There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die

A time to plant and a time to uproot

A time to kill and a time to heal

A time to tear down and a time to build

A time to weep and a time to laugh

A time to mourn and a time to dance

A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them

A time to embrace and a time to refrain

A time to search and a time to give up

A time to keep and a time to throw away

A time to tear and a time to mend

A time to be silent and a time to speak

A time to love and a time to hate

A time for war and a time for peace

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Meaning? What do these words by the wise man, Solomon, mean? They seem to be obvious statements, even unnecessary ones. These are common activities of life that everyone experiences. Does he justify all these activities of men? Is there a proper time for war, or to hate others, or to kill? After reading these words, we are left with an uncertain feeling about his point. Usually we hear these scriptures during a funeral service with the emphasis on the first verses---"There is a time to be born and a time to die." (3:2.)

Seven couplets. One of the most obvious arrangements to notice is the pairs of things that are opposite in nature---beginning-ending, weeping-laughing, war-peace, tearing-mending, gathering-scattering. There are seven sets of these opposites with a parallel statement with each. Hebrew parallelism is a common characteristic of the Scriptures.

Context. Many mistakes in gaining the meaning of Scripture are caused by not considering the context. There are three areas of vision in considering context. The first is the immediate, around the verses under consideration; the second is the overall message of the book; the third is the whole message of the Bible. Individual passages should harmonize with the overall message of the Bible. We should be careful about "generalizing" the meaning of passages. Usually, the writer had something specific in mind. What did Solomon have in mind? Can we determine his thoughts?

We should first notice the words used in the passages. Each passage says that there is "a time for everything" and names opposite events. Look at each of the seven sets. The time seems to mean "an appointed time." There is an appropriate or suitable season for everything. Some examples of such usage are:

Nehemiah said to the king, "If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city of Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it. Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, How long will your journey take and when will you get back? It pleased the king to send me; so I set a time." (Nehemiah 2:5-6.)

It does not seem to be Solomon’s point to make a strong theological argument for the fore-ordination of all things by God. But rather, the more general point is made that life seems vain and already set for man. The events of life are already in place; man cannot control all these things. He is not discussing whether man has a free-will or not. This would be reading far too much into his point.

"The Jews took it upon themselves to establish the custom that they and their descendants and all who join them should without fail observe these two days every year, in the way prescribed and at the time appointed." (Esther 9:27.)

1) Born/die and plant/uproot. There is a season of "bringing forth" and "uprooting" that which was brought forth. There is a cycle to life, a beginning and an ending. The purpose of this and other such statements will become clearer when we look out further to the overall message of Ecclesiastes.

2) Kill/heal and tear down/build. The striking down of a sound life is put in contrast to the salvation of an endangered life by healing. These things happen in war, in the administration of justice, and in self-defense. The seasons here are not presented from a moral view point, whether they are right or not, but rather that they happen all along in life. Whether one likes it or not, these events occur in our world.

3) Weep/laugh and mourn/dance. A man at one occasion weeps and on another laughs. The stoics tried to reduce these highs and lows by neither weeping nor laughing. There are festival seasons like weddings and reunions. There are occasions which call for tears and mourning.

4) Scatter/gather and embrace/refrain. Here are some examples of scattering stones. "You will overthrow every fortified city and every major town. You will cut down every good tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every good field with stones." (2 Kings 3:19.)

"My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines." (Isa. 5:1-2.)

The parallel between gathering stones and marriage may be the work done by the groom preparing the home and the fields. The stones were cleared and vineyards planted. The house was prepared for the bride.

There is a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. The prophet Joel mentioned one such occasion. He wrote, "Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the old men, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts; let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber and the bride out of her closet." (Joel 2:16.)

5) Seek/give up and keep/throw away. The first pair means there is a time for searching after something that is lost, and a time to give up for lost. When small boats are lost at sea, there is a time of searching. When all hope is gone, the search is ended. Likewise, there is a time for keeping and a time to throw away.

6) Tear/mend and be silent/speak. The tearing or rending of the garments was often done in times of great calamity and loss. This was also a time of sober silence. The demeanor most befitting severe adversity is silent thoughtfulness and reflection. But there is also a time for mending the garments that were earlier torn; often while sewing women will talk freely about their lives and their families. There is a time to speak happily.

7) Love/hate and war/peace. The first deep feelings that arise in the human heart are the causes of war and peace. Emotions powerfully affect our behavior. This is not a justification for war or hate, but just a statement of what often characterizes human lives.

Now looking outward from the immediate words of the text, where are these words found. What is the message of Ecclesiastes? What is his theme?

