Lessons From Ecclesiastes – Lesson 1
Since Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon I think it is good if we take a look at Solomon before we go thru the book of Ecclesiastes.
The first thing we learn about Solomon in the Bible is that he is one of 4 children born to David in Jerusalem.
Slide
2Sa_5:14 And these be the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,
Chronicles tells us that all 4 of those children were with Bathsheba.
David ruled in Hebron before they moved the capital to Jerusalem.
David was 30 years old when he began to reign in Hebron. And David ruled for 40 years. So David is about 70 when Solomon begins to reign.
David ruled in Hebron for about 6 ½ years. So David would have been about 37 years old when he moved to Jerusalem.
All of David’s other kids except these 4 were born before Jerusalem. Before David was 37 years old.
The dates cannot be locked down 100 percent but they place David’s birth around 1040 B.C. and Solomon’s birth around 990 B.C. That would make David 50 years old when Solomon was born.
So 13 years of rule happen in Jerusalem before Solomon was born. A lot happens during that time. I will not go into all of that except Absalom and David’s concubines.
During those 13 years Absalom steals the hearts of the nation and mounts a rebellion. David has to run for it but he leaves his concubines in Jerusalem to keep the house.
Absalom takes David’s concubines up to the roof and defiles them.
When David comes back to Jerusalem he keeps his concubines as in takes care of them, but David never goes in to any of them again because they had been defiled.
This in part explains why David in Hebron is having kids and having kids and having kids. Gets to Jerusalem and is too busy with the Philistines and wars and then on the run. So David is not having any kids during all of that.
He gets back and can’t go in to his women. So no kids. Some time passes then David sees Bathsheba.
One of the points I am trying to make here is that all of David’s other kids are grown up and on their own or almost of age. Except the 4 born to Bathsheba.
And of those 4 Solomon was the oldest.
By the time that Solomon is old enough to remember things all of David’s other children are fully grown. So Solomon was actually raised with 3 siblings that were all of the same mom. Solomon had a large number of half-brothers and half-sisters but he was not raised with them due to the age difference.
Why difference does that make. He was raised without all of the infighting, jealously, and jockeying for position between all of the half-brothers and between all the wives.
He did not have to go to school with all of those half-brothers, he did not have to share a bedroom with them or fight over the same toys.
And living with that day in and day out does affect a child growing up.
He still would have seen some of that when the others half siblings showed up.
At about 47 years old give or take a little, David sees Bathsheba and has his affair. After the death of Bathsheba’s husband the child dies and then David marries her.
When David is about 49 years old:
2Sa_12:24 And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the LORD loved him.
We learn here that the Lord loved Solomon. We know that God loves everyone. Jesus died for everyone. While that is true this is highlighting that God loved him in a special way or shall I say for a special purpose.
And for 20 years David watches Solomon grow up.
And along the way God told David that He had chosen Solomon to be king over His people.
1Ch_28:5 And of all my sons, (for the LORD hath given me many sons,) he hath chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel.
According to their culture and traditions the firstborn in the one in line for the throne. If the firstborn messes up like Rueben did then the second oldest male is in line.
Solomon is way down the line. There were many sons of David that were older than Solomon.
So making Solomon king was unusual in that it was going outside of tradition. God had reasons for this.
One reason is that God did not want a man of war with blood on his hands to be the one who builds God’s house and courts.
If you remember it was on David’s heart to build the temple, but God told him no because he had too much blood on his hands. God let David prepare for it and gather supplies but God would not let a man of war build his house.
And some of David’s other sons were real bad eggs. If you remember one of them said he fell in love with his sister. Forced her and then threw her away. Another son hated him for it and eventually killed him.
God was not going to let anyone like that build His house.
That job God reserved for Solomon.
1Ch_28:6 And he said unto me, Solomon thy son, he shall build my house and my courts: for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father.
And David shared this with Solomon and with others. It was common knowledge that God wanted Solomon to be king and to build the temple.
And when David shared this with Solomon he gave him some instructions.
1Ch_28:9 And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
O this is good. The first thing David brings up is the heart. Serve Him with a perfect heart. And willingly.
Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind
Why? Because that is what God is after. He is after the heart and David tells Solomon you cannot fake that.
for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts:
Seek God and he will be found of thee. And David gives the warning but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off forever.
David then gives Solomon some encouragement.
1Ch_28:20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.
David then tells Israel to follow and help Solomon and David calls Solomon young and tender.
1Ch_29:1 Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.
Young lines up with the dates we went over earlier. Solomon would be approximately 20 years old.
So what does David mean by Tender. Consider who is saying that. David is a warrior. David drew the sword right along with his mighty men. David went right into battle with them and David held his own until he got old and they told him he could not be on the front lines anymore.
Solomon was not a warrior. Solomon did not draw the sword on the front lines. Solomon did not have blood on his hands. Being tender in this way was not a bad thing.
In fact it was God’s qualification for Solomon. A hardened man of war could not build the temple.
So from David’s experience and point of view Solomon was tender. But that does not mean weak, it does not mean cowardly.
Solomon was strong, he could handle confrontation and he could handle making the hard decisions.
