Solomon's Pessimism

Webers_Home · Oct 25, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 3:9-15

● Ecc 3:9 . .What value, then, can the man of affairs get from what
he earns?

In other words: What does the worker gain from his toil? Well . . one thing
he does not gain is control over the "times" listed in the previous eight
verses because many circumstances in life are unpredictable and out of our
hands no matter how much money a person might be prepared to spend.

● Ecc 3:10 . . I have observed the business that God gave man to be
concerned with:

The "business" of course just being the daily round of life beneath the sun.

● Ecc 3:11 . . He brings everything to pass precisely at its time; He
also puts eternity in their mind, but without man ever guessing,
from first to last, all the things that God brings to pass.

Man is fraught with anxieties; and some of those anxieties are aggravated
by uncertainty about the future. Within no sphere is that more evident
among Americans than in their thoughts about retirement. Oftentimes
people are so concerned about their futures that they fail to enjoy the
present; so life slips past them until one day they realize they should have
lived life when they had the chance instead of waiting till they retired.

● Ecc 3:12-13 . .Thus I realized that the only worthwhile thing there
is for them is to enjoy themselves and do what is good in their
lifetime; also, that whenever a man does eat and drink and get
enjoyment out of all his wealth, it is a gift of God.

There's nothing intrinsically wrong with preparing for the future, but surely
not to the expense of missing out on life in the present. It's far better to
enjoy life as you live it, and thank whatever god it is that you recognize for
the pleasures you have at hand right now, not for the ones that may or may
not come your way later. I've actually known men in my line of work who
stayed on the job as long as age allowed just to get that very last penny of
retirement benefit only to die within two years after leaving.

NOTE: Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, the author uses a nondescript
name for "God" which is 'elohiym (el-o-heem') a designation that pertains to
all sorts of gods, along with, and including, the supreme one.

The three sacred names for the Bible's God-- Shadday, 'Adonay, and Yhvh -
are nowhere in Ecclesiastes. The reason for that is quite simple. Solomon-- if
indeed he's the author --refers to a supreme being in Ecclesiastes in a
general sense; sort of like the common expressions: "Thank God nobody got
hurt" and/or "God forbid!" There's nothing particularly religious in those
kinds of expressions.

● Ecc 3:14a . . I realized, too, that whatever God has brought to pass
will recur evermore: nothing can be added to it and nothing taken
from it--

That frustrates and irritates some people because they would like to make
some changes in the universe and change the world to suit their feelings.
But the gods aren't budging. They're the ones in control. Man is not the one
controlling the scheme of things. Man is a prisoner of the gods' sovereign
control and there is not one single thing he can do about it.

● Ecc 3:14b . . and God has brought to pass that men revere Him.

Unfortunately Man hates God for being the one in control. They neither fear
Him, nor respect Him, nor yield to His sovereign authority. On the contrary,
they very much resent God, and want Him deposed.

● Ecc 3:15 . .Whatever exists today and whatever will exist in the
future has already existed in the past. For God calls each event back
in its turn.

What's that saying? History repeats itself? Who would have thought that
people 3,000 years ago shared today's evaluation of world events? Modern
man isn't really so modern after all; is he?

/

Webers_Home · Oct 26, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 3:16-22

● Ecc 3:16 . . And, indeed, I have observed under the sun: Alongside
justice there is wickedness, alongside righteousness there is
wickedness.

Back in the early days of movie-making, good and evil were well defined.
The bad guys were totally bad and the good guys were totally good. Today,
the difference between the good guys and the bad guys is blurred. The
people we consider to be on the side of right, are often very immoral.
They're dishonest, they sleep around, they steal, they break into people's
homes, they don't respect private property, they bicker and quarrel, and
they are exceedingly insubordinate with their superiors. The difference
between the good and the bad is no longer black and white; but relative.
The bad guys are badder than the good ones, but the good guys themselves
are bad too.

The current on-going pedophilia scandal in the Catholic community is a
glaring example of wickedness in the same place as righteousness. With
alarming regularity we see more and more criminal cops in the news-- cops
who should be upholding the law, not breaking it-- and should be protecting
people, not intimidating them, breaking their arms, electrocuting them with
stun guns, and shooting them full of bullet holes. To every bad cop I would
like to say: Wearing that badge doesn't make you right; it just makes you a
bully with a gun and a canister of pepper spray.

Imagine the chagrin of a San Diego municipal judge back in the 1980's when
one day, to his utter shock and dismay, a hooker he frequented appeared in
court as a witness to testify in a case he was hearing. Upon taking the stand,
the hooker greeted the guardian of jurisprudence and expressed amazement
that one of her Johns was on the bench.

● Ecc 3:17-18 . . I mused: God will doom both righteous and wicked,
for there is a time for every experience and for every happening.” So
I decided, as regards men, to dissociate them [from] the divine
beings and to face the fact that they are beasts.

When you get right down to it: when you strip away people's
accouterments; what's left is really little more than human wildlife. In point
of fact, to call a human being a beast is an insult to the animal kingdom
because people are capable of doing things that are lower than an animal.
I've yet to hear of an animal getting drunk and beating his wife; nor have I
yet to hear of an animal betting the family's entire week's food budget on
one pony at Belmont; nor have I yet to hear of an animal rolling a car into a
lake with their kids inside in order to keep a boyfriend.

● Ecc 3:19-20 . . For in respect of the fate of man and the fate of
beast, they have one and the same fate: as the one dies so dies the
other, and both have the same life-breath; man has no superiority
over beast, since both amount to nothing. Both go to the same place;
both came from dust and both return to dust.

Some people are inclined to think it is arrogant of Man to suppose he's the
only form of intelligent life in the universe. But what is Man anyway but an
unsanitary primate with a 3-pound lump of flabby organic tissue sufficing for
a mind? We should want more of his ilk in the universe? I don't think so.
Man is hardly more intelligent than an orangutan; and ten times more
immoral. And besides; he's made of clay. And you know what happens when
clay is all wet? It gets stuck on itself. But death is the great equalizer.

Beasts die and people die too; so people really have no advantage over a
cow in that respect. True: a cow won't die rich, but then the rich take
nothing out with them when they die; same as the cow: so who's really
better off in the ground? the bovine or the rich man? Neither: they're equals
in that respect.

● Ecc 3:21 . .Who knows if a man's life-breath does rise upward and
if a beast's breath does sink down into the earth?

Solomon has a point. Who today has a red-phone line connected to the
afterlife? Nobody. People pride themselves on their faith in holy books like
the Bible and the Koran; but really don't know for certain whether or not all
of the writings in either book are actually true; do they?

Solomon never met anyone who came back from the dead with a tale to tell
about the afterlife. How about you? Who have you known personally who
died, was buried, and then later came back?

As brilliant and as intellectual as Solomon was, he was just as much in the
dark about life after death as everybody else. Can you prove beyond a
shadow of all reasonable doubt that there exists another life for human
beings after death? No, you can't; and you won't know for sure until the day
comes when you actually make the trip yourself.

● Ecc 3:22 . . I saw that there is nothing better for man than to enjoy
his possessions, since that is his portion. For who can enable him to
see what will happen afterward?

There used to be a commercial on TV that went something like this: You only
go around once, so do it with all the gusto you can get! Is that really such
bad advice seeing as no one really knows for sure what happens after we
die? What if all those super pious churchians who practice a life of strict self
denial discover later after death that it was all for nothing? Wouldn't that be
tragic? It is stupid to suffer self denial when no one really knows for rock
solid sure whether or not it counts for anything.

There's another consideration too. Since none of us can see ahead even one
day at a time, then who's to say how much longer they have to live? If there
is something you've been putting off till "some day" you should probably
think about getting to it soon lest your days come to an unexpected end.
Carpe Diem.

NOTE: Seeing as how Ecclesiastes is a book of philosophy, rather than
revelation; then it's no surprise when we encounter things in here from the
point of view of common sense quite often.

/

Webers_Home · Oct 27, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 4:1-6

● Ecc 4:1-3 . . I further observed all the oppression that goes on
under the sun: the tears of the oppressed, with none to comfort
them; and the power of their oppressors-- with none to comfort
them. Then I accounted those who died long since more fortunate
than those who are still living; and happier than either are those
who have not yet come into being and have never witnessed the
miseries that go on under the sun.

