Truly the light is sweet, and it is a pleasant thing for the eyes to see the sun.
Parallel Translations
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Truly the light is sweet, and it is a pleasant thing for the eyes to see the sun.
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Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun:
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And the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.
Cross-references (9)
Passages linked to Ecclesiastes 11:7 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Ecclesiastes 7:11 Wisdom is as good as an inheritance. Yes, it is more excellent for those who see the sun.
- Matthew 5:45 that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.
- Psalms 84:11 For Yahweh God is a sun and a shield. Yahweh will give grace and glory. He withholds no good thing from those who walk blamelessly.
- Proverbs 15:30 The light of the eyes rejoices the heart. Good news gives health to the bones.
- Job 33:30 to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be enlightened with the light of the living.
- Proverbs 29:13 The poor man and the oppressor have this in common: Yahweh gives sight to the eyes of both.
- Job 33:28 He has redeemed my soul from going into the pit. My life will see the light.’
- Psalms 56:13 For you have delivered my soul from death, and prevented my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living.
- Ecclesiastes 6:5 Moreover it has not seen the sun nor known it. This has rest rather than the other.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Ecc 11:7 Truly the light [is] sweet, and a…
Ecc 11:7 Truly the light [is] sweet, and a pleasant [thing it is] for the eyes to behold the sun:
Ver. 7. Truly the light is sweet.] The light of life, of a lightsome life especially. Any life is sweet; which made the Gibeonites make such a hard shift to live, though it were but to be hewers of wood and drawers of water. "I pray thee let me live," live upon any terms, said Benhadad, in his submissive message to that merciful nonsuch. {1Ki 20:32} "If I have found favour in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition," said that καλη και σοφη, that paragon of her time, Queen Esther. {Ecc 7:3} {a} Ebedmelech is promised "his life for a prey"; {Jer 39:18} and so is Barak, as a sufficient reward of that good service he had done in reading the roll, for the which he expected some great preferment. {Jer 45:5; Jer 36:1-2} The prophet chides him, and tells him he might be glad of his life in those dear years of time, when the arrows of death had so oft come whisking by him, and he had so oft straddled over the grave, as it were, and yet was not fallen into it. To maintain our radical humour, that feeds the lamp of life, is as great a miracle, saith one, as the oil in the widow’s cruse, that failed her not. To deliver us from so many deaths and dangers as we are daily and hourly subject unto, is a mercy that calls for continual praises to the Preserver of mankind. But more, when men do not only live, but live prosperously, as Nabal did. {1Sa 25:6} "Thus," said David to his messengers, "shall ye say to him that liveth," viz., in prosperity; which such a man as Nabal reckons the only life. The Irish use to ask what such a man meant to die? And some good interpreters are of the opinion, that the Preacher in this verse brings in the carnal churl objecting, or replying for himself against the former persuasions to acts of charity. Ah! saith he; but, for all that, to live at the full; to have a goodly inheritance in a fertile soil, in a wholesome air, near to the river, not far from the town; to be free from all troubles and cares that poverty bringeth; to live in a constant sunshine of prosperity, abundance, honour, and delight; to have all that heart can wish or need require - what a heavenly life is this! what a lovely and desirable condition! &c. "What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days that he may see good?" saith David. {Psa 34:12} I do, saith one; and I, saith another; and I, a third, &c., as St Augustine frames the answer. It is that which all worldlings covet, and hold it no policy to part with what they have to the poor for uncertainties in another world. In answer to whom, and for a cooler to their inordinate love of life, the Preacher subjoins -
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{a} Sic de Aspasia Milesia, Cyri concubina. - Aelian, Var. Hist. lib. xii. cap. 1.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain It cannot be denied that this present life (which…
It cannot be denied that this present life (which is called light, Job 3:20; 33:30; Psa 56:13, and which is expressed synecdochically, by seeing the sun, Ecc 6:5; 7:11) is in itself a great blessing, and very desirable; but it is not perpetual nor satisfactory; which is here implied and expressed hi the next verse.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain Here is an admonition both to old people and…
Here is an admonition both to old people and to young people, to think of dying, and get ready for it. Having by many excellent precepts taught us how to live well, the preacher comes now, towards the close of his discourse, to teach us how to die well and to put us in mind of our latter end.
