Ecclesiastes 9:1-18
A Surprising Voice in Scripture – Ecclesiastes / Qoheleth
Last week we focused on Jesus urging us not to be anxious about our lives. This week we hear from one who is deeply anxious about life’s circumstances and meaning. A Teacher (Qoheleth), he speaks sometimes in the character of Solomon, an ideal of wisdom, wealth, and power – and says “Vapor!” His image is not so much that everything is meaningless or absurd but that it is passing. There’s nothing substantial, lasting: Life goes round without clear pattern or reason and then you die.