I'd be curious to know just exactly when, where, and how Mr. Born-with-a
silver-spoon-in-his mouth king Solomon was exposed to the "tears" of the
oppressed. Maybe he was talking about all the hapless Jewish men he
conscripted to work like slaves in his stone quarries and logging camps.

Some people really are better off dead, and also better had they not been
born. I mean, for some people, what's the point of living at all.

It's difficult for the average American to appreciate the misery of people in
other countries living in poverty, want, squalor, tyranny, despotism, and
oppression. When I was a little boy living in San Diego back in the early
1950's I went on a trip with my parents to Tijuana. As we walked across a
bridge over the Tijuana River, I looked down below at a pitiful community
just like the community filmed in the movie Slum Dog Millionaire. The jam
packed homes (rudimentary shelters actually) were constructed of
cardboard, sheets of plywood, corrugated tin, and sign boards. The children
were all barefoot and there were no streets and sidewalks; just riverbed soil.
I have no clue what they did for sanitation. It's my guess all their offal went
into what there was of the Tijuana River as raw sewage.

Those people down in that riverbed weren't living; they were existing, and
that with no more dignity than a hog in a wallow. (In later years, the
community was washed away by unusually high water and subsequently the
site permanently closed to squatters by the government.)

Hafez al Assad, deceased father of the current dictator of Syria, Bashar al
Assad, was ruthless towards his political opponents. In the early 1980's, he
dispatched his air force to bomb the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood's densely
populated neighborhoods in the area of Hama. (I'm talking about Syrian
citizens in a Syrian city; not foreigners in a foreign country). Afterwards,
Hafez had his army bulldoze the smoking remains. Between 10,000 and
40,000 people were killed, and thousands more were jailed, tortured, and
left to languish in prison. Protests from human rights organizations bounced
off Hafez like a BB off of depleted uranium plating.

Ryan Crocker, a US ambassador who served in Damascus during the
transition from Hafez to Bashar, said of the son: "Any suggestion that
Bashar is a push-over is an illusion. He's so personable that it's easy to
underestimate him. But rest assured, he is his father's son." Mr. Ryan is so
right. It isn't unusual this very day to be dining out in Damascus while at the
same time having to listen to dreadful screams coming from a second-floor
window of the Bab Touma police station. In the street, people cast each
other knowing glances but nobody says a word because someone might be
listening.

There's little to no justice in China. Fully 99 percent of all trials result in a
guilty verdict. If you're executed with a gun, the state sends your family a
bill for the bullet.

In North Korea, three generations of a family can be punished for one
member's alleged crime. As of 2008, an estimated 200,000 North Korean
citizens were detained in labor camps: and don't get me started on Robert
Mugabe of Zimbabwe.

● Ecc 4:4 . . I have also noted that all labor and skillful enterprise
come from men's envy of each other-- another futility and pursuit of
wind!

Most of us are pretty satisfied with what we have until we see someone with
something better. Just because the Devil wears Prada, is it really essential
that everyone else does? Gordon Gekko, of Wall Street/Money Never Sleeps,
said : "While I was away, it seemed greed got greedier; with a little bit of
envy mixed in. Hedge funders were walking home with 50, 100 million bucks
a year". They say money is the root of all evil. Well, I would have to say that
envy is money's kissing cousin. Bring those two together and the markets
can become very volatile and just as vulnerable.

● Ecc 4:5 . .The fool folds his hands together and has to eat his own
flesh.

Just the opposite of those who strive to get ahead, is the lazy good-for
nothing, who can't be motivated to go out and find work or start a business.
The others have it all, while he has nothing at all. At least the greedy and
the envious have food on the table and a place to live. The fool is homeless
and probably lives out of dumpsters, or worse, panhandles and mooches off
friends. (One of my all-time favorite panhandler's makeshift cardboard signs
said: Dreaming of a cheeseburger.)

● Ecc 4:6 . . Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls
with toil and chasing after the wind.

In between the go-getters, and the homeless bums, are the moderate
people. They don't have to have the best that life has to offer, nor the most
money, and they don't want it. Their motto is: Better isn't necessary when
adequate will do. These are happy with what they have and make do with
what they can afford.

Moderate people aren't lazy, but then again, neither are they achievers nor
overly industrious. They don't need a lot, they're easy to please, and are
usually very content; e.g. when they shop for diamond jewelry, the stones
don't have to be flawless; just sparkly and pretty. They might splurge on a
consumer-priced Bulova or a Seiko, but won't shell out the extra dough for a
Breitling or an IWC even though they're the better timepieces. They prefer
cars that are economical rather than cars that are cool, fast, and fitted out
with the latest electronics. They eat at ordinary buffets and restaurants
rather than fancy, black-tie supper clubs; and their back yards are likely to
have just as many weeds as ornamental shrubs. While others chase status,
moderates prefer to chase sales and clip coupons.

But the sad part is; those greedy, leveraged-to-the-hilt hedge-funders are
the very ones ravaging the moderates' retirement plans. And if the fund
goes belly-up-- as many did in the last sub-prime blood bath --what do they
care? It wasn't their money that was lost; it was yours while they escaped
with a bail-out and/or a golden parachute. And the bail-outs? Who pays for
those? Duh . . . the moderates; via federal taxes, of course.

/

Webers_Home · Oct 28, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 4:7-12

● Ecc 4:7-8 . . And I have noted this further futility under the sun: the
case of the man who is alone, with no companion, who has neither
son nor brother; yet he amasses wealth without limit, and his eye is
never sated with riches. For whom, now, is he amassing it while
denying himself enjoyment? That too is a futility and an unhappy
business.

That surely describes people like Ebenezer Scrooge-- Charles Dickens'
friendless loner in A Christmas Carol --the prince of misers. The man has
great wealth, and sees the amassing of wealth as the only justifiable reason
to be alive. He despises family life, shuns circles of close friends, and
regards charitable causes as theft. The man won't even spend his money on
decent food to nourish himself; let alone wood or coal to heat his dismal
home. His fortune does neither him nor anyone else any real good at all
except provide him with questionable old-age security.

● Ecc 4:9-10 . .Two are better off than one, in that they have greater
benefit from their earnings. For should they fall, one can raise the
other; but woe betide him who is alone and falls with no companion
to raise him!

Webster's defines "synergism" as: interaction of discrete agencies, agents,
or conditions such that the total effect is greater than the sum of the
individual effects.

John Nash put that principle into his Nobel Prize-winning economic theory.
He felt that it is possible to not only do yourself the better good, but at the
same time to do it in such a way that your efforts mesh with the efforts of
others so that all benefit.

Marriage is a synergic arrangement. Partners are more secure, and usually
accomplish much more together than an individual on their own; and they
look out for each other too. When a wife gets a muscle spasm in her back,
and can't walk, then the husband can put her on a blanket and drag her
down the hallway to the bathroom. When the husband's car blows a heater
hose on the way home from work, the wife can use her own car to come and
get him at the repair shop and bring him home for dinner. Plus, if both work,
their combined income makes it possible to carry a mortgage instead of
throwing money away on rent.

● Ecc 4:11 . . Further, when two lie together they are warm; but ho
can he who is alone get warm?

To be warm, as in Ecc 4:11, implies more than merely warding off a chill. It
means to be comforted. There is very little solace to be found in solitude.
Loner type of people often end up plagued with depression and dark
thoughts because God didn't create Man to live alone. People are designed
to be couples.

"Then Yhvh God said; It is not good for Man to be alone; I will make a
suitable aid for him." (Gen 2:18-19)

The word aid isn't spelled with an "e" as in aide; but rather as in First Aid.
So women weren't intended to be a man's assistant, but rather his
assistance; viz: a crutch, someone to lean on. So then, women who compete
with men-- and/or ridicule, carp, chafe, dominate and demean them --are
warped, and total failures at being women. They've got the gender; but lack
the heart to go with it; and God pity a man's children who grow up with a
mother like that.

● Ecc 4:12 . . Also, if one attacks, two can stand up to him. A threefold
cord is not readily broken!

