Who

King Solomon to the nations of the world of his day, including his own nation, Israel.

Where & When

Ecclesiastes was composed by King Solomon at the end of his life around 931 BC. He conveys his wisdom primarily to the next generation of young men and women (Eccl. 11:9; 12:1) as someone who has grown old (Eccl. 12:3–7) and experienced all that this life offers. Solomon was uniquely poised in his life as the “potential” (not actual) Messiah-king to usher in the Kingdom of God and invite all the world to exclusive worship of Yahweh alone. However, Ecclesiastes is testimony of his failure to be the true seed of David who will fulfill the Davidic Covenant and bring the Kingdom of God into the world; therefore, Ecclesiastes is also implicitly his personal repentance. But even more so, Ecclesiastes is Solomon’s way to warn the world not only of the dire consequences of pursuing the pleasures of life “under the sun” (i.e. only that which can be empirically experienced without any consideration of God), but also that instead of international unity and a collective worship of Yahweh, the world will soon tailspin into division and war, and the nation of Israel is no exception to that. Ecclesiastes is filled with terms that have roots in other ancient languages of Solomon’s day, such as Phoenician, Egyptian, Greek, Persian, and Babylonian, and therefore, the book was written to be more readily translated into a variety of dialects for ease of dissemination. Indeed, Solomon was a man before his time, adept in many languages and having international connections second to none (especially due to the number of alliances he forged with his 300 marriages). Ecclesiastes was to be proclaimed in as many town squares as possible to warn the world that life without the true and living God is meaningless, and man must fear God by hungering for His revelation, especially now that the Kingdom was not in fact coming to the world any time soon. Ecclesiastes, then, is the perfect segue into the prophets of Scripture who will proclaim God’s next steps for Israel and the world, Obadiah being the first prophet to write and the next book in the canon.

Why

To recount to Israel and to the nations that a life of luxury and wealth completely devoid of the true God inevitably leads to vanity, and to confess that the king of Israel (Solomon) lived that life as proof that he is not the true Messiah and that the Kingdom of God will not yet rule over the nations, and thereby, to teach Israel and the nations that fearing God (i.e. desperately watching and waiting for His next revelation) is the only hope that mankind has to reverse the vanity of this world and restore the Garden of Eden.

How

Be paying attention to these important terms that occur in this book:

  • Vanity
  • "Under the sun"
  • "Striving after the wind"
  • Labor (or Toil)
  • Wisdom (or Wise)
  • Heart
  • Fear of God

Literary Outline

The outline of Ecclesiastes appears to be chiastic, designed around statements referring to “eating”, “drinking”, or “gladness” that act as milestone conclusions Solomon makes as he recounts his pursuits (Eccl. 2:24–26; 3:12–15; 5:18–20; 8:14–17; 9:7–10; 11:7 – 12:1).

  • Eccl. 1:1 Introduction
    • Eccl. 1:2 – 2:26 Observing the Cycles of Life
      • Eccl. 3:1–15 Time
        • Eccl. 3:16 – 5:20 Waiting for Wisdom
          • Eccl. 6:1 – 7:18 Living in Mystery Requires Fearing God
        • Eccl. 7:19 – 8:17 Seeking for Wisdom
      • Eccl. 9:1–10 Eternity
    • Eccl. 9:11 – 12:8 The Ironic Cycles of Life
  • Eccl. 12:9–14 Conclusion