Lessons for Living from the Bible in Everyday English by Dennis Magee

There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work because these are gifts from God; for without Him who can eat or find pleasure. Without God nothing satisfies but with him we find satisfaction and enjoyment. True pleasure comes only when we acknowledge and revere God. God created a gap in us that can only be filled by himself. To try to fill that gap with things, pleasures and accomplishments leaves us unsatisfied; but if we have a close relationship with God all of these things become much more meaningful to us and we can appreciate these in a new light.

God has made everything beautiful in its time and he has set eternity in the hearts of man; but man cannot comprehend what God has done from beginning to end. God’s world is beautiful yet tantalizing; it is too big for us and its satisfactions are too small. Since we were created for eternity the things of time cannot permanently or fully satisfy; and so there is nothing better for a man than to be happy and do good while he lives that everyone may eat and drink and find satisfaction in their work. For the Christian, life has meaning only when it is accepted as a gift from God.

God tests men so that they may see that they are not different from animals; man is as mortal as any animal but unlike the animals he must be made to see this condition and be distressed. The same fate awaits them both which is to our observable destination; our end is the grave – a return to dust. For who can begin to tell a man whether his soul rises up to the heavens and the soul of the animal goes into the earth. On his own, man cannot know he can only guess. The truth revealed at first only in glimpses has been fully disclosed in the gospel. One of the glimpses we see is in Daniel 12: 2 where the prophet foretells the end times. “The multitudes that sleep in the earth shall awake; some to everlasting peace, others to everlasting scorn and shame.” This is the only reference in the Old Testament to resurrection of both the righteous and wicked. So, there is nothing better for a man than to find satisfaction in his work for who can begin to tell him what will come after him. As an end in itself, work too, is meaningless; only receiving it as a gift from God gives it enduring worth.

And so, there is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in all of the toilsome labor that God has given him in the few short years that he has under the sun, for this is his lot. Eat your food with gladness and drink your wine with a cheerful heart and enjoy every day of your life with your wife whom you love, for this is your lot. If God gives a man possessions and the ability to enjoy them and the ability to find satisfaction in his work and the ability to accept his lot in life, these are bonus gifts from God; neither a right nor a guarantee, but a person so blessed seldom reflects on the measure of his years because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart. For the secularist, that is one who does not believe in a hereafter, life is a pointless journey to extinction. Only in God does life make sense and have meaning.

And so, in summary, Ecclesiastes, teaches us to accept the human condition because it has been appointed by God. We need to accept our birth, our death, all the stages in between and life’s ups and downs and try to lead the life we have given as fully as possible. Don’t expect too much from yourself, you’re only human, embrace wisdom and fear and obey God. Ecclesiastes teaches us how to live life purposely, meaningfully, and joyfully, within the theocratic context primarily by keeping God at the center of one’s life, work, and activities.

The book of Proverbs was written to provide prudence for the simple, knowledge and discretion for the young, and increased wisdom for the wise. The pursuit of wisdom and knowing how to avoid the pitfalls of folly lead to personal well-being, happy family relations, fruitful labors and right standing in the community. Proverbs, although a practical book dealing with the art of daily living, bases its practical wisdom solidly on fear of the Lord. Reverence for God and reliance on him are set forth as the path that leads to life, prosperity and security. In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path lies immortality. Broad is the pathway to destruction and many will go that way, but narrow is the pathway to eternal life, and few there will be that will ever find it. Such Godly wisdom is a virtual tree of life that yields the happy life that this creation was designed to produce. We’re urged to follow the path of wisdom leading to life and shun the pathways of folly which lead to death. Two examples are given: getting ahead by relying on somebody else’s efforts instead of our own, and finding sexual pleasure outside the bond of marriage. Together these two temptations illustrate the power and pervasiveness of the allurements of folly that we need to be prepared to recognize and avoid.

We’re urged to adopt virtues such as: honesty, integrity, diligence, compassion, generosity, forgiveness, patience, humility, loyalty, truthfulness, cheerfulness and self-control. We need to be constantly aware of the consequences of our attitudes, the steps that we take, and the decisions that we make. We need to keep anger in check, and avoid quarrelsomeness and violence, gossip, gluttony, and drunkenness.

There is an order in the Lord’s creation, and to defy it leads to painful consequences. To honor it leads to proven positive results. Wisdom guided the creator and wisdom pervades the creation order. To live by wisdom is to imitate the creator and conform to the divinely established creation order. In cities, where human experience is concentrated, in the regulations, laws, and conventions that govern human interaction, we see the creation order in microcosm. Again, to honor these leads to proven positive results and to defy them leads to unhappy consequences. Here the human experience is tested in the crucible of faith.

We need to live life in conscious awareness of the unfailing scrutiny of God and in reliance on his generous provision. He sovereignly directs the steps that people take; even the actions of kings. His eyes observe all that humans do. All history moves forward under his guidance and control.

And so, in summary, Proverbs teaches us how to live wisely and successfully in the fear of the Lord, which includes reverence for, trust in, and devotion to, God, and his will as displayed in the creation order and as revealed in his word. Wisdom then, is following the benevolent king’s design for human happiness within the creation order leading to quality of mind and quality of life.