Tragedy Under the Sun (Ecc 3:16-4:3)
Tragedy Under the Sun
Ecclesiastes 3:16-4:3
George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Aubrey. Michael Brown. Philando Castile. Trayvon Martin. Stephon Clark. Sean Bell. Keith Scott. Renisha McBride. Freddie Gray. When will it end? Black lives tragically lost, again and again and again. The list continues to grow. One week we see a video Ahmaud Aubrey shot while taking a jog, and then before one is able to even fully process the wickedness and the lack of justice, we see a police officer pressing his knee on George Floyd’s neck as he’s gasping for air, pleading, “I. Can’t. Breathe.” When will it end? When will black fathers in America be able to stop having ‘the talk’ with their children when they leave the house? When will black mothers have to stop worrying about their children’s safety as they pull out of the driveway? When will protests that want to end violence not become violent? When will sin and all its ugly expressions cease? When will evil be finally overcome with good? When will we see, as Amos pleaded, for justice to roll on like a river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream (Amos 5:24)?
Pain. Heartache. Despair. Sadness. Numbness. Anger. Grief. Hopelessness. Only a glimpse of the flood emotions that have gripped our nation in the last week. How do we deal with injustice? How do we handle wickedness? How do we respond when we see injustice? Where is God in the midst of this? Friends, the Bible does not ignore the hardest questions. Neither should we. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes looked around the world in his day and he saw wickedness, injustice and oppression. Racism and hatred and violence are not new in America, it is merely being caught on camera. There is nothing new under the sun. That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.” (Ecclesiastes 3:15) We cannot avoid evil. We can turn off the T.V. and close our social media accounts, but evil remains. And not only does evil remain, it too often flourishes among those who are supposed to stand for righteousness and justice. When will it end? Or maybe even a more accurate question, “Will it ever end?”
King Solomon, the Preacher of Ecclesiastes, asked these questions in his own day. I pray that God would speak through his Word to give peace in the place of pain, hope in the place of despair, comfort in the place of anguish, joy in the place of sorrow.
When we see No Justice
It seems as if the Preacher turned a corner in the middle of chapter 3 when he shares one of his conclusions, “I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him.” The Preacher, like many of us, was fine… then he was not fine. He is still searching and trying to make sense of the world he sees around him. Ecclesiastes 3:16, “Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.” The Preacher looks at the fallen world and he sees disorder. He looked at the place of justice but sees wickedness. Human courts will never be perfect. Law and order will make mistakes. They are flawed. Sin will manifest itself in horrible ways. And we are hardwired to desire justice and to feel pain when justice is denied. Righteous Anger is a proper emotion in the face of injustice. When we see injustice from those are supposed to bring justice, we know the world is not right. We feel it in our bones. When a murderer is acquitted on a technicality or when someone is convicted due to the bias of the jurors, we know the world is not as it should be.
We see the world broken with no justice and ask in our hearts, “How long O Lord?” The Apostle John reports the same question from the altar in heaven from those who were slain for the word of God, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” They were crying out for justice. When will you let justice roll on like a river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream? Revelation 6:11, “Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer.” Each received a white robe symbolizing that they have received salvation and the righteousness of Christ. Each of them who were denied justice in life received salvation in death. The Lord told them to rest a little longer.
Time has not yet come, but we can rest as the martyrs rested that justice will come. The Preacher makes the matter clear, Ecclesiastes 3:17, “I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work.” God will judge. Justice may be delayed, but it will always come. There is a time for every matter and for every work and it is the Sovereign Lord, God Almighty, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, who decides when justice will flow like river.
At first, it may not appear that the Preacher is providing much comfort, but he is telling us what we need to hear. He is reminding us of our place before the Lord. Ecclesiastes 3:18–20
[18] I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts. [19] For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. [20] All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return.
