<p>Solomon said a live dog is better than a dead lion (Ecc. 9:4). The point is not
that the dog is noble. It is that while a creature still breathes it still has
hope, and the mightiest lion, once dead, has none.</p>
<p>Everything under the sun is <strong><em>he·ḇel</em></strong>, vapor that evaporates like smoke, and
Solomon faced the hardest fact about it: there is one fate for all. &quot;There is
one fate for the righteous and for the wicked&quot; (Ecc. 9:2). Abel was righteous,
and his name, <em>Havel</em>, is a near cousin of the very word Solomon used for
futility. His faith could not spare him a death at his brother&#39;s hand. No one
earns a way past the grave, &quot;for all have sinned&quot; (Rom. 3:23).</p>
<p>So how do you find meaning in a life you cannot lengthen? Solomon draws out
seven lessons, all of them pointing to Jesus, another name for Yahweh: (1)
faith, (2) hope, (3) grateful contentment, (4) service, (5) diligence, (6)
seeking His wisdom, and (7) trust.</p>
<h2>Hope only lasts as long as it rests in Jesus</h2>
<p>Hope is free to every living person, but apart from Jesus it ends at the grave
(Ecc. 9:4-6). It was Christ who &quot;brightened the dark valley,&quot; bringing life and
immortality to light. David knew where to anchor it while he still lived: &quot;My
soul, wait in silence for God alone, for my hope is from Him&quot; (Ps. 62:5).</p>
<h2>Whatever your hand finds to do, do it now</h2>
<p>Death stalks like a predator, catching people &quot;like fish caught in a treacherous
net&quot; (Ecc. 9:12). You cannot control the length of your life, so do not delay.
&quot;Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might&quot; (Ecc. 9:10), and do
it &quot;as for the Lord and not for people&quot; (Col. 3:23).</p>
<p>Grateful contentment with what God provides, quiet wisdom over the world&#39;s loud
counsel, and trust when foolish voices are popular round out Solomon&#39;s list. The
full study walks through all seven, and why each one only holds when it is
placed in Jesus.</p>


Seven lessons from Ecclesiastes 9 for finding meaning in a life you cannot lengthen, from faith and hope to serving and trusting Jesus.

Solomon previously warned that everything “under the sun” is (he·ḇel) “הֶ֙בֶל֙”, “futility,” “vanity,” or “meaningless” (e.g. Ecc. 1:3, 9, 14; 2:18-23;…

Ecclesiastes 9: Lessons For Finding Meaning Through Jesus During Your Limited Time on Earth

Finding Meaning in a Short Life

<p>Solomon had more reason than anyone alive to trust in wealth, and the word he
kept reaching for was <strong><em>he·ḇel</em></strong>: &quot;futility,&quot; &quot;vanity,&quot; &quot;meaningless.&quot; It will
one day evaporate like smoke.</p>
<p>In the prior chapter, Solomon warned about the futility of wealth. In
Ecclesiastes 6 he continued with those warnings. Those who trust in their wealth
instead of Jesus will ultimately experience: (1) loss, (2) regret, (3) eternal
sorrow, (4) insatiable desires, (5) futile rebellion, (6) futile pride, and (7)
a futile lack of faith.</p>
<h2>Avoid placing your trust in the gift instead of the Giver</h2>
<p>Solomon watched God give a person &quot;riches, wealth, and honor, so that his soul
lacks nothing of all that he desires,&quot; and then withhold the opportunity to
enjoy any of it, while &quot;a foreigner enjoys them.&quot; (Ecc. 6:1-2). He knew the
pattern from his own house. &quot;As he came naked from his mother&#39;s womb, so he will
return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can
carry in his hand.&quot; (Ecc. 5:15). His son Rehoboam squandered the inheritance,
and Shishak of Egypt carried off the shields of gold that Solomon had made
(1 Kgs. 14:25-26).</p>
<h2>Greed can never be satisfied</h2>
<p>&quot;Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, nor are the eyes of a person ever
satisfied.&quot; (Prov. 27:20). Wealth cannot fill the appetite, and it will not hold
still long enough to try. &quot;Do not weary yourself to gain wealth; stop dwelling
on it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes
itself wings like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.&quot; (Prov. 23:4-5).</p>
<h2>One day with God is better than a thousand years without Him</h2>
<p>&quot;For a day in Your courtyards is better than a thousand elsewhere.&quot; (Ps. 84:10).
Martin Luther saw what that does to our accounting: &quot;As I shall forsake my
riches when I die, so I forsake them while I am living.&quot;</p>
<p>The warning is not that wealth is evil. It is that wealth cannot bear the weight
of your hope. Place your hope in eternal life with Jesus, not in your wealth.</p>


Solomon had more wealth than anyone alive and still called it vapor. Seven warnings from Ecclesiastes 6 for anyone tempted to hope in what they own.

Solomon previously warned that for those who trust in the worldly things “under the sun” (Ecc. 1:3, 9, 14; 2:18-23; 3:16; 4:8; 5:13-14), such trust is…

Reflections