:2). Death leads us to think about life. A funeral also makes us think about that of our own. We can learn more from the day of a person’s death than from the day of his birth.

A feast at a birth and the feastings in life are not necessarily wrong, but they do not make us serious. Festive occasions are not the most suitable occasions to reflect on the seriousness of life. The excitement prevails. At sad events the mood is thoughtful and one is more inclined to think about the meaning of life. Then we will get to pray with Moses: “So teach us to number our days; that we may present to You a heart of wisdom” (Psa 90:12).

At a funeral we are determined by the inescapable reality that death is “the end of every man” in his existence on earth. Sooner or later every man will have to deal with it irrevocably. It is extremely stupid to close the eyes to it. The Preacher points out that the living must take it to heart. Do something with that reality that will affect you too one day. Man should not live thoughtlessly as if his life on earth will never end. As long as he lives, he should focus his thoughts on that.

To the house of mourning and death belongs sorrow and not laughter (Ecc 7:3). Here it is about the right state of mind at the thought of the fragility of existence. People do not want to be sad. Life should be joyful. People do not want to be confronted with pessimism. Everything must be wonderful. It is the masquerade of man who does not want to offer any space for grief because that puts a damper on the cherished feeling of happiness.

What really is going on in the heart is seen more clearly with a sad face as a result of inner sorrow than with the mask of the smile that often hides a lot of misery. That it goes well with the heart, means that grief makes the inner life better suited in order to arrive at the right judgment about life. That is the result when death is looked in the eye.

Outward sadness and inner joy can go hand in hand in the life of the believer. Paul says: “As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing” (2Cor 6:10a). He is sad because of the outward circumstances, but always rejoicing because the Lord is always present. That means God is not an enemy of joy. He calls His own to rejoice, but in Him (Phil 4:4) and before Him (Deu 12:12).

Without Him there is no real joy under the sun, but only a surrogate of it. People get the giggles with a comedian’s play on words or also because of his biting satire about the most sacred things. How wicked is the heart of those men.

The wise understands that grief has a blessing in it (Ecc 7:4). Therefore his mind (literally: heart) is “in the house of mourning”. He does not have to be there physically, but he lives in the awareness of the finite nature of the existence of man on earth. The heart is the center of one’s existence, the place where considerations are taking place. The wise man will think about death. He allows those thoughts and worries about it; he is not running from it.

The fool seeks only pleasure; that is what his heart is after, that is what he is looking for. You can find him in all kind of places where there is something to celebrate, where it is fun to be, where there is no pessimism, but where you can have a good laugh about the jokes that are told. He is blind to spiritual matters. The pleasure of the world results in God being forgotten or even rejected.

The previous observations about grief because of death and about joy that denies grief in fact mean the “rebuke of a wise man” (Ecc 7:5).The Preacher who has grown wise, has passed on what really matters in life and that is death. If we listen to his words and take them to heart, it will be of great benefit to us. It is better that we humiliate ourselves now and go into the ‘house of mourning’ so that our hearts can be exalted in the long run, than the other way around.

If we want to be serious about God’s plan in our lives, we have to deal with wise people who want to help us live our life in the most valuable way possible. They cannot take away all our grief or solve all our questions and problems, but they can give us clues on how to deal with them.

Listening to the song of the fools is done to override grief and death. The fool does not talk about such sad things, and if he does, it is to make fun of them. The comedians can offer entertainment and laughter for a moment to forget the sorrow for a moment, but their talk does not make any sense and does not give any support for life.

What fools have to offer is like thorn bushes that burn: you hear a momentary crackling noise, you see fire for a moment and you feel a gust of heat, but it is all extremely short-lived (Ecc 7:6). The fire flares up for a few seconds and is out again. The crackling of the thorn bushes has no effect on the cooking pot hanging above it. It is foolish to think that the pot will come to the boil, because that takes a good and long burning fire. Thorns do not even make the pot warm.

So it is with the laughter of the fool. It is vehement and short and disappears quickly, without leaving any impression. Whoever thinks he can keep death at a distance with laughter is really foolish. The Preacher concludes that the fool’s laughter is “futility”, empty, without effect.

How many people there are who should be called fools because they mainly pursue things that only bring some outward laughter, while being blind to the essentials of life. Man is a poor judge of what has real and lasting value.