Folly Proves Itself

One of the most advantageous functions of the Christian belief is that it tends to root out those beliefs that are added on to its core and do not fit with the inerrant Word of God. Scrutiny of fake Christian tenets is guided by a strict and infallible gradebook, and one way or another, false beliefs always fail the test against the Bible, against God.

Solomon relates this to us in Ecclesiastes 10:1-4, which my Bible most accurately entitles, “The Burden of Folly.” Verse 1 says, “Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil ferment and stink; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

A perfumer’s oil should smell good, pleasant; however, the presence of dead bugs would cause the perfume to react in quite an unpleasant manner. I’m no biologist or chemist, so my less than satisfactory scientific explanation of this verse will have to suffice, but when animals die and are broken down, they typically begin to stink. A perfume would most certainly go from pleasant to unpleasant in the smells department if it were to ferment thanks to the introduction of any organic material that could complete the process.

But since I’m no scientist, and that breakdown was certainly lackluster, here’s an explanation that we can all make sense of:

Foolishness is a dense weight on the scales of life. A visual explanation of folly’s load can be easily found in the riddle, “What weighs more: 100 pounds of bricks or 100 pounds of feathers?” The answer, of course, is that they each weigh the same, but the conundrum is in the number of feathers one must use to equal the bricks. To balance the scales with a single brick of folly, you must match it with 100 feathers of wisdom.

The effect of that riddle, however, is that it plays on the mind by seeming to equate to unequal objects, and we do much the same when it comes to our choices and decisions. The idea of one good decision being the equal of one bad decision is one that has been perpetuated through many cultures and religions since the first sin. It’s the whole idea behind karma, and it is even prominent in certain sects of Christianity. It’s the entire function behind the “good works” faith denominations. If you do enough good, you can outweigh your bad deeds and make it to Heaven.

Speaking of which, this verse does not, in any way, affirm that good works can get you to Heaven. Even ignoring the verses in the New Testament that clearly state you can be saved by God’s grace alone through faith alone, Solomon, I believe because God wrote this through him, is quite intentional with his word choice here in saying that “a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.” Just the one sin is enough to outweigh all you good deeds.

With all that said, how does one spot a fake Christian belief? Well, by its stench, of course. A nonbiblical belief will stink beyond reason, even if it appears to be on the right path. By default, every other way will prove itself to be wrong at some point in its belief structure. That’s what Solomon says in verses 2-3.

“A wise man’s heart goes to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left. Even when the fool walks along the road, his heart lacks sense, and he shows everyone he is a fool.”

These verses are talking about people, but the idea behind the people applies to everything. A wise man walks the right path. If we equate the Bible with the “right path,” which it is anyway, the wise man follows the tenets of the Bible, and so too do wise ideas. Yet, a foolish man will not follow this path; he wanders aimlessly and, on occasion, stumbles across the road and travels along it for a bit before departing for the wilderness again. So, too, do foolish beliefs.

We can actually see this when we confront even something so broad among nonbelievers as simple morals and laws. To a nonbeliever, killing is, typically, just as wrong as it is to a believer. In this way, they’ve stumbled upon the path, but their reasoning for why killing is wrong will never hold up.

Once you jump down the rabbit hole of questions, there stands no good reason from an atheistic viewpoint that murder is wrong. No matter which way you take it, either no one had the power to decide that it was wrong, or it truly isn’t wrong. But down one path of questioning or the other, the belief has no foundation.

In terms of beliefs among Christians, the good works belief is the easiest demonstration because it can be dismantled with one question: If good works can get you to Heaven, why did Jesus have to sacrifice Himself for our sins? Because, really, if we were capable of paying for our burden ourselves, why would Jesus do it for us and then expect us to do it again by performing good deeds? He wouldn’t.

Metaphorically speaking, then, verse 4 tells us how to react when we spot beliefs that try to usurp God’s character and truth: “If the ruler’s anger rises against you, don’t leave your place, for calmness puts great offenses to rest.”

