Wayside Gospel Chapel: Pastor's Sermon Notes: Ecclesiastes (series), #30 - A Merry Heart in a Fallen World (Ecclesiastes 9:7-10)

Monday, August 22, 2016

Pastor's Sermon Notes: Ecclesiastes (series), #30 - A Merry Heart in a Fallen World (Ecclesiastes 9:7-10)

Series: Ecclesiastes

Sermon #30: A Merry Heart in a Fallen World

Ecclesiastes 9:7-10

[Audio file from Internet Archive at https://archive.org/details/Ecclesiastes97-10.]

7 Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. 8 Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. 9 Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. 10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

Outline:

I. Rejoice Because of God (9:7)

II. Look the Part (9:8)

III. Enjoy the Gift of God (9:9)

IV. Seize the Day (9:10)

I. Rejoice Because of God (9:7)

Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.

⁷ Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. ⁸ Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. ⁹ Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. ¹⁰ Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

1. Go thy way

These verses begin and end with the verb “go.” Here is it a command, “go,” an imperative verb. At the end of verse 10 it is the future indicative, “you are going.” Everything in between our being told to go, and the reminder about where we are going has to do with how to live our lives on the way.

2. eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart

There is a noticeable emphasis throughout these verses on this issue of how we are to live our lives in the “here and now,” before being overcome by death. This emphasis is seen in three prepositional phrases, and one adverb. Two of the prepositional phrases, and the adverb emphasis “joy”: “with joy,” and “with a merry heart” (vs. 7), and “joyfully” (vs. 9). The third prepositional phrase is “with thy might” (vs. 10).

Note the twelve 2nd person singular possessive pronouns in these verses:

4 in vs. 7 — thy way….thy bread…. thy wine…. thy works

2 in vs. 8 — thy garments….thy head

4 in vs. 9 — thy vanity….thy vanity…. thy portion….thy labour

2 in vs. 10 — thy hand….thy might

Joie de vivre — see Sermon #14: Joie de Vivre as the Gift of God (Eccl. 5:18-20; 17 JAN 2016)[1] — 18 Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. 19 Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God. 20 For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.

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This also came up in the first point in the sermon on Ecclesiastes 8:15, Sermon #26: “Making the Best of our Days in a Fallen World” (1 MAY 2016):[2]

I. The Commendation of Joie de Vivre, “Then I commended mirth,”

[snip]

“I think that the New International Version was on the right track in their “enjoyment of life” even if they had to add words in their translation that are not found in the Hebrew text to bring the idea out. What their English rendering hints at is the French expression joie de vivre. And it is this which captures best what “mirth” means here.

French, literally, joy of living

First Known Use: 1889

a feeling of happiness or excitement about life

keen or buoyant enjoyment of life[3]

literally, joy of living[4]

1889, French, literally "joy of living."[5]

joy of living; enjoyment of life; ebullience[6]

A love of life. From French, meaning “joy of living.”[7]

a feeling of great happiness and enjoyment of life[8]

Hearty or carefree enjoyment of life.[9]

a delight in being alive; keen, carefree enjoyment of living.

[literally, joy of living][10]

“Joie de vivre (French pronunciation: [ʒwa də vivʁ], joy of living) is a French phrase often used in English to express a cheerful enjoyment of life; an exultation of spirit.

It "can be a joy of conversation, joy of eating, joy of anything one might do… And joie de vivre may be seen as a joy of everything, a comprehensive joy, a philosophy of life, a Weltanschauung. Robert's Dictionnaire says joie is sentiment exaltant ressenti par toute la conscience, that is, involves one's whole being."”[11]

The focus on this word throughout Ecclesiastes is on the enjoyment of the fruit of one’s labor. It is emphasized as here in the conclusions of each of the first three major sections of Ecclesiastes, what J. Sidlow Baxter referred to as the “ad interim conclusions.”

Eccl. 2:24 — There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.

[As in 8:15 this parallel statement is found in the conclusion of a major section of the book, in this case at the end of the first of the four sections.]

Eccl. 5:18 — Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.

[As in 8:15 this parallel statement is found in the conclusion of a major section of the book, in this case at the end of the second of the four sections.]

Examples from elsewhere in Ecclesiastes:

Eccl. 3:12-13 — I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life. 13 And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.

[The word translated “rejoice” here is the same Hebrew root word, in this case same primitive verb form as is rendered “merry” later in 8:15.]