All he's saying there is that a single strand of hemp by itself is weak; but
when woven together in multiple strands, becomes very strong; viz: the
combined strands become force multipliers.

In the darkening days in which we live in America, jogging and bicycling
alone can be very dangerous in a city park; especially after sundown. It's far
more sensible to mingle with others; even if they're strangers. People alone
are easy marks for muggers and wilding attacks. Nobody's invincible. Even
tough guys like Chuck Norris and Jason Stathan can be taken down. As
Arnold Schwarzeneggar said in the Hollywood movie Predator, "If it bleeds,
we can kill it".

/

Webers_Home · Oct 29, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 4:13-16

● Ecc 4:13-16 . . Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish
king who no longer has the sense to heed warnings. The youth may
have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in
poverty within his kingdom. I saw that all who lived and walked
under the sun followed the youth, the king's successor. There was
no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came
later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a
chasing after the wind.

That passage observes the instability of political power, and the fickleness of
popularity. The incumbent ruler may have at one time heeded his advisors'
input and lead his country wisely. But when he got old, he stopped listening
to them. As a result, a younger generation despised him for being egotistic,
out of touch, and insensitive to his countrymen's feelings. His arrogance and
egotism made him a prisoner of his own foolish mind and eventually, he was
either deposed, or voted out of office.

A younger man, unknown till now, an underdog, whose platform preached
political reforms, a hope you can believe in, environmental improvement,
and economic recovery; made impressive speeches and won the people's
hearts. He took over, led his country out of economic depression and to
great victories over their enemies. His country enjoyed worldwide prestige
and great prosperity.

But the younger leader's popularity didn't endure. He himself aged and
stopped listening to the voice of the people and his advisors' input, and he
too then became unpopular with a younger generation; who then began
clamoring for his overthrow just like his own generation had done to his
predecessor. It's an endless cycle. Politicians are loved when they are voted
in, and hated when they are voted out.

Oliver Cromwell, who took the British throne away from Charles l, and
established the commonwealth, said to a friend: "Do not trust to the
cheering, for those same persons would cheer just as much if you and I
were going to be hanged."

/

Webers_Home · Oct 30, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 5:1-6

● Ecc 5:1 . . Be not overeager to go to the House of God: more
acceptable is obedience than the offering of fools, for they know
nothing [but] to do wrong.

Old Testament Judaism is built around a fully functioning Aaronic
priesthood whose duty is to collect sacrifices and offerings from the
people. But the worshippers abused the system because they lived like the
Devil during most of the year and tried to make up for it with sacrifices. To
see how God feels about that kind of religious hypocrisy, just read the first
chapter of Isaiah.

In no uncertain terms, God angrily spurned his people's offerings-- their
prayers, their holy days, their festivals and feast days, and yes even their
sacred Sabbath observances because although they were very religious, they
were, at the same time, a hard-hearted, stubborn pack of scofflaws.

You can see the very same thing going on in Christianity. A number of pew
warmers live utterly worldly, carnal lives all year long and expect that church
attendance on Easter Sunday will somehow make up for it. That day is the
most heavily attended church day in Christendom. People who normally
wouldn't step over the threshold of a church door all year long, will attend
on Easter Sunday so they don't feel completely heathen. Easter service, to
them, is some sort of redemption day, somehow wiping away a whole year's
worth of secular impiety and is supposed to convince Jesus they truly love
him after all.

NOTE: Just for the fun of it some day, position yourself where you can watch
the front of a church when it's let out Sunday morning and observe the
number of Christians who J-walk back to their cars. (chuckle) You might be
surprised.

● Ecc 5:2-3 . . Keep your mouth from being rash, and let not your
throat be quick to bring forth speech before God. For God is in
heaven and you are on earth; that is why your words should be few.
Just as dreams come with much brooding, so does foolish utterance
come with much speech.

If you've really nothing to discuss with God in prayer, then skip it: say
nothing; remembering that God is a king, and kings shouldn't be treated as
if they're dumb enough to suffer fools and waste their time listening to
filibusters and bombastic rhetoric.

● Ecc 5:4-6 . .When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it.
For He has no pleasure in fools; what you vow, fulfill. It is better not
to vow at all than to vow and not fulfill. Don't let your mouth bring
you into disfavor, and don't plead before the messenger that it was
an error, but fear God; else God may be angered by your talk and
destroy your possessions.

The "messenger" is translated from mal'ak (mal-awk') which is somewhat
ambiguous. It can mean an angel, or a prophet, or a priest or a teacher.

At Gen 48:16 it refers to God; but here it likely refers to the church and/or
church manager to whom you made a pledge, e.g. a faith promise.

A sacred vow is between you and God, not between you and your church. So
don't be rash with your promises nor make excuses for reneging. A promise
is a promise; and God will hold you to your vows even if you can't afford it.
You just try to be lax in your payments with a shylock and see what
happens. You risk fractured ribs by men who are very good at breaking
things over people's heads. When the points are due, that's when they're
due; not later. If shylocks are to be feared, then God needs to be feared
even more.

"A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If I am a father, where is
the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me? says the
Lord Almighty." (Mal 1:6)

/

Webers_Home · Oct 31, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 5:7-11

● Ecc 5:7 . . For much dreaming leads to futility and to superfluous
talk.

God's people should be known for keeping their feet on the ground, and
their head out of the clouds. Religion is not supposed to be in words. It's
supposed to be in shoe leather, in your everyday life. It's supposed to be in
honesty and integrity-- it's in few words, and it's in keeping your word.
Flowery prayers, and showy vows and pledges don't please God near as
much as just simply being a man of your word. You can't buy God off with
churchianity nor can you fool Him with it into thinking you are somehow
pious and above reproach when the truth is; you're not.

● Ecc 5:8 . . If you see in a province oppression of the poor and
suppression of right and justice, don’t wonder at the fact; for one
high official is protected by a higher one, and both of them by still
higher ones.

Existing alongside America's elected officials, is a shadow government called
the bureaucracy. Bureaucrats are non-elected officials who are actually the
ones conducting much of the government's business. High profile
bureaucrats would be the President's cabinet. But many others operate
completely invisible to the general public until they become implicated in a
news-worthy scandal.

Too many bureaucrats are looking out only for themselves; most especially
their jobs. So they tend to make every effort to please their superiors; often
to the detriment of the voting public's best interests. No one should be
shocked at this. It's pretty normal because after all, human government is
staffed by human beings.

● Ecc 5:9 . .The increase from the land is taken by all; the king
himself profits from the fields.

Government officials are sometimes said to be feeding at the federal trough.
Like greedy swine, they gobble up a large percentage of the gross national
product to pay their own wages, perks, and benefits; and to finance ear
marks and pork. But citizens benefit in many ways from taxes too. So the
government is not the only one taking a piece of the country's wealth.

● Ecc 5:10 . . A lover of money never has his fill of money, nor a lover
of wealth his fill of income. That too is futile.

Money may not be the number one thing in life; but it's way ahead of
whatever is number two. When Shia LaBeouf's character asked Josh Brolin's
character-- in the movie: Wall Street/Money Never Sleeps --what his
number is; viz: the number of dollars that would be enough for him to walk
away from investment banking and retire; Brolin's character answered:
More.

People obsessed with money actually love and revere it; and make any and
every sacrifice to get it. They stay up late, work long ridiculous hours,
disconnect from their families, and even betray their friends' trust to get it.
Their minds are filled with thoughts about money, their lives are controlled
by getting it and guarding it; and while they have it: they feel a great sense
of pride, achievement, security, and independence.

The amount of money they possess pales in importance compared to their
rabid desire to simply amass it. I've heard it said that success is the best
revenge. There are too many people out there in the business world who
need money simply to feel better about themselves, and to get one over on
their rivals.

● Ecc 5:11a . . As his substance increases, so do those who consume
it;

The wealthy often find themselves hounded by foundations, causes,
charities, and freeloading relatives and friends. MC Hammer, a very popular
rapper in the 80's and 90's, was quite rich at one time but spent it all on not
just himself, but on his entourage as well. Making money in a big way
involves the employment of a staff; and those kinds of staffs aren't cheap.
They all average six figures; not to mention their bonuses which commonly
run up to seven.

● Ecc 5:11b . . what, then, does the success of its owner amount to
but feasting his eyes?