Being a follower of Christ is a great offense to some. They won’t be able to stand the fact that you believe in God. But the best thing to do is always to remain calm and stay down your path. Your best witness to those people is to always continue doing what you know is right. If you poking holes in the logic of their argument angers them, remember to treat them with love and kindness.

You don’t need to track down false beliefs or threats against the foundations of Christianity; they’ll weed themselves out by virtue of their own imperfections. In your own walk, remember to confront all teachings and beliefs with the Bible. If it doesn’t hold up to God’s Word, it’s not right, no matter what pastor, preacher, podcaster, YouTuber, blogger, or whoever tells you.

Life Isn't Fair

I think it’s incredible how some people are capable of taking incredibly complex topics and thoughts—wanderings about life, eternity, God, and anything else—and turning them into a paragraph or less that conveys the entirety of the thought process in just a few words. Take a couple of the following quotes, for example:

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall”

            -Nelson Mandela

“If life were predictable, it would cease to be life and be without flavor.”

            -Eleanor Roosevelt

“Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man.”

            -C.S. Lewis

I mean, I understand words pretty well, and I think I’m decent enough at using them, but some of these folks are able to grasp and synthesize information so well that they’re able to tell books worth of stories in a single sentence. But I came across a sentence today that tells billions of lives worth of stories. It’s found in Ecclesiastes chapter 9, verse 11.

“Again I saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, or the battle to the strong, or the bread to the wise, or riches to the discerning, or favor to the skillful; rather, time and chance happen to all of them.”

Man, is there a ton to unpack in that. Not only is Solomon explaining a universal truth that most people accept in each statement, like “the race is not to the swift,” but he’s counteracting them by pointing to the contradictions that come from the world we live in, which is both logically imperfect and divinely oriented.

This sentence briefs the hubris of man in every case, believing that we have guaranteed success when we have gathered sufficient skill, that our achievements come from the diligent work of our own hands and abilities. That’s a fact of our own human pride, and why many believe the way to Heaven is through works.

We believe if we are fast enough, we can outrun others to our goals; if we are strong enough, we can beat back the competition; if we are wise enough, we can make ourselves rich beyond imagination; if we are skilled enough, we can accomplish anything; if we are good enough, we can get to Heaven. In fact, this sentence reflects on similar events to the Tower of Babel, wherein people determined it among themselves that they could reach Heaven if only they could build a tower tall enough.

And if you know the story of the Tower of Babel, the Lord humbled those who attempted to reach Heaven in that way. He turned the hubris of the people into their humbling by acting in such a way to turn their beliefs on their heads. Because no matter how fast, wise, strong, or skilled we are, God is greater, and no amount of anything we possess is enough to displace God and His will.

But not only are we incapable of surpassing God’s will and feats, but we are also victim to sin, which has corrupted the world and turned the good processes God created here upside down in order to wreak havoc. Sometimes, we end up with people being in places they have no business being. Some businessmen have no understanding of running a business, but because of extenuating circumstances, they find themselves in control of a business. An unskilled worker may get a promotion over a skilled worker due to in-company politics. Because of the corruption of sin, things don’t always turn out like they logically should.

But more than that, things don’t always turn out like they morally should. Verses 13-16 say, “I have observed that this also is wisdom under the sun, and it is significant to me” There was a small city with few men in it. A great king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege works against it. Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he delivered the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man. And I said, ‘Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.’”

It’s not likely that this is the case, though I’m sure it’s possible Solomon could have had a vision about the future, but these verses remind me of Sennacherib’s invasion against Hezekiah. Compared to Sennacherib, Hezekiah had an incredibly small army, and he was expected to give in to Sennacherib’s strength. Instead, Hezekiah outwitted Sennacherib and forced his armies to retreat, delivering the city by his wisdom. Though his story is written in the Bible, he’s probably a less popular historical figure than Sennacherib.

But I know for sure that no one remembered Hezekiah’s wisdom, which came from the Lord. Not even Hezekiah himself. Shortly after, Judah returned to its old ways, abandoning God, and finding themselves in trouble once again. I think it fits pretty well, but what Solomon’s getting at more than a possible reference to events that happened a couple hundred years in the future, is that, sometimes we are outfitted with gifts and skills for a position we aren’t in.