Eccl. 9:7-9 — 7 Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. 8 Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. 9 Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.

[The word translated “joy” in 9:7 is the same as that translated “mirth” in 8:15, but the Hebrew words translated “merry” in verse 7, and “joyfully” in 9:9 are both different.]

We may be sure that any who teach contrary to what is found here in the Word of God are apostates who are under the influence of evil spirits, and teaching demonic doctrines.

1 Tim. 4:1-5 — 1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; 3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. 4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: 5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

The joie de vivre taught here is not to be confused with the accumulation of worldly riches, or “keeping up with the Joneses”! It is keyed on faith in God, and recognition of His gifts to us.

1 Tim. 6:17 — Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;”

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3. for God now accepteth thy works

Don’t miss the “now”! (already)

“…the gift of creaturely existence is also to be fully enjoyed within the temporal limits assigned to it (9:7ff.).”

— Hans Walter Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, trans. Margaret Kohl (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1974; from Anthropologie des Alten Testaments, Munich: Chr. Kaiser Verlag, 1973), pg. 117 (cp. pp. 113-117).

The force of this “now” will be unpacked a couple of verses later.

How are we to understand this statement that God now accepts our works? On this question see especially the following: William D. Barrick, Ecclesiastes: The Philippians of the Old Testament, Focus on the Bible series (Fearn, Ross-Shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2012), pg. 163; Michael A. Eaton, Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary, Vol. 16, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity, 1983), pg. 45; and Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Ecclesiastes: Total Life, in Everyman’s Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979), pp. 98-102.

II. Look the Part (9:8)

Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment.

Here is a positive command followed by a negative: “Let….don’t let.”

There are temporal limiters associated with both: “always,” and its opposite, i.e., never. This should be seen as assumed in “lack no,” i.e., “don’t ever.”

There are serious translation (using the term loosely) issues with the NLT in these verses in Ecclesiastes. In the first instance, the NLT gets silly with their dynamic equivalency in verse 8:

“Wear fine clothes, with a splash of cologne!”

The significance of white garments, and an anointed head are worth exploring so that we don’t miss what is so far from such a silly notion.

White garments may be contrasted with dirty garments, but also, and perhaps more significantly, with dark, or funereal garments, garments of mourning. In other words, white garments should be seen as contrasted with sackcloth. This would be meaningful if the two expressions are seen as connected, and necessarily bearing the same import, i.e. contrasted with sackcloth and ashes.

In the Old Testament (42 occurrences, including Law, Prophets, and Writings):

Gen. 37:34 — And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.

Neh. 9:1 — Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.

Est. 4:1-3 — 1 When Mordecai perceived all that was done, Mordecai rent his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and cried with a loud and a bitter cry; 2 And came even before the king's gate: for none might enter into the king's gate clothed with sackcloth. 3: And in every province, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, there was great mourning among the Jews, and fasting, and weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.

Ps. 30:11 — Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;

Is. 50:3 — I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.

Is. 58:5 — Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?

Jer. 6:26 — O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly come upon us.

Lam. 2:10 — The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground, and keep silence: they have cast up dust upon their heads; they have girded themselves with sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground.

Dan. 9:3 — And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplication, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:

Jon. 3:5-6 — 5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. 6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

But compare Ps. 23, especially Ps. 23:5 — Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

In the New Testament:

Mt. 11:21 (pp Lk. 10:13) — Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

Rev. 6:12 — And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

Rev. 11:3 — And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

The anointing of the head had significance far beyond pleasant odors. Psalm 23 makes that clear, and from one end to the other the 39 books of the Old Testament regard the anointing of the head with oil as having significance for blessing, ministry, and healing. It is so in the New Testament as well. For example:

The anointing oil of gladness:

Mt. 6:17 — But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;

Heb. 1:9 — Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

The anointing oil of healing:

M'r:6:13: And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.

Jas:5:14: Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:

Dressing for life, and not for a funeral, and not neglecting the oil of gladness, should make sense in a context with such an emphasis on joy. We have seen this already in the previous verse (vs. 7), and now it will be emphasized again in the verse that follows (vs. 9).

III. Enjoy the Gift of God (9:9)

Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.

1. Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest

“Like the enjoyment of bread and wine, the joys of love also belong to God’s gifts in this incalculable world, says Ecclesiastes (9.7-9).”

