...so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
Don't I know that. One goofy mistake can take away a lot of good things.
Ecclesiastes 10 and 11 shed much common sense type stuff. 11:6 is good encouragement to work diligently and hard:
"Sow your seed in the morning,
and at evening let not your hands be idle,
for you do not know which will succeed,
whether this or that,
or whether both will do equally well."
Hard work is necessary and vital to our success.
There is a little bit of sarcasm in 11:9:
"Be happy, young man, while you are young,
and let your heart give you j oy in the days of your youth.
Follow the ways of your heart
and whatever your eyes see, (kind of sarcastic...but here comes the zinger)
but know that for all these things
God will bring you to judgment."
Then the chapter ends with:
"So then, banish anxiety from your heart
and cast off the troubles of your body,
for youth and vigor are meaningless."
This guy just explores every path, doesn't he? And every one comes up short, save for a life lived for God. Life with the King of Eternity can be lasting and meaningful. Sometimes it takes a person to go through something to really believe and really learn the lesson of its folly. Reading about it and hearing about it all day long can be so much ignored noise. There's not much you can do when someone has their heart set on a certain course of action. You hope that their bumps and bruises aren't many and that they learn their lesson fast.
God sure is a good Father.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at June 23, 2005 08:59 AM