SERIES: “BE SATISFIED”
“GREAT EXPECTATIONS”
ECCLESIASTES 9:11-10:15
I don’t know about you, but a lot of my life’s’ struggles are caused by my expectations. I find that I develop certain expectations out of life and out of people and when those expectations are not met, I can become bitter and disillusioned. Disillusion always follows false beliefs. We all have expectations, either rooted in reality or founded on fantasy. The ones not rooted in reality lead us into disillusion and disenchantment. The bubble is burst and we’re left feeling somewhat disgust and somewhat depressed.
I find it fitting that this message in our series through Ecclesiastes falls on the Sunday that we honor our graduates. Some of you are graduating high school and moving on to college or the wonderful world of work. Others are graduating from junior high school and moving into your high school years. Each has its own challenges and responsibilities. Each has its own rewards.
In our study of Scripture this morning we’re going to find that Solomon warns us about the problem of expecting one thing and getting another. Solomon has been teaching about the difference between wisdom and folly. One leads to satisfaction; the other to frustration. Let’s join together and find out what Solomon has to say to us today.
SKILL IS NO PREDICTOR OF SUCCESS
Eccl. 9:11-12 – I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so men are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.
After you live life for awhile, you come to understand that life is not fair. Our abilities are not a guarantee of success. It is generally true that the fastest runners win foot races, the warriors who have trained the hardest win the battles and those who have high intellects and good work skills gain the best jobs. But, it’s also true that these same people can fail in their endeavors due to circumstances outside of their control. Solomon says that time and chance greatly effects the outcome of our endeavors.
In earlier passages, Solomon has taught us a couple of things that we need to remember. The first is that God has a time for everything. Eccl 3:1 – There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. The other is that God will cause something beautiful to come out of everything. Eccl. 3:11a – He has made everything beautiful in its time.
But Solomon warns us here that “stuff happens”. He uses the illustration of fish that get caught in nets and birds that get caught in snares. Solomon says that sometimes there are sudden events that happen that are beyond our control.
Friday night, coming back from Walmart, several deer jumped up on the road in front of us. There was a car coming from the other direction and several cars behind us. Praise God, I swerved to the shoulder at 55 mph and didn’t lose control of the car. But it certainly wasn’t something we were expecting.
That’s why Bible warns us in James 4:13-16 – Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to
this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will
happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead,
you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.
OUR SOCIETY DOES NOT HONOR THE RIGHT THINGS
Eccl. 9:13-17 – I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siegeworks against it. Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools.
Here Solomon describes a small city that was attacked by a very powerful king. Since the town was so small, they had very few able-bodied men that could fight against this powerful king and his large army. The siege was started.
But Solomon says that there was a wise man in that town that had a plan that could defeat this king and his army. But because the man didn’t wear the right clothes, didn’t have a polished presentation, and didn’t fit the people’s conception of someone who could come up with a good plan, the town was defeated. Vs. 17 seems to indicate that one of the leaders in the town had a loud mouth and his plan got the approval over the wise man’s plan. Mr. Know-It-All didn’t know as much as he thought.
Fools are usually loud and difficult to ignore. And fools get heard simply by the sheer volume of their voices. The wise person is then ignored and forgotten.
And so we find that our society rarely acknowledges or appreciates the right things. We honor wealth, attractiveness, and political clout. But Solomon says that wisdom is a much greater asset. Our nation gives more recognition to celebrities and sports stars, no matter how inane they may be, than to those who might really have the answers to the problems we face.
Following the deaths of Diana, princess of Wales, and Mother Teresa, an Australian newspaper carried a piece written by Kate Legge that compared the two women. Legge wrote, “One was young and beautiful and
did good works. The other was old and ugly and did good works. One had a First World eating disorder called
bulimia. The other lived in the Third World where people starve to death. One wore designer clothes and
recently sold her dresses for $7.8 million. The other left behind two saris and a bucket. One made headlines
with simple gestures such as touching a person with AIDS. The other lived her life among lepers and the diseased. In one sense there is no comparison between the two women and yet the expiry [death] of the elder
missionary, as a postscript to the dislocation over Diana’s death, seems to taunt our godless worship of glamour
and style.”
WISDOM IS OFTEN DEFEATED BY FOOLISH THINGS
Solomon was one of the greatest proponents of wisdom but here he makes a series of statements that seem to contradict his teachings concerning wisdom. Let’s look at each of them individually.
Eccl. 9:18 – Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good. Solomon again asserts the superiority of wisdom. He then gives a warning: All it takes is one foolish person who shuns godly wisdom to ruin a lot of good.
I heard Friday on the radio about a school system in Ohio that cancelled graduation exercises that evening because it came to light that there had been some cheating. It seems that one person had hacked into the school’s computer system and got copies of some tests. Since the school system had no time to ascertain who had cheated and who had not, graduation was cancelled. When they get it sorted out, they will mail diplomas to those who will graduate. Some students have admitted to cheating while others said they knew about the cheating but didn’t report it. Sadly, one student decided to bypass the right thing to do and others followed. It ruined the work of a whole senior class who had to forego official commencement just because of one fool who talked others into being foolish. Here is the real kicker: one student who had cheated still flunked the exam!