2. all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity

Do not miss the distinct threefold emphases in this verse on:

1) life itself (3x) — “Live….the life….this life….,”

2) the span of life — “all the days” (2x), and,

3) the sphere of life — “under the sun” (2x).

This should be seen as unpacking the “now” in the last clause of verse 1:

“for God now accepteth thy works.”

3. for that is thy portion in this life

As mentioned previously, there are serious translation (using the term loosely) issues with the NLT in these verses in Ecclesiastes. The second case appears in this verse where the NLT does not seem to be convincing or justified in their interpretive approach to verse 9:

“The wife God gives you is your reward for all your earthly toil.”

In the initial clause of this verse it is the enjoyment of life with your wife that would appear to be the antecedent of the demonstrative pronoun (this, that), and not just the wife. William D. Barrick recognizes this also. See his Ecclesiastes: The Philippians of the Old Testament, Focus on the Bible series (Fearn, Ross-Shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2012), pg. 161.

portion - cp. 9:6 — “Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.”

Cp. also:

2:10 — And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.

2:21 — For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.

3:22 — Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?

5:18-19 — 18 Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. 19 Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.

4. and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun

Translation? Is there difficulty in translating a Hebrew idiom at the end of verse 9 detected in the following attempts?

“and in your toil in which you have labored” (NASB)

“and in your toil at which you toil” (ESV)

“and in your struggle” (HCSB)

“and in your toilsome labor” (NIV)

Literal vs. Dynamic - Hebrew duplication with noun followed by verb.

Vocabulary? cp. labour (9:9) and work (9:10) — different Hebrew words?

Yes, the difference is between travail and enterprises or deeds.

IV. Seize the Day (9:10)

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

1. Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might

Remember that these verses began with a command to “Go thy way,” and now they conclude with a reference to a future “going.” As mentioned previously while considering verse 7, everything in between our being told to go, and the reminder about where we are going has to do with how to live our lives on the way. When it came to the issue of how to live life there was an unmistakable emphasis on joy that was seen three times in verses seven and nine in two prepositional phrases, and an adverb. Now added to this is an emphasis on “might” in the third prepositional phrase: “with thy might.” If this were to be expressed as an adverb it would be “mightily.”

This may be seen as overarching and involving everything presented in the verses prior to this (9:7-9). The extent of the application of this phrase should be understood due to the clauses sandwiched around it: “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do….for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.” These clauses focus firstly on the totality of our endeavors, activities, and efforts in this life, and secondly on the fact of the end of this life when all such endeavors, activities, and efforts will be brought to an end.

As mentioned already concerning both of the two previous verses, there are serious translation (using the term loosely) issues with the NLT in these verses in Ecclesiastes. The final instance appears here in verse 10 where the NLT flattens the command: “Whatever you do, do well.”

Compare other translations on this, especially noticing the emphasis they include with the command: “do it with all your might (NASB, NIV), and “do with all your strength” (HCSB).

Rom. 12:11 — Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

Col. 3:17 — And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Col. 3:23 — And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Carpe diem! (“Seize the day!”) “Live life to the fullest!” “Go for the gusto!”

2. for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

“…no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom…”

Syntax? Is there a progression to be observed in the four linked elements in verse 10: “…work…device…knowledge…wisdom…”? See the ESV: “for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol.” If so, would this indicate an amplified reason for the command in the previous clause unpacking the “whatsoever” at the beginning of the verse? Note: Other modern translations (NASB, HCSB, NIV, NLT) render the second term in this series of four as “planning;” the KJV and YLT as “device.”

Even as verses 8-9 unpacked the “works” accepted by God, so verse 10 summarizes them in the “whatsoever” at the beginning of the verse, and in the four items listed here: work, planning, knowledge, and wisdom.

Here “in the grave, whither thou goest” is the “then” to be contrasted to the “now” at the end of verse 7: “for God now accepteth thy works.” That “now” was unpacked in verse 9 in the words:

“…all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.”

All the days of our lives are numbered, and have an end. Our time “under the sun” will not last. We cannot stay where we are. There is no doubt left in this verse concerning where we are going. This life is not free of the shadow of death. When we are told to go our way (vs. 7), it is understood that it is a way that ends in death.