Themes are determined by oft repeated phrases or words. Solomon is writing about the vanity or futility of life. He is searching for meaning in our existence. He wrote,

"Vanity of vanity, saith the Preacher, vanities of vanity; all is vanity." (Eccl. 1:2.) "I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit." (1:14.) "Therefore, I hated life because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me; for all is vanity and vexation of spirit." (2:17.) Being old and wise is vain. "For in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow." (1:18.) "Childhood and youth are vanity." (11:10.) "And moreover because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed and sought out and set in order many proverbs." (12:9.) Solomon clearly states his goal in this message. As the preacher, the Hebrew word is Koheleth, he desires to present the truth about life and God. He searches for meaning to man’s existence seeking to know what man should do in life.

"Vanity" means basically "breath" or vapor like the condensed breath that one breathes on a cold day. It is temporary and transitory. Earthly things swiftly pass away. His theme is that all of human existence when lived apart from God is frustrating and unsatisfactory. All of the pleasures and material things of life when sought for their own sake, bring nothing but unhappiness and a sense of futility.

Solomon, then, demonstrates that theme in several ways. Some of them are: by the nature of human life in general---one generation comes and another goes, (wisdom, riches, and mirth are hollow) (chapters 1 & 2); by the fixed laws of God (chapter 3, verses 1-8); by the incongruity of life (bad things happen to good people; good things happen to bad people---cannot explain everything based on the good or evil that people do). Success does not always accompany those who are strong, wise, and industrious. Time and chance happens to us all. (9:11.) Solomon often concludes his thoughts by saying, Enjoy life while you can. After death, there is no more labor or striving. Death comes to man and beast alike. Solomon even said that God made the world crooked. "Consider the work of God. For who can make straight which he hath made crooked?" (7:13 and 1:15.)

Therefore, our text of 3:1-8 fits in this broader discussion of life’s vanity. God has set all these things in life that no man can change. There is both good and bad, happy times and sad times, mountains and valleys. Right in the midst of seems total pessimism, the preacher stops and brings light in the darkness. Notice these examples:

1) "For God gives to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy." (2:26.) Solomon mentions the name of God 37 times. He speaks of life "under the sun" but also before God.

2) "He hath made everything beautiful in his time; also he set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end." (3:11.) This is one of the most remarkable statements in this book. This refers to all those things named in verses 2-8. "I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever; nothing can be put to it and God doeth it, that men should fear before him." (3:14.)

3) "For in the multitude of dreams and many words, there are also divers vanities, but fear thou God." (5:7.)

4) "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not and nor the years draw night when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them." (12:1.)

5) "Fear God and keep his commandments for this is the whole duty of man." (12:13.)

Two views of Ecclesiastes. You should be aware that when you read comments on this book, they come from one of two very different perspectives. One view is that Solomon was an apostate having fallen away from God when he wrote this pessimistic book. One teacher said that the things said here are not a faith viewpoint. The things said at the end of the book (12:13-14) refute all that is said before. (Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Burton Coffman, 3.) Basically, one would be better off not to read this book except the last two verses.

Another view is that Solomon, possessing a greater measure of wisdom from God than any other and a great faith in God, is searching for the good way to live one’s life. He experienced many of the things mentioned due to his wealth and position as king. He saw the vanity in wealth, wisdom and pleasure. He exposed it and revealed to all. The book is valuable to read; the truths about life apply to the believer as well as to the unbeliever. Good things do not automatically comes to one who believes in God. There are incongruencies in life.

We should acknowledge that Solomon was limited in his understanding of life due to living before Jesus our Lord and before knowing the great truth that man will live again. But so were all authors before Jesus. Job asked that question tearfully. (Job 14:14.)

Death was a crucial issue in what Solomon was pondering. He wrote, "There is one event to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean, to him that sacrifices and to him that sacrifices not. . . there is one event unto all. . . after that they go to the dead. . . For the living know that they shall die, but the dead know not any thing." (9:2-5.) The doctrine of the resurrection of the dead was made clear by Jesus’ resurrection. We can see things some differently than Solomon, but the basic issues of life remain the same.

I do not believe that Solomon was addressing the larger questions of predestination, the sovereignty of God and the freewill of man. Neither do I believe that every event in life is fixed by God so that man cannot but do the will of God. The tower of Soloam did not fall on the eighteen killing them because they were wicked above all others in Jerusalem. God did not cause it to fall. He could have, but it also could have been blown over by the wind. The building could have been too old to remain in use. It could have just crumbled and fell.

There are many factors in the events of life. Often we do not understand them. Job did not understand why he was suffering, but the reader of the book knew why. Life is not just black and white, right and wrong. It is complicated and often not consistent, at least from our viewpoint. The issue is whether we will live by faith in God. Faith does not mean that one understands it all, but that one trusts all to God.