SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/12/2013
10:45 AM
My Worship Time Focus: “Extra Words”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Eccl. 1:1-3
Message of the
verses: “1 ¶ The words of the Preacher, the son of David,
king in Jerusalem. 2 "Vanity of
vanities," says the Preacher, "Vanity of vanities! All is
vanity." 3 What advantage does man
have in all his work Which he does under the sun?”
We will look at the following words that do not appear in
Eccl. 1:1-3, but do appear frequently in the book of Ecclesiastes, Evil, Joy,
and Wisdom.
Evil: This word is
used thirty-one times in the book of Ecclesiastes in the King James version of
the Bible. I usually do not use the KJV,
as I mostly use the NASB-95 version, but in the commentaries of Warren Wiersbe
he used the KJV and that is where I got the info on how many times the word
evil is used. Let’s look at Eccl. 2:21
When there is a man who has labored with wisdom, knowledge and skill, then he
gives his legacy to one who has not labored with them. This too is vanity and a
great evil.” This word “evil” seems to have a strange
meaning to me “1) friend, friend of the king (technical sense).” Now let us look at Eccl. 4:3 But better off than both of them is the one
who has never existed, who has never seen the evil activity that is done under the sun.” “07451 ער ra‘ rah or fem. הער ra‘ah
from 07489; ;{ See TWOT on 2191 @@
"2191a" } {See TWOT on 2191 @@ "2191c" }
AV-evil 442, wickedness 59, wicked 25, mischief 21, hurt
20, bad 13, trouble 10, sore 9, affliction 6, ill 5, adversity 4, favoured 3,
harm 3, naught 3, noisome 2, grievous 2, sad 2, misc 34; 663
adj
1) bad, evil
1a) bad, disagreeable, malignant
1b) bad, unpleasant, evil (giving pain, unhappiness,
misery)
1c) evil, displeasing
1d) bad (of its kind-land, water, etc)
1e) bad (of value)
1f) worse than, worst (comparison)
1g) sad, unhappy
1h) evil (hurtful)
1i) bad, unkind (vicious in disposition)
1j) bad, evil, wicked (ethically)
1j1) in general, of persons, of thoughts
1j2) deeds, actions
n m
2) evil, distress, misery, injury, calamity
2a) evil, distress, adversity
2b) evil, injury, wrong
2c) evil (ethical)
n f
3) evil, misery, distress, injury
3a) evil, misery, distress
3b) evil, injury, wrong
3c) evil
(ethical)
There is a big difference in these
two words in the Hebrew that are both translated evil in the NASB. Dr. Wiersbe writes the following in his
commentary about this word evil, “It is the opposite of ‘good’ and covers a
multitude of things: pain, sorrow, hard
circumstances, and distress. It is one o
King Solomon’s favorite words for describing life as he sees it ‘under the sun.’”
Joy: When we read
the book of Ecclesiastes we do not find that Solomon does not recommend either
pessimism or even cynicism, but rather he wants us to be realistic about life,
and he wants us to accept God’s gifts given to us and to enjoy them. Paul writes the following to Timothy: “Instruct those who are rich in this present
world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches,
but on God, who richly
supplies us with all things to enjoy.”
Words with this theme of joy, like rejoice, enjoy, etc are used at least
seventeen times in the book of Ecclesiastes.
Wisdom: After just spending several months looking at
the book of Proverbs we have seen much about wisdom, but Solomon, being the wisest
man every born, other than our Lord Jesus Christ has much to say about wisdom
in this book he has written too.
Dr. Wiersbe writes “There are at least thirty-two
references to ‘fools’ and ‘folly’ and at least fifty-four to ‘wisdom.’” Being the wisest man King Solomon would want
to apply wisdom to that was happening “under the sun” as he writes the book of
Ecclesiastes.
God: Solomon will mention the word God forty times
in Ecclesiastes and the word that he will use is “Elohim” as he does not once
use Jehovah. When we see the word God in
our English Bibles translated from Elohim we see “Mighty God,” the glorious God
of creation, the One who exercises sovereign power. When we see the word Jehovah in our English
text we see the word LORD in small
caps.
Dr. Wiersbe concludes this section on the study of
vocabulary words in Eccl. by writing the following: “We should note that the book abounds in
personal pronouns. Since it is an
autobiography this is to be expected.
Solomon was the ideal person to write this book, for he possessed the
wealth, wisdom, and opportunities necessary to carry out the ‘experiments’
required for this investigation into the meaning of life. God did not make King Solomon disobey just so
he could write this book, but He did use Solomon’s experiences to prepare him
for this task.”
The Analysis: Let us look at Eccl. 12:8-12 to help us in
looking at the analysis of this book: “8
¶ "Vanity of vanities," says
the Preacher, "all is vanity!" 9
In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people
knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs. 10 The Preacher sought to find delightful words
and to write words of truth correctly. 11
The words of wise men are like goads, and masters of these collections
are like well-driven nails; they are given by one Shepherd. 12 But beyond this, my son, be warned: the
writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying
to the body.” 8 ¶ “Absolute futility,”
says the Teacher. “Everything is futile.” 9
In addition to the Teacher being a wise man, he constantly taught the
people knowledge; he weighed, explored, and arranged many proverbs. 10 The Teacher sought to find delightful sayings
and to accurately write words of truth. 11
The sayings of the wise are like goads, and those from masters of
collections are like firmly embedded nails. The sayings are given by one
Shepherd. 12 But beyond these, my son,
be warned: there is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies
the body.” (HCSB)
We will look at Psalm 80:1 to find out about the One
Shepherd “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a
flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.” (KJV)
Lord willing we will look at the “Application” in
tomorrow’s SD and after than we will jump into the rest of chapter one of Eccl.
as we look at “Living in Circles,” which is the title of Warren Wiersbe’s
second chapter in his commentary on Ecclesiastes to which he entitles it “Be
Satisfied.” He also asks the following
question on the front cover “Looking for the Answer to the Meaning of Life?”
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: As Solomon looked
for the meaning of life he concludes Ecclesiastes with these words, “13 ¶ The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His
commandments, because this applies to every person. 14 For God will bring every act to judgment,
everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.” Now that I know what the true meaning of life
is I desire to seek the help of the Holy Spirit to fulfill that meaning.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Continue to see God in all of the Word that I
read and study so that I can get to know Him better and better. I can see God as the true Judge of all the
earth as I look at Eccl. 12:13-14.
Memory verses for the
week: Psalm 32:7-10
7 You are my hiding place: You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance.
Selah. 8 I will instruct you and
teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon
you. 9 Do not be as the horse or as the
mule which has no understanding, whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold
them in check, otherwise they will not come near you. 10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but he
who trusts in the LORD Lovingkindness shall surround you.
Answer to Yesterday’s Bible
Question: “Above every name.” (Phil. 2:9)
Today’s Bible
Question: “Who said, ‘Blessed are they
whose iniquities are forgiven’?”
Answer in Tomorrow’s SD.
4/12/2013 12:33 PM
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