Human beings are created in God’s image and different than animals. Human beings have souls that will never die. We are not descended from beasts but were created by God from the dust of the ground and his life was breathed into us. And yet, because of our sin of trying to be wise in our own eyes and rejecting God’s Word, we like all living creatures will die. Solomon is not focusing the ways we are not like animals (which are many) but sharing what we have in common. We will die like the animals and will be put in the ground and will return to dust. We all go to the same place. He focuses on our shared mortality.
The Preacher helps us remember that is it not our place to judge the times and the seasons. God is in charge. He says that God is testing us, “I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts.” God tests humanity. What is the test? Will we act as creatures or the Creator? Will we pretend we are in control or trust God’s timing? We are dust. We cannot control the times and season of life. When we see no justice, we must trust the Lord, his way, his timing, and his plan.
I believe this is why God answers Job the way he does after lamenting on how he experienced “injustice” in losing his health, wealth and family. Job 38:1–5
[1] Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
[2] “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
[3] Dress for action like a man;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.
[4] “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
[5] Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
God reminds Job in 4 glorious chapters that he is not the one to judge the Lord’s actions. He says, “Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and make it known to me.” And all the questions that God asks, Job cannot answer. Why? Because he is dust and to dust he will return. He does not have understanding. Job 40:1–14
[1] And the LORD said to Job:
[2] “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
He who argues with God, let him answer it.”
[3] Then Job answered the LORD and said:
[4] “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?
I lay my hand on my mouth.
[5] I have spoken once, and I will not answer;
twice, but I will proceed no further.”
[6] Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
[7] “Dress for action like a man;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.
[8] Will you even put me in the wrong?
Will you condemn me that you may be in the right?
[9] Have you an arm like God,
and can you thunder with a voice like his?
[10] “Adorn yourself with majesty and dignity;
clothe yourself with glory and splendor.
[11] Pour out the overflowings of your anger,
and look on everyone who is proud and abase him.
[12] Look on everyone who is proud and bring him low
and tread down the wicked where they stand.
[13] Hide them all in the dust together;
bind their faces in the world below.
[14] Then will I also acknowledge to you
that your own right hand can save you.
And after God’s dressing down of Job, he gets it. He finally understands, Job 42:1–6,
[1] Then Job answered the LORD and said:
[2] “I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
[3] ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
[4] ‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
[5] I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
[6] therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”
God has appointed a time for justice. It may be delayed, but God is not slow in keeping his promises. His judgments are always right and always on time. We ask, “Why is the present not the proper time for justice?” to that question we get an abrasive answer, for, Derek Kidner points out, “our first need is not to teach God his business but to learn the truth about ourselves, a lesson we are very slow to accept.[1]”
We do not want to accept this truth. We too often want to place ourselves on the throne, but we are dust and to dust we shall return. And as creatures, we do not condemn the Creator, but we call out to him, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long will you judge and avenge?” This is not a topical sermon on racism and our response, it is a sermon on injustice in all its forms. This week our nation has witnessed injustice from those in authority and those under authority. Sin will bring injustice against others tomorrow. Until we are taken up to glory, we sadly will not see complete justice. When we don’t see justice, or we see it imperfectly, we must remind ourselves that God will bring perfect justice in his perfect timing. When we see incomplete justice, we must remind ourselves that we our creatures and do understand all the purposes and plans of God. When we see no justice, we do fight for justice and speak up for truth. We speak up for righteousness with humble passion. We must continue to do good and love our neighbor and if possible, so far as it depends on us, live peaceably with all. We must not weary in well doing for we will reap a harvest at the proper time. When we see no justice, we cannot be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. When we see no justice, we labor and pray for justice and trust the Lord to judge and avenge as he has promised, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” He is not slow in keeping his promise, wait for the Lord. When we see no justice, we must remember that we are dust and we will be judged for every deed done under the sun. We are not in control so we submit ourselves to Almighty God.
