Verse of the Day

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Pastor's Sermon Notes: Ecclesiastes (series), #27 - You Shall Not Pass! (Ecclesiastes 8:16-17)

Series: Ecclesiastes
Sermon #27: You Shall Not Pass![1]
Ecclesiastes 8:16-17


[Audio file from Internet Archive at https://archive.org/details/Ecclesiastes816-17.]

16 When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:)
17 Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.

Introduction:

We have now come to the beginning of the fourth and final major section of the Ecclesiastes.

Outline:

I. The Commitment to Learning (8:16)
II. The Wonder of the Work of God (8:17a)
III. The Frustration of the Human Search for Knowledge (8:17b-f)

Transition:  

Once again man is faced with the reality not only of life in a fallen world, but also of his status as a creature with the limitations inherent in that status.

I. The Commitment to Learning (8:16)

When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:)

1. The General Intent of Qoheleth’s Search
2. The Specific Focus of Qoheleth’s Search
3. The Parenthetical Expression That Qualifies Qoheleth’s Search

1. The General Intent of Qoheleth’s Search

When I applied mine heart to know wisdom,

Verse 16 is the “when.” Verse 17 is the “then.” This verse, verse 16, sets the stage for the next verse as the basis for Qoheleth’s conclusion there. “When I applied…Then I beheld…” When I did this, then I realized that.

Eccl. 7:25 — I applied mine heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness:

Eccl. 8:9 — All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt.


2. The Specific Focus of Qoheleth’s Search

and to see the business that is done upon the earth:

In this verse we have the expression “upon the earth.”[2] In the next verse it will be the familiar phrase in Ecclesiastes, “under the sun.”[3]

Horizontally, there are three stages in Ecclesiastes: 1) existence before the Fall of Adam, 2) existence after the Fall of Adam, and 3) existence after death.

Vertically, there are three levels in Ecclesiastes: 1) under the sun, 2) under heaven, and 3) God in heaven.

All of reality is referenced by Qoheleth to these three horizontal stages, and in these three vertical levels.

The key here in verse 16 appears to be on “business,” i.e., the “business that is done upon the earth.”

“These wise men….also investigate the complexities of things themselves (Eccles. 8.1, 5, 17; 12.9)….”
— 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. 206.

3. The Parenthetical Expression That Qualifies Qoheleth’s Search

(for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:)

There appears to be some difficulty in understanding the significance of the parenthetical expression regarding the 24/7 aspect of what is intended in these words.

1) Most translations give no apparent connection to the previous phrases:

KJV, ASV, Darby — for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:)
NASB and NASU — (even though one should never sleep day or night)
ESV — how neither day nor night do one’s eyes see sleep
HCSB — (even though one’s eyes do not close in sleep day or night)
NKJV — even though one sees no sleep day or night
RSV — how neither day nor night one’s eyes see sleep
NRSV — how one’s eyes see sleep neither day nor night
Berkeley and MLB — that one neither by day nor by night sees himself sleeping

2) At least two translations seem to connect this to the seeker of wisdom:

Moffatt — in a sleepless quest for it by day and night
YLT — (for there is also a spectator in whose eyes sleep is not by day and by night)

3) A different connection, apparently to the business of mankind, appears to be intended by the following:

NIV — …—people getting no sleep day or night—
NLT — I discovered that there is ceaseless activity, day and night.
NEB — when man never closes an eye in sleep day or night
Lamsa — for there are those whose eyes see no sleep either day or night

Whether we understand the parenthetical expression as intended to apply to those engaged in the business which is the object of scrutiny, or to the one observing the business, the end result is the same. There is a lot happening in the earth 24/7, past, present and future, and the present night in one part of the earth is day elsewhere. While all of this is going on the student of wisdom is playing catch up. He must sleep eventually, and is overcome by events, and the sheer volume of earthly activity. The field of study is simply more massive than anyone can comprehend even if an insomniac. There aren’t enough hours in a day, or days in a lifetime to catch up to and comprehend all that goes on in creation.

Man is bound to the space/time continuum of creation, and as such is continually reminded of that fact!

You shall not pass!

And, it may be that at this point this is only with reference to the work of man!