Eccl. 10:1 – As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. In Eccl. 7:1a, Solomon compares a good reputation with expensive cologne: A good name is better than fine perfume.
Now he says that just a little bit of foolishness can destroy a good reputation.
The picture here is that some small, disease-carrying flies can taint a whole container of expensive ointment or perfume. If the flies are not removed, they decay and cause the good smell to go bad. I’ve known preachers who did a lot of good things in their ministries but like King David, they succumbed to the temptation of illicit relationships. I’ve known employees who were great workers and were wonderful assets to the people they worked for, but they relented to the temptation to embezzle money from their employers. I’ve known young people who showed great promise for success but fell in with the wrong people and are now addicted to drugs or are now spending time in jail. Biblical illustrations that come quickly to mind are David and Bathsheba and Moses striking the rock.
Next, Solomon comments on the difference between those who are wise and those who are foolish. Why is one wise and the other foolish? Solomon says it all comes down to the condition of their hearts. Eccl. 10:2-3 –
The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left. Even as he walks along the road, the fool lacks sense and shows everyone how stupid he is.
Vs. 2 is not the biblical instruction to be conservative and not liberal. In context, it has nothing to do with politics. In the ancient world, the right hand was the place of power and honor. The left hand was considered to represent weakness and rejection. The Bible is full of references depicting the right hand as being where God is.
Our English word “sinister” comes from a Latin word that means “on the left hand.” It signifies what is wrong. The right hand signifies what is correct. The wise person follows God’s way. The fool refuses to follow God’s way. Mt. 7:13-14 – Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Solomon next gives us the example of a foolish ruler. If there is one person who needs wisdom, it’s the leader of a nation. Many political leaders follow foolish ways as opposed to following godly wisdom.
The first issue Solomon deals with in foolish leaders is an anger problem. Eccl. 10:4 – If a ruler’s anger rises against you, do not leave your post; calmness can lay great errors to rest.
Have you ever worked for a “hot-head”? Something goes wrong and immediately it’s the fault of someone who works for him. The hot-head boss spews and sputters, curses and yells, and he or she is in the wrong.
Solomon’s advice – don’t let it control your life. Christian counselor, Dr. Paul Meier, wrote a book called Don’t Let the Jerks Get the Best of You. In it, he gives excellent advice on dealing with the people in your life who are just that – jerks. Solomon says just take it in stride. Don’t answer back in anger. Remain calm and you’ll come out all right. Solomon says in Prov. 15:1 – A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. In Prov. 25:15, he says: A king’s wrath is a messenger of death, but a wise man will appease it.
The next issue that Solomon discusses concerning foolishness in leadership is putting the wrong people in management positions. Eccl. 10:5-7 – There is an evil I have seen under the sun, the sort of error that arises from a ruler: Fools are put in many high positions, while the rich occupy the low ones. I have seen slaves on horseback, while princes go on foot like slaves.
Chuch Swindol, Living on the Ragged Edge: “Unfortunately, fools are not limited to places of low esteem. Sometimes they become governors and senators, congressmen, and even presidents! Sometimes they become mayors and civic leaders, or principals of schools and pastors of churches. They can even be the ones who own the business and call the shots, when, in fact, there are some under their authority who are far better qualified to lead. Yet they are not being given a chance to do so. The better qualified, the more competent, are kept down and put down and mismanaged.”
The question would then be: “Why would God allow such a topsy-turvy situation like that to exist?” Dr. Kenneth Gangel in his commentary on Ecclesiastes: “Maybe God just wants us to see how foolish we are, and how useless it is to trust in the vanities of mankind under the sun.” Swindoll puts it this way: “Maybe God wants us to see just how foolish we can be when left to our own ways.”
Solomon then moves to foolish workers. Eccl. 10:8-11 – Whoever digs a pit may fall into it; whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them; whoever splits logs may be endangered by them.
Each one of these jobs is a dangerous job. While digging a pit, if you’re not careful and fail to exercise wisdom, the ground can collapse and you can be at the bottom of the pit. When going through a wall, make sure you know what’s on the other side. Snakes often found their way into hidden cracks and corners. While quarrying stones, watch out! The stones can fall on you. When splitting logs, you can injure yourself in the process.
The summer between my freshman and sophomore years at Milligan, I came back for summer session. I only had class in the mornings. In the afternoons, I worked with a friend whose dad was the academic dean. They lived on some property not too far from the school. We cut down trees, cleaned them off, and hauled them to the saw mill.
To get the logs up on the trailer, we used the tractor to pull them up on the trailer. Since my friend’s dad owned the tractor, guess who had to guide the logs into place on the trailer? We’d hook the chains up to the log. Wayne would get on the tractor and drag the log onto the back of the trailer. I had a pike and a peavey hook to work those big logs into place. Many a time I had to jump off the trailer to keep the log from crushing me.
Eccl. 10:10 – If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed but skill will bring success. One of the most foolish things you can do while cutting down trees with an axe is to fail to sharpen your axe. You start the day off really felling the trees. Toward the end of the day, your axe is dull and isn’t as efficient as it was before. It takes a real fool to keep trying to cut down trees with a dull axe. The wise worker stops to sharpen the axe.