When we have No Hope
“Wait for the Lord and trust his timing” may not be an emotionally satisfying answer when we see no justice and it may actually lead to no hope. When we live with an under the sun perspective, living as if this life is all there is, living without a proper understanding of God and eternity, we may despair. We despair because we want the control we were never meant to have. Ecclesiastes 3:21– 3:22
[21] Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth? [22] So I saw that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for that is his lot. Who can bring him to see what will be after him?
The Preacher throws up his hands and says, “Who knows?” He is looking with a merely horizontal perspective. We live, we die and we are no more. The Preacher says here, “Who knows” where we go when we die, but a few chapters later, Ecclesiastes 12:7, “and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.” This is true, but only for the Christian.
If you are not a Christian, the Bible offers you hope, but only when we first realize that you are dust and to dust you shall return. Admitting that you are dust is to admit that you are a sinner and deserve punishment for your sin. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death.” We all earn death because of our sin. And you may have asked yourself at one time, “Who knows what comes next?” The Bible provides the answer in Hebrews 9:27, “it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” After we die, we will face judgment. We will stand before God and face his perfect justice. Friends, we all long for justice when we have been wronged and when we see injustice done to others, but we do not want justice when it comes to us. When we sin and we mess up, we want mercy. Who would insist on receiving a speeding ticket rather than taking just a warning? The justice we deserve for our sin is eternal death and unending judgment. When we wrong an eternal God, the only punishment that is appropriate and fair is an eternal one. As I said earlier Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death,” but thanks be to God that clause does not end with a period but with a coma. Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Jesus Christ came to be judged in our place. He came to take our punishment. He lived a perfect life and faced true injustice on the cross. The innocent Son of God was convicted and crucified as a sinful criminal. The worst injustice in human history was the slaying of the sinless Son of God yet in that injustice against the Savior salvation is supplied to sinners.
For Jesus Christ not only died but was raised from the dead. Jesus’s victory over the grave validates and proves Jesus’s words true when he said to Martha, “I am the resurrection and life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26). Friend, do you believe this? Do you believe there is life after death? Deep down you know justice. Deep down you know the justice you deserve. And deep down you know you will not be able to stand in judgment. You need someone to take your place. Jesus offers himself to you. If you would repent of your sin and trust in Christ, you will be saved and through you die, yet shall you live for everyone who lives and believes in Jesus shall never fully die. For the believer, the dust of our body returns to the earth, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. To be absence from the body is to be present with the Lord.
Friend, do not believe the lie that there is no hope. There is always hope in Christ. God has given us a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. He is our hope. Set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. When you have no hope, look beyond life under the sun to the one who rules over the sun. There is an endless supply of hope in Christ. Hold fast to the hope that is set before us (Heb 6:18).
When we have No Comfort
Life under the sun is broken. Both the oppressor and the oppressed experience the brokenness of this fallen world. Ecclesiastes 4:1–3,
[1] Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them. [2] And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive. [3] But better than both is he who has not yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.
When people do not love one another, there is pain. We are called to comfort and support one another, but instead of love, we hate. There are tears for the oppressed and there is pain for the oppressor. Neither find comfort. If people live life without God, there will be no comfort, no ease of grief or distress, no consolation for pain.
One of the best things we can do in a fallen world is to comfort our brothers and sisters in their pain. We may never be able to fully empathize with others since we have never walked in their shoes, but that does not mean we do not try. Even in America, we cannot escape oppression. I would challenge you not to ignore oppression, lean into the fight against oppression, even if you are not the victim of it…especially if you are not the victim of it. We have to be like the Preacher in Ecclesiastes and see it. We have to see the oppression in our society and call it sin. Racism is sin. Sexism is sin. Abortion is sin. When you hear oppression in conversation, confront it. Call it sin. When you see a people group experience oppression, comfort and care for them. Listen and learn how to walk alongside people. Be willing to look at your own heart and ask if there is oppression in there. And if you see oppression or pride in yourself, confess it and repent. We all are prone to prejudices and bias because we are sinners. We see the world through our own limited experiences. And yet, we can grow in how we see the world by adding different experiences.
