Part 7 of 8 of the theme "Lessons from Ecclesiastes.' by Gijs van den Brink

Then the preacher talks about true worship, about serious prayer, thinking carefully about what you are saying to God (4:17-5:6). You should not go offering sacrifices in the temple without realizing what you did wrong. He says that when we approach God, we should begin by listening (4:17). A wise person listens more than he speaks (5:1). And when we speak we must also do what we say. Words and deeds must match. The preacher speaks of praying with integrity. As Jesus also speaks of this in John 4:24. "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.

In the end, only one thing remains: be in awe of God and keep his commandments (Pr. 12:12-13). It is exactly the same conclusion we find at the conclusion of the song about the search for wisdom in the book of Job (Job 28:28). The book of Ecclesiastes does not bring philosophy, but is a book of wisdom. Ecclesiastes is a book that outlines practical life wisdom focused on living in the world of God. In this sense, it is similar to the book of Proverbs.
The preacher does not speak from God's revelation, but from what he sees and what you can know with the human mind. In this way, the preacher does not get answers to all his questions. He comes to the conclusion that the wisdom you need to understand everything that happens in the world is not attainable for a human being.

Next time: Part 8 of the series of lessons from Ecclesiastes is entitled 'Life is not engineerable'‘

See also: Part 6 of 8 of the theme 'Lessons from Ecclesiastes' 'oppression and injustice'

Author: Gijs van den Brink
From: Study Bible Magazine

This is part 7 of 8 concise blog on the theme "Lessons from Ecclesiastes" from Study Bible Magazine, Some of which we will be posting online in the near future. We hope this will help you understand the Bible better!

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