What about when it comes to “the work of God”?

II. The Wonder of the Work of God (8:17a)

Then I beheld all the work of God

1. The work of God includes the work of creation.
2. The work of God also includes His providential rule in His creation.
3. The work of God includes His work of salvation.

This is the basis for the three negative conclusions that follow in this verse.

Our attention has already been drawn to the work of God by Qoheleth, and will be again before the end of his book:

Eccl. 3:11 —He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

Eccl. 7:13 — Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?

Eccl. 11:5 — As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.

What did Qoheleth behold when he beheld the work of God?

1. The work of God includes the work of creation.

Ps. 19:1-6 — 1  The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

Ps. 40:5 — Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

Ps. 104:24 — O LORD, how manifold are thy works!  in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

The creation is the work of God.

Every bush is a burning bush! You may have favorite quotes from John Calvin like I do. Two of my personal favorites are from his Institutes of the Christian Religion, and deal with “the spectacles of Scripture,”[4] and “the sparks of His glory” in natural revelation.[5] I would like to focus your attention on the second of these. You may have heard the oft repeated expression, “every bush is a burning bush.” John Calvin may have been the original source for the thought behind this statement. He describes all of creation as a “theater” in several places: “such a dazzling theater,”[6] “this most glorious theater,”[7] “this most beautiful theater,”[8] and “this magnificent theater of heaven and earth crammed with innumerable miracles,”[9] In one place he writes of the effect of this “theater”: “...our eyes, in whatever direction they may turn, are compelled to gaze upon God’s  works...”[10] In another, “...men cannot open their eyes without being compelled to see him.”[11] But, then, in one statement, what is perhaps the fullest expression of Calvin’s thought on this subject seems to come out: “...wherever you cast your eyes, there is no spot in the universe wherein you cannot discern at least some sparks of his glory.”[12]

What else did Qoheleth behold when he beheld the work of God?

2. The work of God also includes His providential rule in His creation.

Beholding this providential rule should be a source not just of wonder, but also of comfort to the people of God!

Q27:  What do you understand by the providence of God?[13]
A27:  The almighty, everywhere‑present power of God,[1] whereby, as it were by His hand, He still upholds heaven and earth with all creatures,[2] and so governs them that herbs and grass, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, meat and drink,[3] health and sickness,[4] riches and poverty,[5] indeed, all things come not by chance, but by His fatherly hand.

1.  Acts 17:25‑26
2.  Heb. 1:3
3.  Jer. 5:24; Acts 14:17
4.  John 9:3
5.  Prov. 22:2; Psa. 103:19; Rom. 5:3‑5a

Q28:  What does it profit us to know that God created and by His providence upholds all things?
A28:  That we may be patient in adversity,[1] thankful in prosperity,[2] and for what is future have good confidence in our faithful God and Father, that no creature shall separate us from His love,[3] since all creatures are so in His hand, that without His will they cannot so much as move.[4]

1.  Rom. 5:3; James 1:3; Job 1:21
2.  Deut. 8:10; I Thess. 5:18
3.  Rom. 8:35, 38‑39
4.  Job 1:12; Acts 17:25‑28; Prov. 21:1; Psa. 71:7; II Cor. 1:10

3. The work of God includes His work of salvation.

John 6:22-40 — 22 The day following, when the people which stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was none other boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples were gone away alone; 23 (Howbeit there came other boats from Tiberias nigh unto the place where they did eat bread, after that the Lord had given thanks:) 24 When the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, neither his disciples, they also took shipping, and came to Capernaum, seeking for Jesus. 25 And when they had found him on the other side of the sea, they said unto him, Rabbi, when camest thou hither? 26 Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. 27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. 28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. 30 They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work? 31 Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat. 32 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. 35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. 36 But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not. 37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39 And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. 40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

If Qoheleth were to publish a revised edition of his book today what work of God would receive the lion’s share of his attention?

III. The Frustration of the Human Search for Knowledge (8:17b-f)

that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.

1. The General Conclusion: “that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun:”
2. Hard Work No Exception: “because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it;
3. Wise Intent No Exception: yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.”