It’s probably better explained in Ecclesiastes 10:7, “I have seen slaves on horses, but princes walking on the ground like slaves.”

This could be a literal reference to captured princes being forced to walk while servants of a conquering kingdom ride horses, but, as I wrote here: (https://nathanielgevans.net/blog/god-of-metaphors), God is a big fan of teaching us through metaphors, and I can think of no better figurative representation for Solomon’s statements in verses 11-16 than this.

Sometimes, you just happen to have skills for one thing but be in a place to do another. I’m sure there are many people out there who could be smart enough to cure cancer, fix many world issues, or unite people, but who will never see a science lab, a government seat, or a place of influence; it is simply a fact of this world.

Verses 17-18 say, “The calm words of the wise are heeded more than the shouts of a ruler over fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner can destroy much good.”

The good news is that, more often than not, people end up where they are supposed to be to do what they are called to do. Generally, you’ll find the science whizzes in the lab, the thinkers writing and speaking their thoughts into existence, the mathematicians with a calculator, the physicists discovering more of God’s design. But all it took was one to change this world from, “everyone will end up where they’re supposed to be,” to, “most will end up where they’re supposed to be.”

In the end, you can boil Solomon’s statements down even more—to just three words, in fact. Life isn’t fair. But I’ll qualify that statement. Keep this in mind the next time you see someone whose talents aren’t being employed properly, even more so when you become disgruntled with your position and believe it is your own talents that are being wasted. Life isn’t fair, but the God who holds it in His hands is just and good. He will not forsake you nor abandon you; He will use you as He needs you used and work things together for your good.

Solomon's Wise Sayings

Chapter seven of Ecclesiastes begins with a Proverbial section of text—it has a number of wise sayings, many of which sum up the previous six chapters in some way. Some are fairly simple, but others carry a lot of weight and require some understanding of the first six chapters to make the connection, so let’s just dive into them.

Verse 1 says, “A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of one’s death than the day of one’s birth.

What’s important to understand is that one’s name is synonymous with their reputation. In essence, it’s your character. In some cases, it’s character that is somewhat delineated from your family’s reputation and position in society, in others, it’s the reputation you’ve built up for yourself. But the important idea being conveyed here is that, even if you can cover up an ugly character with perfume, it will wear off. It’s better to make a good name for yourself by establishing good character than to attempt to cover up your actions when you need to look good.

This fits pretty well with a key theme of integrity from Ecclesiastes 5. It’s important to establish yourself as someone who does good rather than someone who does bad. The second part of that verse is similar to the topic I discussed last week and fits well with Philippians 1:21. Life after death will be beyond conceivably better than life on Earth for the believer.

Verse 2 is a request to take this life seriously and not to live it as though it’s an 85-year party, even though this life isn’t the end. “It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, since that is the end of all mankind, and the living should take it to heart.”

For the importance of this life to sink in, it is necessary to understand that it does end at some point. Similar to the phrase, “you don’t know what you have until it’s gone,” you don’t know how valuable this life is until you understand that it is limited. It’s far better for your eternal health to understand that there is importance to this life beyond just having a good time.

Verse 3 says, “Grief is better than laughter, for when a face is sad, a heart may be glad.” This refers back to joy. It’s an outlook on life that allows you to go through hard times and still be glad. It’s a perspective shift granted by a life reliant on God that only allows circumstantial events to affect you on the surface.

And on the flip side of this statement, though likely not intended here by Solomon, it’s possible for someone to appear happy but in reality be sad—something that our society today faces and understands better than most. So, don’t fool yourself, or let yourself be fooled by, an appearance of happiness. You’re looking for a root of happiness rather than a flower.

Verse 4 takes us all the way back to chapter 1. “The heart of the wise is in a house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in a house of pleasure.” Those who truly understand the position people on this Earth are in mourn for it. We believers should be mourning for the state of the world, for the lost, because we know the end result for those who do not know our God.

