Ecclesiastes 4
Study Guide Questions for Ch. 7-8
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Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Temperance, Memento Mori, License, Justice, Joy
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
List at least four things which the Preacher says are better than something else.
What should we “say not” according to the Preacher?
What are we told to “Consider the work of God” in regard to?
What should we do “in the day of prosperity?”
What two things did the Preacher warn against being “overly” this or that?
According to the Preacher, “God made man upright,” but what did man do?
What two reasons did the Preacher give as to why a person should “keep the king’s command?”
What did the Preacher observe at the burial of the wicked?
Whom did the Preacher say it would “be well with” and “not be well with” in the end?
What did the Preacher “commend” to his reader?
What cannot even “a wise man” find out?
Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)
What did the Preacher mean by saying “the day of death” is better than “the day of birth” and “sorrow is better than laughter?” Why would he say these things are better when they are almost universally considered to be worse?
What did the Preacher mean by saying “Wisdom is good with an inheritance?”
What does it mean to say that we ought not to be “overly righteous” or “overly wicked?” Can one be too righteous? Is it tolerable to be just a little wicked? What is the Preacher getting at?
What does the Preacher mean when he talks about seeking out “wisdom and the scheme of things” (particularly as it relates to the “scheme” part)?
When the Preacher talks about “the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters,” what is he referring to?
By saying “God made man upright” what does this infer about the problem of sin and wickedness in the world?
Why would “a man’s wisdom” make “his face shine?” What did the Preacher mean?
What seems to be the relationship of “the king” to God according to the Preacher?
Why does the Preacher put so much emphasis on the point that no one can know “what is to be” in the future (a repeated theme in this book)? He seems to think it a great evil that “even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out,” but why is this a problem as far as he is concerned?
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)
The Preacher urges us to not ask, “Why were the former days better than these?” Why is it that people tend to romanticize the past or assume that things in the past were better than they are today? In what ways do people tend to think the past was better than now (e.g. morally superior, safer, more prosperous, etc.) Do you think that history is either on a trajectory of getting better or getting worse? Why or why not?
The Preacher laments the fact that he has seen wicked men buried who “used to go in and out of the holy place and were praised in the city where they had done such things.” What kind of things tend to receive praise from the general populace? What are some qualities which are truly praiseworthy but often receive less praise? Why do wicked people often receive praise even though they fail to exhibit those qualities and behaviors which are most worthy of being praised? To what degree ought we to desire the praise of others and make it an object of pursuit? Explain your thoughts carefully.
Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)
The Preacher lamented, “Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.” Reflect upon 1 John 1:5-10 and Hebrews 4:14-16. How might the incarnation of Jesus Christ have affected the Preacher’s thinking about what it means to be righteous and who can be truly righteous?
The Preacher said, “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil.” Read Romans 13:1-7. What is the role of the civil authorities in a nation? Why might speedy justice be critically important to governing a nation well?
The Preacher said, “Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. But it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow, because he does not fear before God.” Read Luke 12:1-21. How does the teaching of Jesus here affirm what the Preacher is here proclaiming?