Past world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis was heard to say: I don't
like money actually, but it quiets my nerves. Yes, money is good for feasting
the eyes, and provides a certain sense of security. However, money is no
guarantee your nerves will be calm, nor that your sleep will be sound; nor
that your security is assured.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 1, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 5:12-16

● Ecc 5:12 . . A [slaves'] sleep is sweet, whether he has much or
little to eat; but the rich man's abundance doesn't let him sleep.

When you have nothing, you don't worry too much about losing it. But when
you have a lot, then you fear going broke; and along with riches comes
eating gourmet foods which sometimes cause indigestion and acid reflux.

I know a man who, as he got older, became concerned about dying before
owning a really good watch. So, he took some money out of his home equity
line and bought a Rolex Explorer II, a TagHeuer Chronograph, a Rolex
Datejust, and an Omega Double Eagle Chronograph. All totaled, he shelled
out roughly $20,000. He's very happy with the watches, but now worries all
the time they might get lost, stolen, or damaged. He didn't have those kinds
of worries when he owned timepieces no more expensive than a Casio G
shock.

● Ecc 5:13-14 . . Here is a grave evil I have observed under the sun:
riches hoarded by their owner to his misfortune, in that those riches
are lost in some unlucky venture; and if he begets a son, he has
nothing in hand.

That is so sad. The ENRON scandal brought to light the dangers of investing
in a retirement system that is solely dependent upon just one company's
prosperity. When the stock price of ENRON plummeted, the value of its
employee retirement system plummeted too; and so steep was the collapse,
that many of the energy giant's rank and file were left with virtually zero
dollars in their retirement accounts.

A veteran electrician with PGE (Portland General Electric) related how his
account was worth something like $348,000 before ENRON's value began to
fall. He couldn't do anything about it because his account was frozen while
the executives at ENRON were permitted to move their money to safety. By
the time the PGE electrician's account was unfrozen, its value had dropped
to $1,200.

The sub-prime Wall Street disaster did the very same thing to a pretty good
number of vulnerable retirement accounts. Though the Federal Reserve
bailed out the big investment banks, it did nothing for the little banks nor for
the innocent folks who were ruined by the collapse.

● Ecc 5:15 . . Another grave evil is this: He must depart just as he
came. As he came out of his mother's womb, so must he depart at
last, naked as he came. He can take nothing of his wealth to carry
with him.

I once heard a story about a very famous rich man who died. At the reading
of his will, newspaper reporters were required to remain outside and not
allowed to interview the heirs until later. When the reading was over, a
reporter approached one of the lawyers and asked how much the old
gentleman left. The lawyer replied: He left it all.

Yes, the rich man couldn't take a single dime of his wealth into the next life.
It all stayed here and he went into eternity completely broke.

There is a story, in Luke 16:19-31, of a rich man who died and went to the
fiery portion of Hades. In life he lived sumptuously, eating the best of foods
and drinking the best of wines. But in Hades, the poor fellow doesn't even
have so much as a glass of water.

You know, restaurants put glasses of water on our tables as a matter of
courtesy. The water is free. It's on the house. You don't need to be wealthy
to merit a glass of water in a restaurant. But in the fiery portion of Hades,
nobody is given any courtesy whatsoever no matter how prominent they
may have been in life.

● Ecc 5:16 . . So what is the good of his toiling for the wind?

It isn't intrinsically evil to save and invest. After all, Solomon wrote in
Proverbs that it's wise to look ahead, and parents are wise who lay
something aside for their children. But the people who hoard, and who
amass wealth simply for the sake of possessing it for themselves, are
laboring for the wind. They can't possibly keep it into the next life, so the
best thing for them to do is share it while they are here where it will do the
world some good. It's okay to keep enough for yourself for now and for the
future, but when there's a ridiculous surplus, find a way to disperse it.
Otherwise, your hoarding serves no useful purpose, and at death your
wealth is surrendered anyway.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 2, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 5:17-20

● Ecc 5:17 . . Besides, all his days he eats in darkness, with much
vexation and grief and anger.

Wealthy people don't usually eat in the dark. Many have very nice
chandeliers over the table. But in their hearts often lurk evil thoughts, bad
memories, regrets, grievances, resentments, disputes, hard feelings, and a
bad conscience. They're really no different than the average man in that
arena. Like they say: So and so puts his pants on one leg at a time just like
everyone else.

● Ecc 5:18 . . Only this, I have found, is a real good: that one should
eat and drink and get pleasure with all the gains he makes under the
sun, during the numbered days of life that God has given him; for
that is his portion.

Solomon mentions death so often that you might think he was obsessed with
it. But really, he wasn't. His philosophy of life was such that he took death
into consideration so that his days weren't spent as if they were infinite and
he expected to live forever. A balanced philosophy of life has to include the
very real possibility of imminent death to keep things in proper perspective.

"Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: but the rich, in
that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.
For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the
grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it
perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways." (Jas 1:9-11)

"Come now, you who say; Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such
a town, spend a year there doing business, and make a profit-- you have no
idea what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a puff of smoke that
appears briefly and then disappears." (Jas 4:13-14)

"For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The
grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away" (1Pet 1:24)

"A voice rings out; Proclaim! Another asks; What shall I proclaim? All flesh is
grass, all its goodness like flowers of the field: Grass withers, flowers fade
when the breath of the Lord blows on them. Indeed, man is but grass: Grass
withers, flowers fade" (Isa 40:6-8

Man is but perishable fruit like peaches, pears, strawberries, cantaloupe,
avocado, and oranges; no amount of refrigeration will keep him fresh.
Regardless of the amount of rest, fresh air, good diet, and exercise; man
begins to wither right around the age of 32 or 34.

Youngster's can't picture their expiration date as three brief decades: to
them, 32 years seems long and way out in the distance. Hence the withering
process often sneaks up and takes them by surprise like starting a frog off in
cool water and slowly bringing it up to a boil. Of a sudden, one day it swats
them in the face like a rolled up newspaper that they're "old school" replaced
by a young, hip generation wherein they've been accustomed to thinking all
along was themselves.

The withering process, once it starts, is relentless. Like a Terminator: it can't
be bargained with, it can't be reasoned with, it doesn't feel pity or remorse
or fear, and it absolutely will not stop-- ever! --until you are dead. Once the
withering process sets in, from that moment on, man is shackled to a living
death

● Ecc 5:19-20 . . Also, whenever a man is given riches and property
by God, and is also permitted by Him to enjoy them and to take his
portion and get pleasure for his gains-- that is a gift of God. For
[such a man] will not brood much over the days of his life, because
God keeps him busy enjoying himself.

Within the context of the book of Ecclesiastes, a "gift of God" should never
be taken literally. It's just a colloquialism, like the common term "act of
God" used to label the cause of natural calamities like earthquakes, floods,
storms, miscarriages, and stuff like that.

I'm in my retirement years, and one of the things I avoid is keeping too busy
because I don't want the final years of my life to pass quickly. They'll pass
soon enough; but when you keep busy, time really has a way of flying. On
the flip side is one's mental health. Keeping busy does have a way of
preventing people from doing too much introspection and reminiscence
thereby developing a chronic case of the blues. One's mind can atrophy too
if they never do anything to exercise their intelligence. So I try to strike a
balance: I keep somewhat physically busy, and I keep somewhat mentally
busy too; while carefully avoiding excess in either area.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 3, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 6:1-9

● Ecc 6:1-2a . .There is an evil I have observed under the sun, and a
grave one it is for man: that God sometimes grants a man riches,
property, and wealth, so that he does not want for anything his
appetite may crave,

Here we go with that "gift of God" thing again; but these are typically a
genre of gifts that Solomon observes "under the sun" rather than in the
sphere of true providence. Just because somebody is rich is no indication
their prosperity was engineered by God. Even career criminals, Wall Street
barracudas, predatory lenders, and corrupt politicians are often rich; no
thanks to God. Some feel the Kennedy clan is blessed, yet they are very well
off due to grandpa Joe's lack of scruples.

● Ecc 6:2b . . but God does not permit him to enjoy it; instead, a
stranger will enjoy it. That is futility and a grievous ill.

