Pondering Wisdom (Ecclesiastes 2:12-26)
At some point in our lives, we stop to wonder about the big questions in life. We get all philosophical, asking, "Why am I here?" This question and many like it help us to gain a new perspective, and they help us see our purpose in life. Our answers to these questions may cause a complete shift in our aspirations and ambitions. We may go from being a waiter to a businessman, a doctor to a teacher, or an engineer to a preacher. Asking these questions does not mean we will find the answers to these questions, but it will help us clarify what we want the answers to be. So, it may make us sad that we have wasted time not reaching a goal we would like to reach, or it may get us upset about how we can never become what we hope to become.
Solomon goes through this philosophical process in the book of Ecclesiastes. He is the king of Israel, pondering why he is in this position. He wants to use the time he has to find something of value for all mankind to enjoy. Last week, we saw Solomon pursuing pleasure, success, and riches. All was vanity. They provide no lasting satisfaction or joy. The only thing that seemed to give him continual satisfaction was enjoying the work he was involved in. The journey was more important than the outcome.
This week, we will see Solomon consider the importance of wisdom and its limitations. Since wisdom is at the heart of who Solomon is, this consideration is one of the deepest philosophical studies Solomon does. What is Solomon going to see?
The Value of Wisdom
Ecclesiastes 2:12--17 (ESV) --- 12 So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly. For what can the man do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done. 13 Then I saw that there is more gain in wisdom than in folly, as there is more gain in light than in darkness. 14 The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them. 15 Then I said in my heart, “What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so very wise?” And I said in my heart that this also is vanity. 16 For of the wise as of the fool there is no enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. How the wise dies just like the fool! 17 So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
In this section, Solomon considers the differences in wisdom, madness, and folly. Madness is irrational and unusual behavior. He goes to great lengths to try things that aren't usually done. Folly is foolishness. It represents things that the wise know will never work. He even gives foolishness a chance. But, of course, wisdom stands out as the most beneficial.
Look at how he describes the greatness of wisdom. He says, "There is more gain in wisdom than in folly, as there is more gain in light than in darkness." I like this illustration because we can all relate. Who would like to live in the dark all the time? That seems like a horrible way to live. You cannot see in the darkness. I imagine we would be falling all the time, unable to read, and less productive overall. Darkness is not beneficial unless we are trying to sleep. Light, even a little bit of light, is a huge benefit. It enables us to accomplish more and keeps us safe. Wisdom is like light.
Then he says, "The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness." So there is a benefit to being wise. The wise see and understand what is happening around them. The fools cannot see.
So, Solomon gives us a compelling case for pursuing wisdom in our lives. If we let ourselves be foolish and open ourselves up to foolish teachings, life will get hard for us. We live in an age of information overload. Some so many people speak without knowledge or understanding. They plaster their foolish beliefs all over YouTube and other Social Media Platforms. We must believe that wisdom improves life-like light and seek true wisdom instead of foolish catchy sayings.
In Chapters 7-11, Solomon also contrasts wisdom and folly.
Ecclesiastes 7:11--13 (ESV) --- 11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance, an advantage to those who see the sun. 12 For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it. 13 Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked?
Ecclesiastes 7:19 (ESV) --- 19 Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city.
Ecclesiastes 8:1 (ESV) --- 1 Who is like the wise? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the hardness of his face is changed.
Ecclesiastes 9:17--18 (ESV) --- 17 The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
Ecclesiastes 10:12--15 (ESV) --- 12 The words of a wise man’s mouth win him favor, but the lips of a fool consume him. 13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of his talk is evil madness. 14 A fool multiplies words, though no man knows what is to be, and who can tell him what will be after him? 15 The toil of a fool wearies him, for he does not know the way to the city.
So we know that gaining wisdom is extremely important. We know that avoiding foolish thinking and ridiculous ideas against God should be a priority in our lives. Wisdom comes from God, and it helps us live the best possible life. It gives us protection, strength, power, beauty, and favor. On the other hand, Foolishness makes us vulnerable, weak, powerless, ignored, and tired! There is no sense in being foolish. Wisdom leads us to a much better life. So, wisdom sounds like the solution Solomon has been searching for, but it's not.
The Limitations of Wisdom
Ecclesiastes 2:14--16 (ESV) --- 14 The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them. 15 Then I said in my heart, “What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so very wise?” And I said in my heart that this also is vanity. 16 For of the wise as of the fool there is no enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all will have been long forgotten. How the wise dies just like the fool!
But verse 14 also transitions to the limitations of wisdom. He doesn't want us to overthink wisdom. It's not as though having a lot of wisdom will bring us salvation from death. Solomon says, "Yet I perceived that the same event happens to all of them." Verse 15 explains that by saying, "What happens to the fool will happen to me also." Then, verse 17 puts it, saying, "How the wise dies just like the fool." Maybe wisdom will save us from death at an early age. Maybe through wisdom, we can make good choices about the foods we eat and avoid being hit by a car on the road. But there is no escaping that we will go into the ground not far from a fool.
