Ecclesiastes 2
Study Guide Questions for Ch. 3-4
If you are looking for the beginning of the study for Ecclesiastes then you can go HERE for a brief introduction. At the bottom of the introduction you will find the links to each section of the study guide as it becomes available. If you would like to see the growing list of book studies available for free on this site you can go HERE. Enjoy!
Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Despotism, Community
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
What did the Preacher say God has put into man’s heart?
What is the case about those things which “God does?”
According to the Preacher, why is God testing “the children of man?”
What did the Preacher wonder about concerning “the spirit of man” and “the spirit of the beast?”
Whom did the Preacher call “more fortunate?”
According to the Preacher, where does “all toil and all skill in work come from?”
Why are “two better than one” according to the Preacher?
It is better to be “poor and wise” than to be like, what?
Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)
When the Preacher wrote, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven,” is he using hyperbole or is he being literal with his use of the word “everything?” What is the heart of what he means to say by this in light of all the examples he gives?
What does it mean to say that God “has made everything beautiful in its own time?”
Why should God “put eternity into man’s heart?” What does this mean, and why would he do it?
The Preacher wrote, “That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.” What did he mean by this? Specifically, and especially, what did he mean by God seeking after what has been driven away?
What is meant by the phrase “the children of man” which is so oft repeated in Ecclesiastes?
The Preacher wrote, “I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts.” In what manner are men and beasts the same?
Why did the Preacher say “the dead who are already dead” are “more fortunate than the living who are still alive. But better than both is he who has not yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun?” Is it really better to simply never come into being? Is this universally true, or does the context suggest that this is true for only some?
Why might the Preacher say that “all toil and skill in work come from a man’s envy of his neighbor?” How does envy produce toil and skillful work? Is this the only source of hard work and skillful labor?
The Preacher wrote, “one person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” What does this criticism of the behavior of “one person who has no other” imply about what is necessary in order for our work under the sun to be meaningful?
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)
The Preacher wrote, “Whatever God does endures forever, nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him.” What are some examples of things God has done which are enduring and which cause people to come to fear him? How do our works, the things we do, stand in relation to the works of God? Does the fact that the works of men lack the endurance of the things of God mean that they are completely worthless or vain? Is there any way in which our works, such as they are, can be redeemed and made meaningful? If so, how? If not, why not?
The Preacher notes that men and beasts “have the same breath” and then discourses on the destination of the spirit after the death of the body of a man or beast. Many people today, Christians included, deny that animals have souls/spirits. Why do you think it is common to deny this today despite the fact that the Bible as well as the majority of ancient and medieval philosophers and theologians affirmed that animals had souls? What do you think about the matter personally? Do animals have souls? If they do, are they the same or different from the souls in men? Try to defend your position with the use of good reason and argumentation.
The preacher discoursed upon the value of not being alone, “Two are better than one….a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Define the concept of “fellowship.” What does it mean to have (or be in) fellowship with others? What advantages are there to going through life with a companion, friends, and/or family? What kind of things are distinctly more difficult to do (or experience) when one is alone? How might we relate all of this, in particular, to the Christian life?
Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)
The Preacher said, “whatever God does endures forever.” Making use of a Bible concordance, search the word “endure” and note what kinds of things the Bible says will and will not endure forever. What do you notice about the difference between those things which will last forever versus those that will not?
Read Genesis 1:30 and 2:7, Job 33:4, and Revelation 11:4-11. What seems to be the relationship between breath and spirit or soul in Scripture? Who alone has control over the spirits/breath of man and beast?
How does 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 correspond with what the Preacher said about the good of not being alone?