That is the classic "the Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away; blessed be
the name of the Lord" attitude. Calling any act of God "futility and a grievous
ill" would normally be considered accusing God of sin, except that in this
case, Solomon doesn't really mean it that way. To an intellectual, the
concept of God is merely academic; and an "act of God" is really no more
literal than pie in the sky or the man in the moon.

A common example of this "evil" about which Solomon spoke is someone
who worked hard all their life, saved and invested wisely, and then one day
WHAM, during a routine physical exam, their doctor shocks them with the
life-changing news they have on-set Alzheimer's. Guess where that person's
savings and investments will end up now. Yes, towards medical attention
and long term care. The health care system, and it's medical professionals,
will make a big dent in their life savings.

● Ecc 6:3-6 . . Even if a man should beget a hundred children and live
many years-- no matter how many the days of his years may come
to, if his gullet is not sated through his wealth, I say: the stillbirth,
though it was not even accorded a burial, is more fortunate than he.
Though it comes into futility and departs into darkness, and its very
name is covered with darkness, though it has never seen or
experienced the sun, it is better off than he-- yes, even if the other
lived a thousand years twice over but never had his fill of
enjoyment! For are not both of them bound for the same place?

One advantage a stillborn child enjoys over and above the living is that
although it never had a chance to live; it doesn't know what it missed either.
In its case, ignorance is truly bliss. The person who had the means and the
wherewithal to enjoy life, but failed to take advantage of it before they died,
will suffer unspeakable mental anguish throughout eternity for missing their
chance to enjoy life before it was too late. In that respect, the miscarried
child is much better off because it has more peace of mind than others even
though it never owned anything; no, not even so much as a name to call its
own.

I knew an older man once who owned a very expensive wrist watch that he
reserved for special occasions. Well; that is short sighted if you ask me' He
should wear that nice watch whenever he gets the chance because life is so
uncertain. People should enjoy their nice things while they can rather than
wait till they're at the point of death. Life is not a do-over. You've got live it
as you live it: not wait till a more opportune moment; which, as sometimes
happens, quite possibly may never come. Carpe Diem: seize the day. People
who put off living life to its fullest till later often find out it's too late to do
so.

● Ecc 6:7-8 . . All of man’s earning is for the sake of his mouth, yet
his gullet is not sated. What advantage then has the wise man over
the fool, what advantage has the pauper who knows how to get on
in life?

Food and water are two things in life that, like sleep, cannot be taken just
once because once is not enough. You have to eat again, you have to drink
water again, and you have to sleep again. That is a law of life for both the
stupid and the intelligent, for both the rich and the poor, for both the female
gender and for the male gender. No one is exempt from that law-- all are
equal in those respects-- except for the reticent 17 year-old Twilight vampire
Edward Cullen of whom it's said never needs sleep.

● Ecc 6:9 . .What the eyes see is better than what the soul desires.
This too is futility and a striving after wind.

Sometimes I think the most content people are the blind because they go
shopping with their heads instead of their eyes. People invariably buy things
that are far more expensive than what they could get by with if they had to.

This same weakness of the eyes will compel a boy to marry a beautiful girl
who is totally wrong for him. The Creator made women to be a man's very
best friend first, his lover second, and the mother of his children third. But
some men just can't get past a girl's looks; and as all women know, when it
comes to love; men use their eyes much better than they use their heads.
They often pick a wife without thinking because looks mean almost
everything to the average man; and a woman's personality is only
secondary, if it's taken into consideration at all.

Women, as a rule, focus on the aspects of intimacy and relationship; but
men, as a rule, focus on the physical aspect. One of Billy Crystal's lines from
City Slicker says it all: "Women have to be in the mood, while men just need
a place."

Take a look around the magazine racks in Barnes & Noble some time. The
regular racks contain lots of magazines with girly covers; and inside them
are lots of girly photographs; while over in another aisle away from the
racks, are shelves displaying the romance novels. Most guys don't care for
romance novels; those are for the women; because romance novels are to
women what girly pictures are to men; just in a different way. Photographs
stimulate men through their eyes, while novels stimulate women through
their feelings; which easily explains why some men would rather walk the
neighbor's dog than sit through a chick flick with their wives and girlfriends.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 4, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 6:10-12

● Ecc 6:10 . .Whatever happens, it was designated long ago and it
was known that it would happen; as for man, he cannot contend with
what is stronger than he.

I guess you could call that attitude fatalism.

Some things really are predestined and often we just have to face the facts;
e.g. old age and death are two of life's unpleasant realities. Everyone is
stuck with debilitation and there's no use in fighting it.

Menopause is another chipped-in-stone fact of life that is just as real as the
air we breathe all around us. If couples aren't careful, and let too much time
slip by, menopause will steal away their chances for a baby. And on top of
that, the older a woman gets, the more her eggs age and become less viable
than when she was young.

The same problem exists for men, just in a different way. Men aren’t born
with all their sperm cells. Fresh ones are manufactured by their bodies all
the time. However, those fresh cells are the cells of an aging man. So if a
man waits to have children when he's old, his chances of producing a child
with birth defects increase.

Some people enjoy toying with death; and go hiking in the wilderness all
alone and/or jump off high places with a bungee cord. Some say people like
that have a death wish. No, what they really have is a wish to flirt with
death and live to tell about it. Their attitude is: If you aren't walking on the
edge; then you're taking up room.

Personally, I don't want to die like a fool. People who tempt fate by
participating in extreme sports are just asking to be dead and/or crippled for
life before their next meal-- and then what?

● Ecc 6:11-12 . . Often, much talk means much futility. How does it
benefit a man? Who can possibly know what is best for a man to do
in life-- the few days of his fleeting life? For who can tell him what
the future holds for him under the sun?

Solomon's comment pertains to a man's time "under the sun" rather than
after his death.

They say for every action there's a reaction; and that's generally true. But
who can really predict the repercussions of their decisions? In other words:
when a butterfly flaps its wings in England, does it put in motion other acts
of nature that eventuate in a typhoon in Samoa?

Life isn't like a chess game where the masters can see twelve moves ahead.
No, life is oftentimes a gamble. A young fellow contemplating the risks and
responsibilities of marriage once lamented to me how chancy it is to get
married in these days with the world in such turmoil and the economy
uncertain. But I said to him: Life goes on.

My friend realized of course that life does go on even under the extreme
threats of nuclear war, terrorism, air and water pollution, drug cartels, road
rage, brown-outs and water shortages, insane oil prices, acid rain, crime,
prejudice, drive-by shootings, global warming, unemployment, economic
collapse, and reactor melt-downs. People do manage to somehow cope and
keep going. Well, not long after that, he married his best girl; who proved to
be just the right one for him too. His pretty bride made him forget all about
the dangers of lay-offs, spiraling medical costs, and mortgage debt. My
young friend never felt better in his life. Carpe Diem.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 4, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:1-4

● Ecc 7:1a . . A good name is better than fragrant oil,

A companion to that saying might be a proverb also authored by Solomon.

"Like a gold ring in the snout of a pig is a beautiful woman bereft of sense."
(Prv 11:22)

Cosmetics, fashions, jewelry, hair, manicures, wonder bras, pantyhose, killer
curves, and/or Spanks and scents can't make up for a bad name. No matter
how dolled up, or shined up, nor how good a person smells; if they are a pig,
they will continue to act like a pig. Better to be a plain Jane with a sweet
personality than a super model who affects everyone around her with a
witchy attitude.

● Ecc 7:1b-2 . . and the day of death than the day of birth. It is better
to go to a house of mourning than to a house of feasting; for that is
the end of every man, and a living one should take it to heart.

Nobody under the age of twenty-one is ever going to take that one
seriously. Birthday parties and beer busts are far more fun than funerals;
although as I get older, I tend to dread my birthdays more and more. When
I was young, birthdays were fun, and getting older was exciting. But aging is
not so fun anymore. Age is turning me into an ogre, and I can't stand the
sight of myself in a mirror; especially one of those large full-length bathroom
mirrors they invariably install in motel rooms.

But a funeral can really make you aware of your own mortality in a very
special way. My wife's mother died in 2005, my own mother one year later
as well as a good friend at work; and my favorite nephew dropped dead to
the floor in 2015. All those passings disturbed me because I realized the
grim reaper had started picking us off one by one, and it's only a matter of
time now before my own number comes up.

