equality | Son of Adam

Part 5: Ecclesiastes 2:12-16

Last week, we saw Solomon experiment with pleasure, only to find out it was vanity. Now, in the next few verses, he will compare the lives of wise men to those who live by “madness and folly.”

So why is Solomon considering “wisdom and madness and folly” once again? After all, he already did this in chapter one, concluding, “I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind.” It seems that Solomon is delving into the topic of these three areas again to guide the men who will come after him, since they will only be able to do “what he has already done.” Thus, they will likely pursue wisdom, so Solomon is writing these things for them and for us (see how humanity repeats itself). However, there is one important difference between chapter one and chapter two. In chapter one, Solomon was exercising wisdom, madness, and folly through the lens of life. That is, what is the point of working and acquiring things if, “what is crooked cannot be made straight, what is lacking cannot be numbered…in much wisdom is much grief, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow”? Conversely, in chapter two, Solomon will confront these three items through the lens of pleasure and gain, to find out the endgame of each and whether one has any benefit over the other.

First and foremost, he tells us it is better to follow wisdom than folly. So much so, that he compares wisdom to light and folly to darkness. Having wisdom is like having two good eyes, but living in folly is like being blind; this applies to all of us. If we, as Christians, start to act foolishly, we will become blinded−walking in darkness. Of course, this is not a physical darkness but a spiritual darkness. This means that those with wisdom use their brains, think clearly, and make godly decisions, but those who are foolish don’t have the “eyes” to recognize which actions are godly or not−they walk in spiritual darkness.

After briefly describing to us how much better it is to be wise than a fool, Solomon tells us “that the same event happens to them all.” What is this event? Although it is evident, he tells us it’s death in verse sixteen. Remember, Solomon is talking about man’s view ‘under the sun’ and is not throwing Heaven or Hell into the mix. I say this because of verse fifteen: “As it happens to the fool, it also happens to me, and why was I then more wise?” Good and bad things happen to wise men and foolish men alike. There seems to be no discretion with God when looking at these occurrences with a worldly viewpoint. And what’s worse, Solomon discovers that the wise man and the fool each die equally, and neither one are more remembered than the other after their death. So what’s the point? Why be wise? Solomon told us in chapter one, “In much wisdom is much grief.” If living wisely brings grief and it seemingly has no benefit over foolishness, there seems to be no point in living wisely. In fact, if there is nothing more to it than this, we should all live foolishly since it is easier to do and brings more temporary, fleshly happiness than wisdom. However, before this conclusion, Solomon told us “wisdom excels folly.” Even though, as we will find out, wisdom is far more valuable than foolishness in the long run, it appears that even though Solomon knew this to be true, he still grieved in his heart since “the same even happens to them all.” This illustrates that we are all susceptible to faltering and doubt. There is nothing wrong with feeling sad or confused about the nature of the world; even Solomon went through this. I suggest, when feeling this way, that there is no point to being wise as God instructs, reading through Psalm 73 or this site.

Through these five verses, we have seen Solomon’s venture into wise and foolish living once again. He is attempting to find satisfaction and joy in life by saying that one event happens to everyone so it must not matter. All the pleasures of life left Solomon with nothing; no matter how wise or how foolish, Solomon concluded that it was all vanity because each one dies the same way; no one can escape death. Solomon continues on this thought in verse seventeen, which is where we will pick up next week. Here he tells us about his apathy for work and life since there is seemingly no reward for the wise.

Next: Work and Jobs are Worthless

Daily Application

We all feel gloomy from time to time, and this can be especially so when reading through Ecclesiastes. But regardless of its melancholy, Solomon’s book is very important. In this section of God’s word, we see that although the wise man and the fool die the same, wisdom is still more valuable than folly. Foolishness will not guide us through dark times in life because “the fool walks in darkness.” However, wisdom is a light to our path. It may seem that the fool and wise live differently but with the same outcome, so living for the flesh is the best option, but the Bible tells us differently. It is true, that both the wise and foolish man die equally, but they do not have the same afterlife. Remember, Solomon is looking at life ‘under the sun.’ We should take this knowledge and live wisely. Recognize when there is an option to behave foolishly or wisely, and even though the outcomes may be the same regardless of which way you choose to act, the wise road is always the biblical and right choice.