Podcast 92 Ecclesiastes, “Pt 7, Ch 7”

Prophets often turn things upside down. King Solomon is an empire builder. He governs twelve great nations. He has power, wealth, fame, prestige, and wisdom, but he is also given to the contemplative life. Notice the startling statement in verse 1.

Ecclesiastes 7:1

A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.

“A good name is better than a precious ointment” reminds me of a line from Shakespeare’s Othello.

Othello, Act 3, Scene 3

“Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
Who steals my purse steals trash; ’tis something, nothing;
’Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.”

The line is spoken by Iago, a villain of the first order, yet that doesn’t make the concept less true. But why does Solomon say that “the day of death is more precious than the day of one’s birth?” Is it because with birth comes uncertainty and trials. In Job we read:

Job 5:7

“Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.”

Of course, we know the story of Job, the wealthiest and most powerful man in the region round about. In a short time, he lost his animals, his power, his position, his wealth, his health, and his children. Next to Christ, Job has become the symbol of endurance, of patient suffering, of inequity, of the power of Satan, and of faith. That makes his statement profoundly meaningful. As Mark Twain quipped, “sparks must fly upward,” suggesting that trouble is unavoidable. Is that why the day of death is more precious than the day of one’s birth, or is Solomon aiming at a higher purpose? Death symbolizes, not only the end of life, but the end of our probation. We were sent to earth by God, our creator, to prove ourselves. After earth comes the judgment, and the judgment determines how we spend eternity. Repeatedly Solomon speaks of the vanity of earthly things. His eye was always on eternity.

Solomon finds virtue in the house of mourning

Ecclesiastes 7: 2-3

It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.

We have the following senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, smell. But we also have feelings. We have a heart. We have a mind. We have a spirit. We have the Holy Ghost. We have faith, etc. Solomon subordinates the five senses to the higher senses.

Ecclesiastes 7:4-9

The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools. For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool: this also is vanity. Surely oppression maketh a wise man mad; and a gift destroyeth the heart. Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.

“Better is the end of the thing than the beginning thereof” is another way of saying, “the day of death is more precious than the day of one’s birth.” What is his message? It is clear. We should dedicate our lives to making death the greatest day of our life. In other words, we must not have the ‘heart of a fool.’ Solomon naturally goes to the importance of wisdom.