● Ecc 7:3-4 . .Vexation is better than revelry; for though the face be
sad, the heart may be glad. Wise men are drawn to a house of
mourning, and fools to a house of merrymaking.

Those kinds of "wise men" are well known as party poopers. While it's true
that revelry can't make a person truly happy on the inside, it would still
seem a much better choice than dwelling upon Death. You know; it's only
natural that Solomon would believe that mourning is better than revelry
because he was a wet blanket to begin with; and his nature to shun
merriment. (Ecc 2:1-2)

Solomon didn't even know how to have fun. The problem is; he was just too
smart for his own good; so smart in fact that all his knowledge and intellect
clouded the man's spirit and prevented him from having any fun at all. (Ecc
1:16-18)

Solomon really needed to get out and paint the town once in a while; see a
good movie, ride a pony, go to Las Vegas, stroll the beach, take in a
Broadway play, roll the dice, joust a windmill, drop a coin in a wishing well,
go boating, let his hair down, play a video game, maybe even get plastered
sometime-- anything but sit around thinking about old age and death. No
wonder the poor man was so negative! In the movie Titanic, Leonardo
DiCaprio convinces Kate Winslet that there is more to life than being rich. He
suggests she learn to ride a horse like a man and learn to spit like a man.
Sure: why not take off the Spanx, lose the Silkies panty hose and Jimmy
Choo heels, and try something silly like skipping a stone across a pond?

I once heard Billy Graham say: The smallest package in the world is a man
all wrapped up in himself. Well . . amen to that! Billy was so right. And I
would add that the most unimportant man in the world is one who is totally
self-absorbed. Some people really need to get out and do a little mixing and
have a good time once in a while: break the monotony, do something stupid,
get out of their rut; live a little.

But Solomon just couldn't do it. There are some people not only fun
challenged, but they can't permit themselves to indulge in fun. It's like a
mental block-- a hang-up. They're afflicted with fun-impotence. They feel
guilty about having fun, they scorn fun, and look down upon themselves for
letting any into their lives.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 6, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:5-9

● Ecc 7:5-6 . . It is better to listen to a wise man's critique than to
listen to the praise of fools. For the levity of the fool is like the
crackling of nettles under a kettle; for that too is transitory.

The "praise of fools" is from the Hebrew word shiyr (sheer) which means: a
song; singing; viz: a lullaby. I guess you could liken a fool's praise to the
chirping of a bird-- tweet, tweet, tweet. Birds make sweet sounds; actually
very soothing and entertaining at times, but nonetheless, they only serve to
help us escape reality-- they don't tell the hearer very much truth about
himself.

Nettles make very poor firewood. They burn very brightly, go up with a
woosh almost as soon as they're thrown into a fire; but produce very little
heat and soon go out. Oak and Pine are far better. Those sturdy woods burn
slowly and quietly, make good coals, and produce lots of usable heat for a
long time. The praise of fools is like birds twittering and nettles burning:
noisy, momentarily soothing, a brief caress with no long-lasting usefulness;
while a wise man's critique may not be so cheering, but can result in life
changing improvements.

● Ecc 7:7 . . Unjust gain robs the wise man of reason and destroys
the prudence of the cautious.

The praise of fools is typically unmerited, and often falls in the category of
flattery; which, if a wise man takes seriously, he's just downright stupid no
matter what his IQ.

The word for "fool" is from keciyl (kes-eel') which means: fat, i.e.
(figuratively) stupid or silly. I guess that means some people are fat-heads.
Roget's Thesaurus synonyms for fat-headed are: dull, asinine, and thick
witted-- in other words: a numbskull. Those are not attributes you need to
see in a person who is patting you on the back and telling you how
wonderful you are and how good a job you did. You certainly would not want
to take a fat-head's praise too seriously because to see yourself through the
eyes of a fat-head is to accept a false impression of yourself; and that could
prove to be very self-destructive in the long run.

● Ecc 7:8-9 . .The end of a matter is better than the beginning of it.
Better a patient spirit than a haughty spirit. Don't let your spirit be
quickly vexed, for vexation abides in the breasts of fat-heads.

Not all matters are pleasant matters. Some are bitter. Those matters are
best not taken up at all; and quickly ended if they begin.

To start a quarrel is to open a sluice; before a dispute flares up, drop it."
(Prv 17:14)

Parenting is one arena where it doesn't pay to be a fat-head. It's very
important to pick your fights with care, rather than simply react. It is not a
good idea to flare up and quarrel with your children over every little thing.
Let little things slide; and only make a fuss over things that really make a
difference in the long haul.

"Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged." (Col
3:21)

One of the most dysfunctional families I've ever seen is the fictional one
portrayed on the HBO series Sopranos.

AJ Soprano's dad Tony is a mob boss whose parenting style mirrors his
criminal management practices; which is that of a despotic, bullying
sociopath. Tony constantly oppresses his son AJ with thoughtless remarks,
manhandling, unfairness, profanity, purple epithets, sarcasm, ugly criticism,
bickering, demeaning humor, confrontations, sneering, scorn, relentless
ridicule, intimidation, shouting, rage, and threats.

AJ rarely, if ever, is given a word of sympathy or encouragement. Typically,
everything he does is wrong and his father impossible to please.
Subsequently; AJ feels unwelcome in his own home-- a person of little
consequence whose thoughts and feelings neither matter nor count. His
home's living hell turns AJ into not only a loser, but also an emotional train
wreck; and then his dad ends up asking the inevitable question eventually
asked by every abusive parent: Where did I go wrong? Duh.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 7, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:10-14

● Ecc 7:10 . . Don't say; How has it happened that former times were
better than these? For it is not wise of you to ask that question.

The problem with the good old days is that we often conveniently forget the
bad parts and sometimes invent good parts to take their place; viz: the good
old days are often a combination of poor memory and a good imagination.

Lyrics in Carly Simon's song Anticipation say: "I tell tomorrow, these are the
good old days". Get her point? You are living in some good old days right
now, this very moment; and in the future you'll look back on them with the
same wistful fondness that you are now looking back on earlier good old
days. Carly's song was released on an album in 1972, some 45 years ago as
of 2017. Was she right? Were those days good old days for her?

Sometimes there's no denying the good old days really were better than our
present lot in life. People with serious illnesses and handicaps were certainly
better off before those problems degraded their quality of life. I think a
young girl with Herpes and/or an unwanted pregnancy would agree that
things were better before.

Myself, I would have been dead with appendicitis as a teen-ager were it not
for modern medicine. And yet again in my 40's with a kidney stone. And yet
again in my fifties with Grave's Disease (hyperactive thyroid). I think anyone
would agree Americans are far better off today economically than the
1930's. So not all the good old days were good. Some of those good old
days would have been fatal for many of us-- not only in health, but also in
hard labor and low pay.

● Ecc 7:11-12 . .Wisdom is as good as a patrimony, and even better,
for those who behold the sun. For to be in the shelter of wisdom is to
be also in the shelter of money, and the advantage of intelligence is
that wisdom preserves the life of him who possesses it.

Solomon's comment is for those who "behold the sun" as opposed to those
who behold the face of God.

Wisdom isn't just an accumulation of information like a journal or an
encyclopedia. Wisdom is a combination of knowledge and understanding
gained through experience. That's why so many young people are air-heads.
Although they're better educated; they just haven't lived long enough to
really know the score.

But youth isn't necessarily an indicator that somebody hasn't got any sense.
If young people are fortunate enough to have the benefit of a mentor, like
say a savvy parent or a connection in the Big Brother program of their town,
then they have on tap the wisdom of an older person who knows many ins
and outs of life. However, too many young people are vain, conceited, and
arrogant, and tend to have the attitude of a know-it-all. For them, a mentor
serves no purpose because those kinds of young people are of the sort who
want to find out everything for themselves, rather than be instructed.

Wisdom is a far better inheritance for a young person than money and
property. Wisdom will enable a wise youth to get the money and property
later. But no amount of money will enable a dunce to attain wisdom.