And now more than ever we see the second half of verse 4 being lived out wherein people gleefully cheer and celebrate about going to Hell. They exclaim that Satan is for them because they’ve found pleasure on this Earth.

In light of the explanation of verse 4, verses 5-6 are fairly self-explanatory, so I’ll leave those to you and move on to verse 7. “Surely, the practice of extortion turns a wise person into a fool, and a bribe destroys the mind.”

Personally, I think a better word to use for “mind” in this verse is “heart.” The Hebrew word used here could mean both. Using wisdom to take advantage of others or accept bribes is, in essence, incredibly unwise. It destroys your heart and changes who you are as a person. It’s degrading to your character, which changes how you can employ wisdom. To say it another way, wisdom without morals is tantamount to folly. We’ll expand on that in verse 12.

“For wisdom is protection as money is protection, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner.”

The thing about money is that it’s a finite resource. Yes, it can be used to protect you, but only until it runs out. The advantage of wisdom is that it is endless, and the one who owns it automatically uses it to his/her advantage. It’s a biased resource to be used, whereas money is completely unbiased. But that’s also why you should use it wisely because the tool of wisdom is only as good as the actions it is used for.

For all the procrastinators out there, verse 8 is for you, and me, “The end of a matter is better than its beginning; a patient spirit is better than a proud spirit.”

The beginning of anything is difficult, whether it’s because of an anxiousness for it to start but having to wait or it’s because you know you need to start but are too anxious to do so. But once you get over the hump of doing it, the thing itself, and the conclusion of the thing, is well worth the satisfaction of starting it.

I like the idea of reading the second half of verse 8 as “give time for others to notice your work rather than being quick to justify your own skill.” We sometimes have this sentiment that no one else will notice what we do, so we have to be the ones to announce all our accolades. But it’s far better to wait—people don’t like prideful people, so be patient and others will notice.

Verse 10 says, “Don’t say, ‘Why were the former days better than these?’ since it is not wise of you to ask this.”

I like this one a lot because it covers the grass is always greener idiom. It’s not right to dwell on the past or the lives of others. Comparison is the root of jealousy, which is often the root of greed. You’ll never have joy in good or bad times if you’re constantly comparing your current situation to times you thought were better. We’re tasked to live in the moment so we do not rob ourselves of joy.

Verse 11 says, “Consider the work of God, for who can straighten out what He has made crooked?”

This verse has a hefty meaning behind it, and it’s one that we often overlook in our fervor for righteousness. But there are some things in this world that are just unchangeable for us. And instead of railing against the immovable object, we should learn to work with what we have. There are some avenues of sharing the gospel that just won’t work. Think of it this way: there are just some avenues for sharing the gospel that have a roadblock on them. People have been made fully obstinate in this way, but often, we try to beat the dead horse to prove God when God’s saying, “try another way to reach this person’s heart.”

Finally, verse 14 says, “In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man cannot discover anything that will come after him.”

And I think of that simply like this: God has made times for us that are easy, and He has times for us that are hard. But both are under God’s domain. Both are under His control. There is nothing that happens in this world that He does not see, know, and have power over. In times that are rough, be reminded that the Lord is still in control, and place your joy in that.

Wisdom and Commission

Wisdom, and the knowledge of faith, are somewhat undervalued in today’s Christianity. With that, I also believe that we undervalue living life separate from the world and how that impacts the people in our lives, and even those who are not part of our lives.

Many Christians today live far too much like the culture we find ourselves in. With the exception of some standouts, so many of us live as a part of the world five or six days a week and only turn to God on Sundays and Wednesdays. But people talk about that all the time. I’m just going to give you an example of what happens when you don’t.

If you’ve ever read 1 or 2 Kings, you’d know the current king of Israel had a huge impact on whether or not his people followed God or turned to idolatry. Solomon was no different. In 1 Kings 10, a foreign queen appeared in Solomon’s court after hearing about his fame and wisdom in connection with God. When she arrived, she tested him with numerous, difficult questions about his faith, and she found answers to all the questions she had. It was so different and amazing that the Bible says it took her breath away.