Three negative conclusions (…cannot find out….shall not find…yet shall he not be able to find…):

1. The General Conclusion: “that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun:”

In this next verse we have the familiar phrase in Ecclesiastes, “under the sun.”[14] As mentioned earlier, in the previous verse is the expression “upon the earth.”

This is the general conclusion applicable to all concerning both the examination of human business, and the work of God.

You shall not pass!

2. Hard Work No Exception: “because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it;

No matter how hard you work at it, you cannot alter the general conclusion.

You shall not pass!

3. Wise Intent No Exception: yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.”

What you, or even the wisest of men, intend to do is one thing. What you are actually capable of doing is something else altogether. It is the part of wisdom for the creature to know what you know, to know what you don’t know, and to know what you can’t know.

A quote often repeated: “The greatest happiness of the thinking man is to have fathomed what can be fathomed, and quietly to reverence what is unfathomable.” (Goethe)

“…the belittling in the Biblical wisdom literature of human sources for understanding (Job 11:7; Prov. 3:5; Eccl. 8:16, 17).”
— J. Barton Payne, The Theology of the Older Testament (Grand Rapids: Academie Books, 1962), pg. 56.

You shall not pass!

Conclusion:

Once again man is faced with the reality not only of life in a fallen world, but also of his status as a creature with the limitations inherent in that status.

“Next to Job, Ecclesiastes is most aware of the limits set for the wise: the future is closed to him (8.7), he cannot discover the total coherence of all events from their beginnings to their end (3.11), and he is not capable of finding out what the work of God is in everything that is under the sun (8.16f.). Thus the truly wise man is burdened by the divine incognito…”
— 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. 212.

“Faith is awe in the presence of the divine incognito; it is the love of God that is aware of the qualitative difference between God and man and God and the world.”
— Karl Barth (1886-1968)

My “None of Your Business” list is a long list. There is another list, perhaps with some similarities. We might call it the “You’ll Never Make This Your Business List.” It would be safe to assume that this is a very, very long list, but we have no way of knowing how long!

You shall not pass!

[Sermon preached 15 MAY 2016 by Pastor John T. “Jack” Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA.]

Complete Outline:

I. The Commitment to Learning (8:16)

1. The General Intent of Qoheleth’s Search

2. The Specific Focus of Qoheleth’s Search

3. The Parenthetical Expression That Qualifies Qoheleth’s Search

II. The Wonder of the Work of God (8:17a)

1. The work of God includes the work of creation.

2. The work of God also includes His providential rule in His creation.

3. The work of God includes His work of salvation.

III. The Frustration of the Human Search for Knowledge (8:17b-f)

1. The General Conclusion:
“that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun:”

2. Hard Work No Exception:
“because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it;

3. Wise Intent No Exception:
“yea further; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.”

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).[15]

Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Ecclesiastes (New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860).[16]

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].[17]

Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Coping With Change: Ecclesiastes (Fearn, Roth-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2013).[18]

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).[19]  
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] Gandalf to the Balrog on the Bridge of Khazad-dûm in the movie The Fellowship of the Ring.

[2] 5:2 — Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.
7:20 — For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.
8:14 — There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity.
10:7 — I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.
11:2 — Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth.
11:3 — If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be.

[3] 29 occurrences from 1:3 to 12:2.

[4] John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 2 volumes, ed. John T. McNeill, trans. Ford Lewis Battles, The Library of Christian Classics, eds. John Baillie, John T. McNeill, and Henry P. Van Dusen, Vols. XX-XXI (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1960), I:70 (I:VI:1).

[5] Calvin, op. cit., I:51-53 (I:V:1).

[6] Calvin, op. cit., I:61 (I:V:8).

[7] Calvin, op. cit., I:72 (I:VI:2).

[8] Calvin, op. cit., I:179 (I:XIV:20).

[9] Calvin, op. cit., I:341 (II:VI:1).

[10] Calvin, op. cit., I:161 (I:XIV:2).

[11] Calvin, op. cit., I:52 (I:V:1).

[12] Ibid.

[13] Heidelberg Catechism, Lords Day 10

[14] 29 occurrences from 1:3 to 12:2.

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

[16] 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].

[17] 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).

[18] 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].

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

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