"What good is money in the hand of a fool to purchase wisdom, when he has
no mind?" (Prv 17:16)

Good sense is far more important than money. A young co-worker of mine,
who had been out of work for quite a while, took his very first paycheck to a
sound shop and spent the entire thing on a $700 stereo system for his car.
The car was an old clunker and the stereo was actually worth more than the
car. Now there was a boy who seriously needed some counseling.

"There is desirable treasure, and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish
man squanders it." (Prv 21:20)

● Ecc 7:13-14 . . Consider the work of God; for who can make
straight what He has made crooked? In the day of prosperity be
joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: surely God has appointed
the one as well as the other, so that man can find out nothing that
will come after him.

Solomon's references to a God are mostly rhetorical in the book of
Ecclesiastes. When he says "consider the work of God" I suspect he's just
referring to the natural order of things under the sun.

The Scottish poet Robert Burns noticed that life sometimes throws a curve
ball at you in spite of your best precautions. Fate often casts its long shadow
when human beings set about planning their lives.

Burns was out one day plowing in the field and uprooted a mouse's
underground nest who was all set for the oncoming winter. The mouse had
picked a fallow field as the site for its winter retreat thinking it would be safe
and snug; unmolested during the cold. But it didn't (or maybe we should say
it couldn't) know the workings of powers higher than itself-- in this case,
human beings and their farm machinery.

But, mousie, thou art no thy lane
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes o' mice an' men [Oft go awry]
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain for promis'd joy.

Take for example Job (Job 1:1-3). He was all set to enjoy retirement when
of a sudden, without the slightest warning, his world fell apart even though
he was the most righteous man of his day and deserved only the best of luck
rather than bad. But completely unknown to him were higher powers-- God
and the spirit world --in a contest of loyalties; with 'ol Job right smack in the
middle of their contentions. Consequently; he lost everything-- his family,
save for his (un)loving wife, his livestock, all his houses; and his health. In
very little time, Job went from wealthy retiree to disabled pauper.

Job surely knew he didn't deserve the bad luck that came his way. But like
Robert Burns said: The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry. Why?
Because as Solomon indicated; you can neither predict nor fathom the
ambitions of powers and circumstances beyond your control. The spirit world
is a higher power than Man, just as Man is a higher power than mice.
However, as mice cannot control the ways of Man, neither can Man control
the ways of the spirits. Therefore; both men and mice are subject to the
whims of powers beyond their control so that neither one is superior to the
other in that respect.

It's not uncommon to see property owners forced out and/or displaced
because of Eminent Domain; the power of a state, provincial, or national
government to take private property for public and/or economic use. So
then, like the mousie in Burns' poem; your land is never really your land.
Higher powers are at liberty to condemn your property and take it away
from you at will for what they inevitably categorize as the so-called "greater
good".

/

Webers_Home · Nov 8, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:15-18

● Ecc 7:15-16 . . In my own brief span of life, I have seen both these
things: sometimes a good man perishes in spite of his goodness, and
sometimes a wicked one endures in spite of his wickedness. So don't
overdo goodness and don't act the wise man to excess, or you may
be dumfounded.

Some ultra ascetic types are obsessed with self denial-- don't do this, don't
do that, don't go here, don't go there, don't look at this, don't look at that. I
once knew an ascetic type who actually felt guilty simply by walking through
the door of a Blockbuster video store; and was so offended by young
people's music that he made his teen-age son listen to his boom box
outside; even in inclement weather.

Dr. Laura (who's normally pretty level-headed) says that any parent that
would take their child to a mall that has a Victoria's Secret store is a bad
parent. That's asceticism (not to mention bigotry). Well; asceticism can
guarantee no one long life nor does it necessarily make one a better person.
Asceticism can, in fact, result in a superiority complex and, maybe even
neurosis.

It would seem that the best way to enjoy) a long life, as opposed to merely
existing, is by sensible practices in diet and health. But those things, as
sensible as good diet and healthy habits may be, won't guarantee good
health and a long life. I once worked in a family-owned boatyard in San
Diego run by a man and his three brothers, and his two sons. One of the
sons was a model citizen and the picture of health. He was married and had
a little girl, didn't run with a bad crowd, didn't smoke or drink, didn't stay
out late, didn't eat fatty foods or sweets, jogged regularly, attended church
every Sunday and played piano for the choir, and he was young; barely
twenty-six years old.

Well, one day he complained of stomach pains and upon examination there
was found in his abdomen a cancerous growth as big as a child's nerf
football. He underwent surgery, lost a testicle, suffered through chemo
therapy, and last I knew, was doing okay. The cancer was in remission but
they had to keep an eye on him all the time.

In contrast, the vaudeville, TV, and movie star George Burns smoked a cigar
every day of his life until he died at age 100. Go figure.

You know, life is short. If us "good" people deny ourselves every little
pleasure, one day we'll regret it, especially if our own life ends too soon and
those we consider wicked live full, prosperous lives long after we ourselves
are passed away.

● Ecc 7:17-18 . . . On the other hand, don't be too wicked either--
don't be a fool! Why should you die before your time? So try to walk
a middle course-- but those who fear God will succeed either way.

The recommendation in that passage is to do everything in moderation.
That's the key. Excess is what ruins people-- too much tobacco, too much
coffee, too much gambling, too much education, too much ignorance, too
much quarreling, too much sugar and fatty foods, too much alcohol, too
much work, too much play and even too much religion. Too much of
anything is bad; even too much recreation. Everyone knows that, but no one
takes it to heart. Some abstain from everything thinking to make themselves
ultra pious. But piety is not found in excessive self-denial. After all, God
created all things for Man to enjoy, rather than to abstain from. (1Tim 6:17)

/

Webers_Home · Nov 9, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:19-22

● Ecc 7:19 . .Wisdom makes one wise man more powerful than ten
rulers in a city.

Far too many city managers are neither sensible nor apparently capable of
exercising good judgment.

They say that two heads are better than one, but in this case ten are inferior
to one when that one head is the only smart head hereabouts.

The wise man is circumspect; which Webster's defines as careful to consider
all circumstances and possible consequences, i.e. the wise man is smart
enough, and prudent enough, to decide upon a course of action that's best
for everyone rather than only for himself and/or special interests; and there
are times when the wise man is so clever with words that he can persuade
ten block heads to do the right thing.

● Ecc 7:20 . . For there is not one good man on earth who does what
is best and doesn't err.

Solomon was a keen observer of people in power. He knew they couldn't be
trusted. Too many people look to government to improve their quality of life
and to remedy society's ills. That is a bad habit because human government
is made up of human beings, and human beings cannot be trusted to always
do what is right because they have prejudices and biases, private ambitions,
axes to grind, hands to shake, boots to lick, favors to repay, promises to
keep, opportunities to grab, and friends to curry. They also have mental,
physical, and emotional problems that effect their judgment and sometimes
put them in a bad mood. Sometimes they drink, which loosens them up and
often disposes them to do things that are not in the public's best interests.

Only the foolish believe their government to be as pure and honest as the
angels of God. They aren't. They weren't in Solomon's day; and they sure
aren't now. The voters who put their hero in office, believing him to be a
Messiah capable of healing their country's ills and giving people hope, are
often very disappointed to discover he's just another cheap politician with a
charismatic persona and feet of clay rather than gold.

● Ecc 7:21-22 . . Finally, don't pay attention to everything that is
said, so that you may not hear your slave reviling you; for well you
remember the many times that you yourself have reviled others.

There are some instances in life where ignorance is truly bliss; and this is
one of them. Some people just have to know everything others are saying
about them. That's not a good idea. People are only human, and humans
love to gossip and say negative things about others. If you are prone to talk
about others, then it is a sure bet others are prone to talk about you,
because they are just as human as you. Solomon advised against being
overly wise and overly foolish. I would add: don't be nosey and don't be
overly sensitive.

The golden rule applies here as well as any other place: Do unto others as
you would like it done unto you. So don't crowd people or monitor their
conversations like Big Brother or something. They need to be free to talk
about you; just as you need freedom to talk about them.