In our faith, we do not get to specialize. We cannot allow ourselves to only be consistent and good at one part of our walk with Christ. You have to be able to walk separate from the world just as well as you can speak about the gospel. You have to be able to defend against questions just as easily as you can recite John 3:16 from memory. Why? For situations such as the one Solomon found himself in. It’s an integral part of the Great Commission.

1 Kings 10:1 says, “The queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame connected with the name of the Lord and came to test him with difficult questions.”

Here’s the first part of the equation to having a well-rounded walk with Christ. Solomon was doing something so different that a queen who lived roughly 3,000 KM away from him heard about his wisdom and kingdom and its connection to God and traveled the entire distance with a massive retinue just to speak with him. Even by camel, it would’ve taken her roughly 75 days just to travel that distance as the crow flies—it might have been longer depending on travel routes.

Verse 2 says, “So Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for the king to explain to her.”

This is pretty impressive. The last part of verse 2 says that the queen asked Solomon about everything that was on her mind. Solomon could’ve been answering questions as complicated as space travel, how God exists outside of time and the connection of that to free will, quantum physics, or more. Okay, some of those could be a little exaggerated, but the point is that no matter what she asked about, Solomon had a satisfactory answer.

Now, you’re not expected to know everything about every subject; none of us come close to the wisdom of Solomon. But you are expected to know as much as possible about the Bible. We are supposed to read, understand, know, and use the knowledge and Wisdom God gives to us. Not just the NT or the OT. Not just the gospels or Paul’s letters. ALL of it.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

It even says why: so you may be equipped for every good work. So you can be prepared for any situation God presents you with. If you follow step 1 and live your life separate from the world, at some point, you will have to defend your faith, so make sure you’re prepared to do so.

Step 3 is to provide for those whom you lead. Our faith is not one that can be lived and practiced in isolation. Where it exists in you, it must also flow out to others.

Verses 8-9 say, “How happy are your men. How happy are these servants of yours, who always stand in your presence hearing your wisdom. May the Lord your God be praised! He delighted in you and put you on the throne of Israel, because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel. He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness.” Verses and 4 and 5 also touch on Solomon’s care for the kingdom of Israel.

See, by virtue of Solomon’s faith and life lived for God extending beyond himself, it became evident that this wasn’t something that only Solomon could have. Solomon had the wisdom, but he was not the only one who had the love and providence of God. And because all the people of Israel had the love, joy, and providence of God, the queen of Sheba recognized this was something she could have as well.

Now whether the queen converted or not, the Bible is not fully clear. The verses seem to indicate that she could have, but we know for sure that she recognized God as a divine power because of Solomon’s life, wisdom, and actions towards the people of Israel.

The Great Commission says to go and make disciples, so go and make disciples. But how much more effective could you be in spreading the kingdom if, in addition to going to make disciples, you lived a life so clearly for God that you made people come to you just to see how you do it?

Israel is located near the town Gaza, while the queen of Sheba’s country is labeled “Saba.”)

Wisdom is Sorrow

This is part two of the study I’m writing for Ecclesiastes. It is the remainder of chapter 1—verses 13-18—so if you haven’t read that one yet, please check it out under the article titled “Earth is Pointless.”

I like to group people into three standard categories of understanding when it comes to Ecclesiastes chapter 1. There are the ignorant, the knowledgeable, and the wise. This grouping comes from Ecclesiastes 1:15, “What is crooked cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted,” and verse 18, “For with much wisdom is sorrow; as knowledge increases, grief increases.”

In the first part of my study of Ecclesiastes, I talked about how we’re all searching for a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment for our lives. But, while you and I and many other Christians can put a finger on exactly what it is we’re searching for, a number of people can’t. Verse 15 refers to this. Every fully cognizant human knows we’re missing something. There’s a hole in our lives that we just can’t understand or fill no matter how hard we try.

