- Lesson 1

What’s the point?

This is the question that the writer asks in the book of Ecclesiastes. It’s an age-old question that almost everyone asks of themselves at some time in their life. What’s the meaning of life? What really bring us joy? What gives our lives purpose? In the next four weeks, we’ll be looking at this often overlooked book that is as relevant today as it was when it was written 3,000 years ago.

Tradition holds that Ecclesiastes was written by , the son of King . Contemporary scholars have challenged this idea based on recent research suggesting the book was written 600 years after Solomon’s reign. Those in this latter camp refer to the author as the ‘Teacher’ or ‘Qoheleth’ (the original Hebrew word) based on the reference in verse 1. (The ‘Qoheleth’ was responsible for calling an assembly of the people in ancient Israel. The Greek word for assembly is ‘ekklesia’ which is where Ecclesiastes come from.) For simplicity, we will refer to the author as Solomon for this study while acknowledging that it may not be historically accurate.

Please note: For this study, one lesson will be posted every Tuesday on the St Andrew Student Ministry web page. You will be able to go through the questions on your own and at your own pace. Then on Fridays, Michael and Isaac will talk about that week’s lesson on their ‘Drop the Anchor’ podcast. ______

Some Background on Solomon Read 2 Samuel 11:2-4; 14-17; 26-27 and 2 Samuel 12:24-25 to learn more about King Solomon.

Who are Solomon’s parents? Describe in your own words how they met.

How does 2 Samuel 12:24 describe how the Lord felt about Solomon?

Read 1 Kings 1:28-31; 1 Kings 2:1-4; 1 Kings 3:1-15 and 1 Kings 4:29-34 to understand more about Solomon. What advice did King David give Solomon as he was dying?

King David advised Solomon to keep all of the Laws of Moses. According to the passage in 1 Kings 3, how did Solomon live up to this? How did he not?

What did God offer to Solomon when He appeared to him in a dream?

What did Solomon ask for? Do you think this was a wise thing to ask for? What would you have asked for?

How did God respond to him?

What additional blessings did God give Solomon?

According to 1 Kings 3:14, what was the one stipulation God made to insure a long life for Solomon?

Finally, read 1 Kings 11:7-11. What did Solomon do to turn from God and what would be the consequence of his disobedience?

Solomon married many foreign wives and later in his life, he drifted away from the God of his father to the gods of his wives. Although he had everything a man could ever want, at the end of his life, he found it to have no meaning or purpose. The Book Of Ecclesiastes chronicles his quest to find the answer to the question: What’s the point?

Introduction to Solomon’s Problem Read Ecclesiastes Chapter 1 and answer the following questions.

Verses 2 and 3 establish the theme of this book. What is it?

Depending on the translation, the key word in Ecclesiastes may be read as meaningless, pointless or vanity. The original Hebrew word is hevel meaning breath or vapor. Name some characteristics of a vapor. Why is this an appropriate word for what the author is trying to convey?

According to verse 3, where does man toil?

The term, under the sun, is used 29 times in the book of Ecclesiastes. Whose perspective does this represent? Whose perspective would be ‘above the sun?’

In verse 9, Solomon claims that there is ‘nothing new under the sun.’ What examples does Solomon use in verses 4-7 to illustrate this idea?

While the repetition of nature can be seen as monotonous, what are some benefits of the cyclical patterns we see i