Ecclesiastes
(King Solomon)
Ecclesiastes is The Bible?s book of philosophy. It contains the words of the "Teacher", son of David otherwise known as King Solomon. It provides an in depth view on issues of life that man considers as important but which in fact according to Solomon, are nugatory and futile. The book uses a strong satirical, and despondent tone to achieve its effect of hopelessness in man and his otiose quest for the meaning of life.
Solomon argues that earthly pleasures are meaningless because they are just for a while and do not last forever; wisdom is meaningless too because with wisdom comes the added burden of sorrow and grief. He also goes on to say that toiling and working is also meaningless because everyone dies and leaves all their work to the next person who may be a fool and squander all the results of their hard earned treasures. The writer directly implies that trying to understand and conquer life on our own is like chasing the wind- it is impossible.
Nevertheless, Ecclesiastes is not entirely a collection of dark, moody thoughts and philosophies, it also contains a beautiful section which outlines a time for everything and also has uplifting words that could guide depressed and heavy burdened souls. In conclusion, Ecclesiastes declares that the only thing which matters in life is service to God and obedience to the laws of the government (or the king at that time) as it is only through God that life has meaning. Everything else including riches, power and human wisdom are all meaningless.
Solomon also contrasts wisdom and physical strength, and concludes that wisdom is more imperative. He shows that the physical things of life are not always the most important ones but rather the thoughts and intellect of humans make us unique, strong and gives us the will to survive.
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