Through the Bible: EcclesiastesSample

A Meaningless Spiral

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart. 

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (ESV)

What does life mean? What are we busy with? What are we chasing after? The pandemic has brought into sharper focus the importance of finding meaning in life and death.

Solomon looks for meaning in human wisdom, pleasure, work and accomplishments. 

Life is empty, even if we gain the highest earthly honours or embrace every earthly pleasure. Ecclesiastes encourages us to adopt a God-centred worldview in life, rather than falling victim to confusion, emptiness or self introspection. Setting eternity in our hearts is central to making sense of life.

Ecclesiastes highlights that death makes equal the wise and the fool and defeats all accomplishments. No matter how wise we are, how much we accomplish or how much pleasure we have experienced, all of us will die. Life is futile and foolish without an eternal perspective. Once we embrace eternity in our hearts, this removes the fear and finality of death.

Prayer

Father God, help to quell the restlessness in my heart. Remove the pride and self-reliance in my life and replace it with the confidence of eternity in my heart because I am wonderfully made in the image of an eternal God. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.