So, at the start I asked you to tell me about yourself. “Who am I?” “Who am I supposed to be?” Solomon didn’t know the answer, so he went searching for himself, looking for purpose and meaning. If we start at Ecclesiastes 2, we’ll be able to follow Solomon on his journey.
Pleasures
When we start to find life a bit boring and repetitious, we tend to seek for something fun, something pleasurable which can uplift our spirits. You ever have a rough day and decide to treat yourself to some takeout or that Gucci Jumper you’ve been eyeing, hoping that the pleasure would last? Well Solomon was the same. He probably thought to himself, “Maybe if I could simply just let go and party, I’ll find this life way more exciting.”
2 I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. “Laughter,” I said, “is madness. And what does pleasure accomplish?” I tried cheering myself with wine and embracing folly…I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards.I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them.I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and a harem as well—the delights of a man’s heart. I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me.
Solomon lived for only one person, himself: dedicating his entire life to accumulating toys and maximising pleasure. To this day, many of us fall into this trap. Working hard everyday until they can be the one to have whatever their eyes desired, just like Solomon in verse 10. Let’s be real. In most cases, especially at University, this pursuit of pleasure isn’t always tailored to amassing wealth.
“Whenever I get bored and lonely at University, I just drink, it always put me in a better mood.” “If I’m being real, I probably just smoke to avoid dealing with the problems in front of me.”
3 “I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly…”
Trust me this isn’t anything new, Solomon experienced it too.
So, Solomon did all this and what did he find?
11 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
He was left as empty as before he started. If you are counting on pleasure and “living your best life” to give a reason to your living, it most likely will end in disappointment.
My Sunday Skl 