We see this in the first major issue that Solomon has to handle. And this is before Solomon prays and asks God for wisdom.
One of Solomon’s older half-brothers decided David was too old and so he was taking the job as king. He was even having the ceremony. They run and tell David and he ordered that they take Solomon and have him ride on his mount and declare him king.
1Ki_1:11 Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not?
1Ki_1:12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.
Not only would Adonijah be king but he would kill Solomon and his mom. That was not uncommon in those days. A new king would be ruthless and kill all that might oppose him.
They tell David:
1Ki_1:33 The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon:
1Ki_1:34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon.
1Ki_1:39 And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon.
Someone runs and tells Adonijah that Solomon sits on the throne and more than that the king’s servants are showing up to bless it and saying God make the name of Solomon better than David’s name and make his throne greater.
And thru all of this you do not see any doubt or hesitation from Solomon. He is not hiding in the stuff like Saul did when they made him king. David calling Solomon tender does not in any way mean that Solomon was a coward.
1Ki_1:50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
1Ki_1:51 And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me to day that he will not slay his servant with the sword.
1Ki_1:52 And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth: but if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die.
1Ki_1:53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and bowed himself to king Solomon: and Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house.
Solomon does not do to Adonijah what Adonijah was going to do to him.
Solomon shows grace and mercy and he gives his older half-brother a chance. He declared that if he shows himself a worthy man that no hurt will come to him.
But if he goes and does wickedness then he shall die.
So immediately, you see Solomon ruling. He is not afraid to call the shots. Lay down the law. And making the hard decisions.
Hopefully as we see more you realize that David calling Solomon tender also does not mean that Solomon was fearful or indecicive or anything like that. It only meant that Solomon is not a man of war.
Solomon shows himself a capable leader right away.
1Ki_2:12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly.
His half- brother Adonijah could not just leave it alone and go and live in peace. He comes up with some sneaky plan to gain allegiances and build a coalition thru marriage that would one day give him the power he needed to take the throne from Solomon.
And he attempted this in a sneaky way by using Solomon’s mom.
1Ki_2:22 And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother, And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he is mine elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.
1Ki_2:23 Then king Solomon sware by the LORD, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life.
1Ki_2:25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him that he died.
And Solomon knew that Abiathar the priest was in on it.
1Ki_2:27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the LORD; that he might fulfil the word of the LORD, which he spake concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
And Solomon knew that Joab was in on it.
1Ki_2:29 And it was told king Solomon that Joab was fled unto the tabernacle of the LORD; and, behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall upon him.
And Solomon knew that Shimei was in on it. So it was a major conspiracy. And Solomon was decisive and led thru that and had all of that evil taken out.
Solomon proved he was a capable leader right away. And Solomon did love the Lord.
1Ki_3:3 And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.
He was not perfect. He sacrificed to the Lord but did not always do it where God said and that was at the tabernacle. This is a wonderful truth that I am very thankful for. You do not have to be 100 percent perfect for God to use you!
Solomon was not lifted up in pride. He wanted to rule the people well and he humbled himself and asked God for help.
So Solomon goes to Gibeon. They had set up a high place there. Solomon worshiped the true God there that day but in a wrong location. Solomon was not perfect.
1Ki_3:4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.
1Ki_3:5 In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.
1Ki_3:6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
1Ki 3:7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
1Ki 3:8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
1Ki 3:9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
1Ki_3:10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
1Ki_4:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.
1Ki_4:30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
1Ki_4:34 And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.
And Solomon ruled in wisdom. Israel reached it height of power and influence and had it’s best economy under Solomon.
And Solomon finished building the temple. And Solomon held a huge ceremony the day they dedicated the temple.
1Ki_8:5 And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude.
1Ki_8:12 Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
1Ki_8:22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:
1Ki_8:54 And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.
1Ki_8:63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.
1Ki_8:65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.
1Ki_9:1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do,
1Ki_9:2 That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
And God filled the Temple with His presence and the people had to leave the building.
And at this point God is still pleased with Solomon.
1Ki_9:10 And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king’s house,
Solomon is king for 40 years. Halfway thru God is still pleased with him.
And the gift of wisdom that God gave Solomon was exceedingly great.
1Ki_10:23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.
1Ki_10:24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
And during these years and until near the end when Solomon gets old is when Solomon writes a great deal of the Proverbs. And Song of Solomon and the book we are going to look at Ecclesiastes.
He wrote them while his heart was still toward God.
I for one am thankful that Solomon started out so great with a love for our Lord, and I am thankful that he asked for wisdom and I am thankful that God had Solomon pen scripture and share with us some of that wisdom.
Solomon was a good man and a great king until the last few years and he went very wrong.
1Ki_11:1 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
1Ki_11:2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
1Ki_11:4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.
1Ki_11:5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
1Ki_11:6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
1Ki_11:7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
1Ki_11:9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,
So as we go thru Ecclesiastes try to think of the wise Solomon who loved God, which is the Solomon who wrote scripture, and not think about the Solomon who went off at the very end of his life.
See more lessons from Ecclesiastes