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

(Ps. 90:12)

Conclusion:

“What inferences does Ecclesiastes deduce from this? His conclusions are determined neither by nihilistic hedonism nor by sceptical resignation. Man has to face both good and evil days in the knowledge of their irreplacable opportunities (7:14)….man should be completely ready and receptive for the good hours that time brings with it, both in his taking and in his giving. Ecclesiastes 9.7-10 is the finest expression of this:….”

“In submission to God’s decrees and in receptivity towards good opportunities Ecclesiastes points to the only way in which the far-seeing sceptic can deal with his time. In what he says he absorbs essential material from the older wisdom literature (Prov. 15.15):

All the days of the afflicted are evil,

but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.

In the midst of the riddle that God himself sets the wise with time and its processes, it is ultimately God alone who makes it possible for man to achieve the essential and, in spite of all his difficulties, to discover the good and to enjoy it happily.”

See also especially Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Ecclesiastes: Total Life, in Everyman’s Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979), pp. 100-101.

[Sermon preached 12 JUN 2016 by Pastor John T. “Jack” Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA.]

Complete Outline:

I. Rejoice Because of God (9:7)

II. Look the Part (9:8)

III. Enjoy the Gift of God (9:9)

IV. Seize the Day (9:10)

Select Sources on Ecclesiastes:

J. Sidlow Baxter, Explore The Book: A Basic and Broadly Interpretive Course of Bible Study from Genesis to Revelation, 6 vols. in 1 ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, n.d., 1960 printing).

William D. Barrick, Ecclesiastes: The Philippians of the Old Testament, Focus on the Bible series (Fearn, Ross-Shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2012).[12]

Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Ecclesiastes (New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860).[13]

C. Hassell Bullock, An Introduction to the Old Testament Poetic Books: The Wisdom and Songs of Israel (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979).

Franz Delitzsch, “Commentary on The Song of Songs and Ecclesiastes,” trans. M. G. Easton, in Commentary on the Old Testament in Ten Volumes, C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Vol. VI: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon: Three Volumes in One (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., n.d., 1975 reprint), III:179-442.

Michael A. Eaton, Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary, Vol. 16, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity, 1983).

Sinclair B. Ferguson. The Pundit's Folly: Chronicles of an Empty Life (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1995).

Duane A. Garrett, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Vol. 14, New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman, 1993).

Donald R. Glenn, “Ecclesiastes,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. J. F. Walvoord, and R. B. Zuck (Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1985).

William Henry Green, “Scope and Plan of the Book of Ecclesiastes,” Biblical Reparatory and Princeton Review 29 (1857), pp. 419-40; on Gordon Faculty Online at http://faculty.gordon.edu/hu/bi/Ted_Hildebrandt/OTeSources/21-Ecclesiastes/Text/Articles/Green-ScopeofEccl-1857.pdf [accessed 7 NOV 2015].[14]

Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Coping With Change: Ecclesiastes (Fearn, Roth-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2013).[15]

Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Ecclesiastes: Total Life, in Everyman’s Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979).

Derek Kidner, The Message of Ecclesiastes: A Time to Mourn, and a Time to Dance, in The Bible Speaks Today, Old Testament series ed. J. A. Motyer (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1976).

H. C. Leupold, Exposition of Ecclesiastes (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1952).

Tremper Longman III, The Book of Ecclesiastes, New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).

John MacArthur, MacArthur Study Bible, rev. ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).

Roland Edmund Murphy, Ecclesiastes, Vol. 23A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, 1992).

John G. Reisinger, Studies in Ecclesiastes (Frederick, MD: New Covenant Media, 2008).

Philip Graham Ryken, Ecclesiastes: Why Everything Matters, in Preaching the Word, gen. ed. R. Kent Hughes (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010).

Philip G. Ryken, Why Everything Matters: The Gospel in Ecclesiastes (Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus Publications, Ltd., 2015).

Benjamin Shaw, “On Reading Ecclesiastes,” in The Hope Fulfilled: Essays in Honor of O. Palmer Robertson, ed. Robert L. Penny (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2008), pp. 47-58.

Peter B. Steese, ed., Ecclesiastes, gen. ed. Leonard F. Dean (Boston: Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1966).

Tom V. Taylor, Studies in Ecclesiastes (Port Colborne, Ontario, CA: Gospel Folio Press, 2013).[16]

Addison G. Wright, “The Riddle of the Sphinx: The Structure of the Book of Qoheleth,” in Reflecting with Solomon: Selected Studies on the Book of Ecclesiastes, ed. Roy B. Zuck (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994), pp. 45-66; originally published in Catholic Biblical Quarterly 30 (1968), pp. 313-334.