But beware of vicious gossips and rumor mongers. Some of us talk about
others for fun and don't really mean anything by it; but some are out to stir
up trouble and deliberately assassinate reputations. They come up to you
and say: "You should hear what so and so is saying about you". People like
that are a menace to society.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 10, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:23-27

● Ecc 7:23-25 . . All this I tested with wisdom. I thought I could
fathom it, but it eludes me. [The secret of] what happens is elusive
and deep, deep down; who can discover it? I put my mind to
studying, exploring, and seeking wisdom and the reason of things,
and to studying wickedness, stupidity, madness, and folly.

Well; Solomon is not the first one to grapple with the mystery of life and fail
to make any sense out of it. Many famous philosophers of the past came up
empty handed too. The happiest people seem to be those who don't think
very deep. They just live out their lives like a nutria or a dragonfly without
the slightest concern about their origin nor the way things are, nor of the
future. Maybe they have the right idea after all.

● Ecc 7:26-27 . . Now, I find woman more bitter than death; she is
all traps, her hands are fetters and her heart is snares. He who is
pleasing to God escapes her, and he who is displeasing is caught by
her. See, this is what I found, said Koheleth, item by item in my
search for the reason of things.

Most men "under the sun" would agree with Solomon that women are a
necessary evil; and mostly evil. "You can't live with 'em, and you can't live
without 'em." How many times I've heard unhappy men sound that lament.

According to Gen 2:18-24, God created Woman so the male would have a
supportive friend; a certain somebody who understands him and relates to
him; someone he could lean on. Adam discovered that animals can't relate
to Man, unless of course a particular man happens to be an animal himself.
One of my all-time favorite bumper stickers goes like this:

MEN ARE NOT PIGS!
Pigs Are Gentle, Sensitive, Intelligent Animals.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 11, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 7:28-29

● Ecc 7:28a . . As for what I sought further but did not find,

Apparently, the thing that Solomon sought further (in addition to the
investigations he has made up to this point) was a human being free from
the foibles of human nature. Is it actually possible that the world cannot
produce even one single human being who is 100% rational and sensible?

● Ecc 7:28b . . I found only one human being in a thousand, and the
one I found among so many was never a woman.

(chuckle) If left up to Solomon, America would never have a female
President.

His comment doesn't mean Solomon did actually find a truly 100% percent
sensible person; only that he found one that was sensible in his own
opinion; which is a subjective evaluation. That kind of determination has no
value in reality because it's a judgment based upon one's own personal (and
possibly biased) point of view. Although it appears in that verse that
Solomon is being terribly sexist about the intelligence of women; he isn't
actually suggesting there are no sensible women at all, but that in his own
personal experience, sensible women were even more rare than sensible
men.

In the movie As Good As It Gets one of the main characters (a writer played
by Jack Nicholson) was asked by an admirer how he was able to understand
women so well-- knowing what goes on in their hearts and minds and
putting it down on paper. He answered; "I start with a man, and take away
reason and accountability." (chuckle) Nicholson's character, by the way, was
a very self-centered, obsessive-compulsive individual who harbored some
strong anti-social opinions about women and LGBT.

● Ecc 7:29a . . But, see, this I did find: God made men plain,

Plain can mean simple or uncomplicated; which seems to be exactly what
he's saying. God made Man an uncomplicated being; but he didn't stay that
way.

● Ecc 7:29b . . but they have engaged in too much reasoning.

The word for "reasoning" is from chishshabown (khish-shaw-bone') which
means: a mental or mechanical contrivance, i.e. a warlike machine or a
mental machination, e.g. sophistry and rationale.

Some people do tend to complicate everything by over-thinking; thus they
engage themselves in a sort of mental bull session that never gets to the
bottom of anything. They can't just take things as they are, and let things
happen. No, they have to make everything difficult.

Then there are those who can't permit themselves to accept anything they
don't understand. So their minds remain forever vacillating in a limbo
between two opinions. They're indecisive, and oftentimes insecure, because
for minds like that, there are no absolutes and no way of knowing what's for
real and what's not for real. So they're forever stalling with yeah-but,
maybe, possibly, could be, and what-if.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 13, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 8:1-5

● Ecc 8:1-2a . .Who is like the wise man, and who knows the
meaning of the adage: A man's wisdom lights up his face, so that his
deep discontent is dissembled? -- I do!

There's another way to say some of that.

"Crafty people are good at hiding their true feelings." (especially politicians;
it's very difficult sometimes to get a straight answer out of them)

Every day I'm asked by somebody; "Hey, how's it going?" or "How are you
today?" Of course I always smile and say; "Great" or "Okay" but inside I
might not be having a good day at all. People don't want to hear about your
problems. Sometimes just for fun I'll answer those kinds of greetings with;
"I'm blue, depressed, overweight, in ill health, despondent, and wish I was
never born." Or I'll say; "I feel pretty good; for a guy my age." (chuckle)
Those always gets a reaction.

● Ecc 8:2b . . Obey the king's command, I say, because you took an
oath before God.

An oath taken "before God" may not seem valid to an atheist, but when the
wording is formal; as in legally binding oaths required for various
government positions, then the oath becomes enough rope to hang yourself
with if you go back on it.

● Ecc 8:3-5a . . Leave his presence; do not tarry in a dangerous
situation, for he can do anything he pleases; inasmuch as a king’s
command is authoritative, and none can say to him: What are you
doing? One who obeys orders will not suffer from the dangerous
situation.

In Solomon's day, it wasn't wise to provoke a king, nor to interfere with his
business, nor to block his way when he came down your street. Kings were
despotic monarchs: they answered to no one, and could have people
executed at whim all without the bother of due process. This is still true
today in a number of nations. Every year, Parade magazine publishes a list
of the world's ten worst dictators. Those men practice a degree of tyranny
that you definitely do not want to oppose if perchance you're one of their
citizens.

● Ecc 8:5b . . A wise man, however, will bear in mind that there is a
time of doom.

No matter who you are, or how high your station in life, no one is above the
law. Those who become just a little too familiar with kings, dictators, and
presidents, sometimes think their association with those high-ranking
leaders gives them some sort of immunity. That's when they get careless,
goof up and cross over a line; and the ruler, who in the past was their
friend, then becomes their dread enemy.

/

Webers_Home · Nov 14, 2017

-
Ecclesiastes 8:6-8

● Ecc 8:6-7 . . for there is a time and a judgment for everything. Yet
it is a great affliction for man that he is ignorant of what is to come;
for who will make known to him how it will be?

We have to expect to get caught up sometimes in circumstances beyond our
control. Often those circumstances are unforeseen and blindside us— they
catch us off guard, and unprepared to cope with them.

Sometimes in the performance of duty, or in compliance with the law,
(serving King, country, or employer) people have to do unpleasant things in
order to avoid unpleasant consequences; e.g. young men in the Marines
may be called upon to go kill non combatants; or construction workers may
have to destroy wildlife habitat for a suburb; or friends may be subpoenaed
to testify in court against their buddies.

Sure they could refuse to kill non combatants, and they could refuse to drive
a bulldozer through wetlands, prairies, and pastures, and they could refuse
to testify. But there is a price to pay for anarchy and insubordination. The
young Marine could be court-martialed for dereliction of duty, the
construction guy would most likely be fired, and the friend who refuses to
help the law convict their buddy could be hauled into court for the crime of
misprision. Those kinds of circumstances are cold, hard facts of life; they are
a normal part of the human experience. They come at us like juggernauts;
big-foot trucks that crush us under their tires; permanently altering our
personalities and the way we feel about ourselves.

● Ecc 8:8 . . No man has authority over the life-breath— to hold back
the life-breath; there is no authority over the day of death. There is
no mustering out from that war; wickedness is powerless to save its
owner.

The ultimate life-changing event— DEATH —is the supreme circumstance,
the undefeated champ, rated as among those beyond our control. No king
can stop it from laying claim to his life; as if it were one of his subjects. No
draft dodger can run away to Canada to avoid Death's induction. Death's
time cannot be delayed by failure to appear in court. One day; in spite of
anyone's strong objections to the contrary, our number will come up— at
that time no matter who we are, or who we were, we will die; and it matters
little how, or when, or where we depart. The world was getting along just
fine without us before we arrived, and it will do just fine without us after
we're gone. A supervisor once told me; "Cliff, don't ever think you can't be
replaced."

/

Solomon's Pessimism

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Similar threads