Then, Solomon talks about more than death. He says all will be forgotten. The probability is that everyone in this building will be long forgotten in 200 years. Even little Wren will be forgotten under the sun if she lives to be 100. That is a sad thing to think about. How many people were living 200 years ago with great wisdom and understanding? Did that wisdom help us remember them? Did it keep them from dying? Of course not.
So, wisdom is limited in what it can do. It is extremely helpful and beneficial, but it cannot solve Solomon's ultimate mortality problem. The fact that all that he is working for will one day go away makes him hate life. What's the point of living?
Despair and Sorrow
Ecclesiastes 2:17--21 (ESV) --- 17 So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind. 18 I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, 19 and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. 20 So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun, 21 because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.
Solomon goes so far as to say that he hates his life. He hates all the work he is doing under the sun because the fruits of it will be enjoyed by someone coming after him, and he has no control over how they will handle it. They could ultimately destroy everything he has devoted his life to. It's interesting to know that Solomon's son Rehoboam would run the nation into the ground, but it was ultimately Solomon's fault for foolishly disobeying God. We have no control over what will happen after we die, and Solomon will also point out another important fact later in the book.
Ecclesiastes 8:8 (ESV) --- 8 No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death. There is no discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it.
We cannot stop the day of death from coming. So, if we spend all of our days working toward a big payoff, who knows whether we will enjoy it? This makes Solomon hate his life. The benefits of wisdom are futile in the grand scheme of things. They do not provide what Solomon's after, and he cannot find what will. It seems like wisdom was a big letdown for Solomon. He was hoping it would do more than it could.
Vexation
Solomon uses a word in the following verses that reveals wisdom's dark side. Look at verses 22-23.
Ecclesiastes 2:22--23 (ESV) --- 22 What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? 23 For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity.
He returns to the question he has asked throughout the book so far. What is the gain? His answer is "sorrow" and "vexation." What does that mean? To be vexed is to be confused and frustrated. The more we gain wisdom, the more frustrated we get. As Solomon's wisdom led him to consider what would happen after he died, it frustrated him. Also, those who are wise find the world broken and cannot fix it.
Ecclesiastes 1:18 (ESV) --- 18 For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
Ecclesiastes 7:7 (ESV) --- 7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 (ESV) --- 11 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all.
Ecclesiastes 9:15--16 (ESV) --- 15 But there was found in it a poor, wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16 But I say that wisdom is better than might, though the poor man’s wisdom is despised and his words are not heard.
We see in all of this that wisdom doesn't solve all of life's problems. This makes it very frustrating. Knowing how things should be and seeing foolish people prevent those things from happening will drive you mad! Men will be evil and oppressive. Being wise and intelligent will not necessarily win you the most incredible riches or put food on the table. Time and chance happen. Sometimes people won't listen to you and use your wisdom to solve the problem.
Solomon's Lesson
This study of wisdom is enormously valuable for Solomon. He understands that wisdom is not as valuable as he initially made it out to be for most people. It's still essential. It gives us protection, strength, power, beauty, and favor but doesn't solve everything. The world is still broken and crooked because God made it that way, and there is nothing we can do to change it.
So here is Solomon's answer.
Ecclesiastes 7:16--18 (ESV) --- 16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them.
Wisdom is the best thing to pursue because it will make your life easier, but don't think that pursuing it will fix everything.
The Wisdom of God
As we read in the New Testament, we learn that wisdom can get us into trouble.
1 Corinthians 1:26--31 (ESV) --- 26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
God doesn't become impressed with our wisdom. The opposite happens. The wiser we become, the more proud we become, and the more blind we become to all we do not know. This results in missing out on the blessings God hopes to share with us. God's wisdom is much greater than any wisdom we can muster, and he has decided to share his wisdom with us in the form of Jesus. Jesus, and the wisdom revealed in Jesus, answers the question Solomon asks throughout this book. What does a man gain from all his toil under the sun? If he trusts in Jesus and lives for Jesus, he has eternity to gain.
Application
If we want to find life's point and be wise, we must find Jesus. All of Solomon's searching was missing Jesus. Jesus is the one who makes wisdom worth having and removes our sorrow or vexation. Jesus is the one who answers our struggles with mortality. Solomon tells us that the riches in this life will not go with us, but Jesus tells us that we can lay up treasures in heaven waiting for us.
What are you going to do with this understanding? Will you change your perspective and labor for where you can find gain? We get to decide. The correct answer is to pursue wisdom but not hold my wisdom in high esteem. The most incredible wisdom I could ever find is in Christ.