I view the world differently because of the experience of the three years I spent teaching at a predominantly black high school in Washington D.C. The Lord used that experience in my life to expose and root out racial prejudice and ignorance in heart that I did not know it was there. It gave me a glimpse of how it feels to live as a minority in America, and a lesson I still am learning. My experience of listening to my hurting brothers and sisters of color when they experience racial profiling and derogatory racist comments has helped me grow in empathy and to remove the blinders of my own privileged upcoming. I know that this topic will make some uncomfortable, but beloved, there are many in our body and community who need comfort, and the rest of should be willing to be a little uncomfortable for the sake of those who live much of their lives with the discomfort of prejudice and injustice. Let us not be quick to dismiss their pain. We serve the, “God of all comfort who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” If we have been comforted by God in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we serve the God of all comfort, I do not understand why we would not want to enter into the pain of our brothers and sisters to comfort them with the comfort of God.
The Preacher in Ecclesiastes looked around the world and saw the oppressed and no one was there to comfort them. They saw the oppressors who had no one to comfort them. Both the oppressed and the oppressor need the Gospel of the Lord Jesus. Both need to be comforted in their sin and need the hope of the gospel of Christ. The oppressors need to be rebuked of their pride and shown how God opposed the proud and gives grace to the humble. We need to pray for the oppressor that they humble themselves before God. The oppressed needs to be reminded that God will bring all things to account and that our afflictions are to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. Both need to be reminded that ultimate justice does not belong to creatures but the Creator.
My prayer for our church is that we would be a people of comfort. That we would comfort one another as followers of the God of all comfort. For those of you who are oppressors, I pray God would humble you of your pride and arrogance and lack of love and that he would drive you to love one another with empty-tomb affections. For those of you who are oppressed, I pray God would protect you from bitterness and anger and impatience and that he would help you rely on God who raised the dead. Beloved, this is not merely an issue of race and injustice, but an issue of how saved sinners work out their salvation with fear and trembling. We all must search our own hearts and ask God how we can do good to those in our lives. Let us never throw verbal stones at one another publicly or in our hearts. Let us work to comfort one another with the gospel of the Lord Jesus. The Gospel does not say justify yourself in your actions and it does not say condemn others in their actions. The oppressed and the oppressor is not limited to one people group, for in a fallen world we will likely be both the oppressed and the oppressor at one time or another. The sadness of what the Preacher sees is that no one was there to comfort them. We, as God’s agent of comfort, must work to comfort one another with comfort of forgiveness and repentance in the gospel of Jesus Christ. If not us, then who?
One of the principles of Ecclesiastes is to see what God has given rather than what he has not given. As we were reading Ruth as a family this week, someone made the observation that Naomi only was focused on what she lost rather than what she had. When Naomi returned from Moab, she told the people, “Do not call me Naomi, but call me Mara for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty.” (Ruth 1:20-21a). It is true she lost her husband and two sons, but it is also true that she had Ruth, a loyal daughter-in-law, she had friends who were excited to see when she returned Bethlehem, and she arrived the beginning of the harvest after the famine had ended. She may not have had everything she wanted, but she had enough. The Lord was working in Naomi’s life and was working in her story to bring his good purposes to bear not only for her, but for Ruth, Boaz, and the line of King David and Lord Jesus Christ.
We may not see justice in our lives, we may not have hope in our circumstances, we may not have comfort in our trials, but regardless of what we see and have, we must know that we belong to the God of justice, the God of all hope and the God of all comfort who is working to bring our good and his glory. God will bring justice. God will fulfill hope. God will comfort his people. As live under the sun, we must raise our eyes to the One who rules over the sun. The one who came to die for the oppressed and the oppressor. The one who came to face justice for both and give hope to all. Comfort one another with gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[1] Kidner, 42.