J. Stafford Wright, “Ecclesiastes,” in Psalms-Song of Songs, Vol. 5, Expositor's Bible Commentary, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991).

J. Stafford Wright, “The Interpretation of Ecclesiastes”, in Classical Evangelical Essays in Old Testament Interpretation, ed. Walter C. Kaiser Jr. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1972), pp. 135-150; from J. Stafford Wright, “The Interpretation of Ecclesiastes,” Evangelical Quarterly 18 (1946), pp. 18-34; on Rediscovering the Bible at http://rediscoveringthebible.com/InterpretationOfEcclesiastes.html [accessed 7 MAY 2015].

Ronald F. Youngblood, “Qoheleth's 'Dark House' (Eccl. 12:5),” in A Tribute to Gleason Archer, eds. Walter C. Kaiser and Ronald F. Youngblood (Chicago: Moody Press, 1986), pp.211-228; also published in Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 29:4 (DEC 1986), pp. 397-410; on Biblical Studies at http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/29/29-4/29-4-pp397-410_JETS.pdf [accessed 4 APR 2016].

Notes:

[1] On Wayside Gospel Chapel at http://waysidegospelchapel.blogspot.com/2016/07/pastors-sermon-notes-ecclesiastes_48.html [accessed 22 AUG 2016].

[2] On Wayside Gospel Chapel at http://waysidegospelchapel.blogspot.com/2016/08/pastors-sermon-notes-ecclesiastes_38.html [accessed 22 AUG 2016].

[3] Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary on Merriam-Webster at

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/joie%20de%20vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[4] Dictionary.com Unabridged; Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2016; on Dictionary.com at http://www.dictionary.com/browse/joie-de-vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[6] Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition

Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012; on Dictionary.com at http://www.dictionary.com/browse/joie-de-vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[7] The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/joie-de-vivre; on Cambridge Dictionaries Online at http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/joie-de-vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[9] American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company; on The Free Dictionary at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/joie+de+vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[10] Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991; on The Free Dictionary at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/joie+de+vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[11] Shibles, Warren (1997). Humor Reference Guide: A Comprehensive Classification and Analysis. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press; cited by Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joie_de_vivre [accessed 30 APR 2016].

[12] Barrick’s lecture notes (PDF files) and audio (mp3) are on Dr Barrick at http://drbarrick.org/teaching/ecclesiastes/ [accessed 3 FEB 2016].

[13] On Internet Archive at https://archive.org/details/expositionofbook00bridrich [accessed 11 MAY 2015]; on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=e4kOAQAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 11 MAY 2015]; and linked on Precept Austin at http://preceptaustin.org/proverbs_commentaries.htm#cb [accessed 11 MAY 2015].

[14] Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. inexplicably refers to this as an “unsigned article” on at least two occasions in his commentary despite the facts that: 1) William Henry Green is clearly indicated as the author under the title on the first page of the article (pg. 419), and 2) one of his own faculty members (Ted Hildebrandt) has posted the article on the school’s web site where Kaiser served as both faculty member and President. Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Ecclesiastes: Total Life, in Everyman’s Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979); and Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Coping With Change: Ecclesiastes (Fearn, Roth-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2013).

[15] Although not indicated on the copyright page, this appears in all respects to be a revised edition (2nd ed.) of the Moody Press 1979 original. The relationship to the original is referenced in the “Preface,” where the author mentions the inclusion of his own translation of Ecclesiastes in this revision as one significant change. “Dale Ralph Davis compares the two and says, “the ‘bones’ are much the same but the whole has been updated and expanded.” Source: Tim Challies, “Best Commentaries on Ecclesiastes” (18 NOV 2013), on Challies at http://www.challies.com/resources/best-commentaries-on-ecclesiastes [accessed 7 NOV 2015].

[16] See also the “Thomas V. Taylor Library” on the Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute at http://www.taylorlib.ibri.org/ [accessed 27 NOV 2013].

Wayside Gospel Chapel

Verse of the Day

Monday, August 22, 2016

Pastor's Sermon Notes: Ecclesiastes (series), #30 - A Merry Heart in a Fallen World (Ecclesiastes 9:7-10)

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