Are you working without sharpening your axe? Too many of us are working through life without our spiritual axes being sharpened. We start to skip the weekly gatherings of the church because “We’re just too busy.” We stop reading and studying our Bibles because “There’s just too much to do.” Our time with God in prayer is forsaken because “We’ve got too many other people to talk to during the day.” We don’t take any time to be quiet and hear the still, small voice of God because the television, the radio, the MP3 player is always going because “We don’t feel comfortable with silence.”
Eccl. 10:11 – If a snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer. Snake charmers were common as entertainers in the ancient world. Snakes do not have external ears. They pick up sound waves through the bone structures in their skulls. The charmer did not charm the snake with music. The charmer used swaying motions and staring at the snake to keep the snake distracted and under control. If the snake got loose and bit an audience member before the show began, it ruined the act. No money would be made. The show would be cancelled.
The common thing between all of these “workers”? Overconfidence. They made presumptions that were false and ended up hurting themselves and others.
Solomon moves on to discuss those whose mouths spout foolishness. Eccl. 10:12-15 – Words from a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but a fool is consumed by his own lips. At the beginning his words are folly; at the end they are wicked madness- and the fool multiplies words. No one knows what is coming— who can tell him what will happen after him? A fool’s work wearies him; he does not know the way to town.
Solomon points to four basic categoriess that typify the words of a fool. The first category is destructive words. The wise person uses appropriate and gracious words. The fool blurts out whatever crosses his mind and never stops to consider who might be hurt. Most of all, the fool hurts himself. Solomon says in vs. 12 – “a fool is consumed by his own lips.”
Scripture compares destructive words to weapons of war. Prov. 25:18 – Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow is the man who gives false testimony against his neighbor. They’re also compared to a fire and a wild animal. James 3:5-8 – Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of
the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but
no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
Scripture also teaches us that being wise with our mouths can benefit us greatly. Prov. 13:3 – He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin. Prov. 21:23 – He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.
The second category of foolish words is unreasonable words. The longer a fool talks, the more unreasonable and crazy he sounds. Abraham Lincoln: “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”
The third category is uncontrolled words. The fool is full of words without realizing he is saying nothing. Jewish writer Sholem Aleichem said, “You can tell when a fool speaks; he grinds much and produces little.”
The final category is boastful words. Prov. 10:19 – Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth. Solomon says here, No one knows what is coming— who can tell him what will happen after him? (vs. 14) Several other places in Ecclesiastes he emphasizes that no one can know the future. To brag about what we’re going to do is foolish in light of the fact that we do not know what the future holds. We heard from James 4:13-16 earlier in this message – Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.
And Solomon would agree with James. We don’t trust in our own efforts or live according to our own plans. We do our best and trust in God for the rest. We need to live for the present and give it all we have. James puts it this way in the next verse that follows the passage we just read. James 4:17 – Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. Don’t wait for tomorrow. Do what you know is right today.
Solomon begins Ecclesiastes questioning whether life is worth living. Solomon concludes that if we live with just an earthly view of life, it certainly isn’t worth living. It’s all emptiness. It’s what you get when a soap bubble bursts. But if we live with a heavenly view, life is great. The best thing we can do while we’re here is to trust God, do our work, be content with what God gives us, and and enjoy each day of our lives to the glory of God.
CLOSE
There is a great story that has its origins in Native American lore. An Indian brave found an egg that had been laid by an eagle. Not being able to return the egg to an eagle’s nest, the Indian decided that the best thing to do was to put the eagle’s egg in the nest of a prairie chicken.
The hen sat on the eagle’s egg along with her own eggs, not knowing anything about the addition to her nest. The little eaglet was hatched along with the prairie chickens.
The little eagle grew up with the prairie chickens. He did what they did. He scratched in the dirt for insects and seeds to eat. He clucked and cackled like the prairie chickens. When he flew, he only flew for a brief time only a few feet at a time – flapping and thrashing his wings like a prairie chicken.
As the years passed, the eagle grew older and more like a prairie chicken. One day, he saw a magnificent bird far above him. The great bird hung in the sky on the powerful wind currents and soared with barely a flap of its wonderful wings.
The eagle raised as a prairie chicken asked another prairie chicken about the bird in the sky. He thought it was a beautiful bird. The prairie chicken replied, “That’s an eagle. He’s the chief of all the birds.” The grounded eagle said, “I’d love to be able to fly like that.” The prairie chicken said, “You can never be like him. You’re a prairie chicken.” And the grounded eagle hung his head and walked sadly away.
When we live by the foolishness of the world, we are grounded - unable to live the way God created us to live. When we walk by the wisdom of God, we may never have all the things of the world but we are free from the pull of this world.
Throughout Ecclesiastes, Solomon has described prairie chicken living – full of emptiness and meaninglessness. There no significance and there’s no substance. Eventually we give up and say, “It’s all I can expect.”
But Solomon contrasts the prairie chicken existence to living like the great eagle. When we live our lives trusting in God and walking by His wisdom, we soar above this meaningless existence.