The first grouping is the ignorant. These people are blissful because they don’t know about the hole they’re trying to fill yet. Most of the people in this group are children because their brains simply aren’t developed enough to understand, and better yet for those who already have faith in Jesus because their ignorance is blessed on top of being blissful.

The second grouping is the knowledgeable. They are those who know there is a hole, there is something missing, and they know they can find things that will temporarily cover the bottom of that hole, but have yet to find a solution to the feeling of missing something. Generally speaking, these are the nonbelievers. They’re the ones doing the pointless, useless, futile things like hoarding money, having sex, or any other number of things while looking for a solution.

And finally, the third grouping is the wise. These are the people who have come to the realization that Earth’s “satisfaction” is pointless and have found the one and only thing that can fill the hole in their lives. Generally speaking, these are the believers who know that Jesus is the only one who can satisfy and fulfill us and provide us with joy. They have seen past the knowledge of the world and have applied wisdom, which can only be found through God.

Let’s make this a metaphor, shall we. Picture a painting inside a frame hanging on a wall that is just ever-so-slightly tilted off level. Not a huge amount, but just enough that, were you to look at it, you’d raise one eyebrow and say, “that looks a little off,” to yourself.

In this metaphor, the ignorant group looks at the painting and just sees the pretty colors held within the frame. They don’t notice or care that the frame is slightly crooked. The picture looks nice, and that’s all that concerns them.

The knowledgeable group sees the frame and immediately makes that quizzical face, saying, “That’s a bit off.” Then, they reach up, grab the frame, and tilt it back towards level. However, they tilt it just a little too far, and now it’s off-kilter the other way. They step back, notice it’s crooked again, and reach up to tilt it once more. And they continue to do so in an infinite loop because they never get it quite right.

The wise group sees the frame and has the same initial reaction as the knowledgeable group. But instead of reaching up and trying to fix the frame, they go find a level, set it on top of the frame, and tilt it until it’s perfectly level. Then, they admire the painting for a few moments and move on.

Ecclesiastes describes the second group perfectly in verses 13-14, “I applied my mind to seek and explore through wisdom all that is done under heaven. God has given people this miserable task to keep them occupied. I have seen all the things that are done under the sun and have found everything to be futile, a pursuit of the wind.” Attempting to level that frame by hand is a miserable task. You’ll only get more frustrated the longer you try and fail to fix it.

Solomon says it’s like pursuing the wind. Have you ever tried to chase the wind? First of all, it’s ridiculously fast, but that doesn’t even matter. Why? Because even if you could run faster than the wind, you can’t even capture it! It’ll slip right through your fingers every time you grab at it.

Now, this is all great, but why, then, is wisdom sorrow, as Ecclesiastes 1:18 says: “For with much wisdom is sorrow; as knowledge increases, grief increases.” That’s actually pretty simple, in essence, because the sorrow doesn’t refer to yourself. Sorrow is something that can be felt for others just as much as yourself.

Remember the wise group in the metaphor that admired their paintings for a few moments and moved on? Well, that group now has the distinct displeasure of walking by every person in the knowledgeable group and watching them fiddle and fidget with their frames. That’s where the sorrow is. It’s sorrow for those who know they have a problem but can’t fix it. It’s sorrow for the grief those people experience as they tilt that frame back and forth and back and forth and back and forth.

Strong’s Concordance has the word for grief in verse 18 as “makob” meaning “pain” or “suffering.” In other words, as the group with knowledge becomes more knowledgeable, tilting that frame back and forth, filling that hole, becomes more and more painful with each repetition. Each failure increases their suffering.

And this leads me to a point not detailed in chapter 1, but that I feel led to write down anyway. This is exactly why we are called to go out and make disciples of all nations, to show them to Christ. You, as someone with wisdom, are supposed to stop by each knowledgeable person you pass as they tilt their frame and introduce them to the level, to wisdom, to Christ. You should feel so much sorrow for them that you can’t help but stand by and show them how to end their suffering and find the satisfaction of fixing that frame and admiring that painting. Don’t let people suffer.