I. He applies himself to the aged, writes to them as fathers, to awaken them to think of death, Ecc 11:7, Ecc 11:8. Here is, 1. A rational concession of the sweetness of life, which old people find by experience: Truly the light is sweet; the light of the sun is so; it is a pleasant thing for the eyes to behold it. Light was the first thing made in the formation of the great world, as the eye is one of the first in the formation of the body, the little world. It is pleasant to see the light; the heathen were so charmed with the pleasure of it that they worshipped the sun. It is pleasant by it to see other things, the many agreeable prospects this world gives us. The light of life is so. Light is put for life, Job 3:20, Job 3:23. It cannot be denied that life is sweet. It is sweet to bad men because they have their portion in this life; it is sweet to good men because they have this life as the time of their preparation for a better life; it is sweet to all men; nature says it is so, and there is no disputing against it; nor can death be desired for its own sake, but dreaded, unless as a period to present evils or a passage to future good. Life is sweet, and therefore we have need to double a guard upon ourselves, lest we love it too well. 2. A caution to think of death, even in the midst of life, and of life when it is most sweet and we are most apt to forget death: If a man live many years, yet let him remember the days of darkness are coming. Here is, (1.) A summer's day supposed to be enjoyed - that life may continue long, even many years, and that, by the goodness of God, it may be made comfortable and a man may rejoice in them all. There are those that live many years in this world, escape many dangers, receive many mercies, and therefore are secure that they shall want no good, and that no evil shall befal them, that the pitcher which has come so often from the well safe and sound shall never come home broken. But who are those that live many years and rejoice in them all? Alas! none; we have but hours of joy for months of sorrow. However, some rejoice in their years, their many years, more than others; if these two things meet, a prosperous state and a cheerful spirit, these two indeed may do much towards enabling a man to rejoice in them all, and yet the most prosperous state has its alloys and the most cheerful spirit has its damps; jovial sinners have their melancholy qualms, and cheerful saints have their gracious sorrows; so that it is but a supposition, not a case in fact, that a man should live many years and rejoice in them all. But, (2.) Here is a winter's night proposed to be expected after this summer's day: Yet let this hearty old man remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. Note, [1.] There are days of darkness coming, the days of our lying in the grave; there the body will lie in the dark; there the eyes see not, the sun shines not. The darkness of death is opposed to the light of life; the grave is a land of darkness, Job 10:21. [2.] Those days of darkness will be many; the days of our lying under ground will be more than the days of our living above ground. They are many, but they are not infinite; many as they are, they will be numbered and finished when the heavens are no more, Job 14:12. As the longest day will have its night, so the longest night will have its morning. [3.] It is good for us often to remember those days of darkness, that we may not be lifted up with pride, nor lulled asleep in carnal security, nor even transported into indecencies by vain mirth. [4.] Notwithstanding the long continuance of life, and the many comforts of it, yet we must remember the days of darkness, because those will certainly come, and they will come with much the less terror if we have thought of them before.
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II. He applies himself to the young, and writes to them as children, to awaken them to think of death (Ecc 11:9, Ecc 11:10); here we have,
1. An ironical concession to the vanities and pleasures of youth: Rejoice, O young man! in thy youth. Some make this to be the counsel which the atheist and the epicure give to the young man, the poisonous suggestions against which Solomon, in the close of the verse, prescribes a powerful antidote. But it is more emphatic if we take it, as it is commonly understood, by way of irony, like that of Elijah to the priests of Baal (Cry aloud, for he is a god), or of Micaiah to Ahab (Go to Ramoth-Gilead, and prosper), or of Christ to his disciples, Sleep on now. "Rejoice, O young man! in thy youth, live a merry life, follow thy sports, and take thy pleasures; let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, cheer thee with its fancies and foolish hopes; entertain thyself with thy pleasing dreams; walk in the ways of thy heart; do whatever thou hast a mind to do, and stick at nothing that may gratify the sensual appetite. Quic-quid libet, licet - Make thy will thy law. Walk in the ways of thy heart, and let thy heart walk after thy eyes, a rambling heart after a roving eye; what is pleasing in thy own eyes do it, whether it be pleasing in the eyes of God or no." Solomon speaks thus ironically to the young man to intimate, (1.) That this is that which he would do, and which he would fain have leave to do, in which he places his happiness and on which he sets his heart. (2.) That he wishes all about him would give him this counsel, would prophesy to him such smooth things as these, and cannot brook any advice to the contrary, but reckons those his enemies that bid him be sober and serious. (3.) To expose his folly, and the great absurdity of a voluptuous vicious course of life. The very description of it, if men would see things entirely, and judge of them impartially, is enough to show how contrary to reason those act that live such a life. The very opening of the cause is enough to determine it, without any argument. (4.) To show that if men give themselves to such a course of life as this it is just with God to give them up to it, to abandon them to their own heart's lusts, that they may walk in their own counsels, Hos 4:7.
2. A powerful check given to these vanities and pleasures: "Know thou that for all these things God shall bring thee into judgment, and duly consider that, and then live such a luxurious life if thou canst, if thou darest." This is a kolastērion - a corrective to the foregoing concession, and plucks in the reins he had laid on the neck of the young man's lust. "Know then, for a certainty, that, if thou dost take such a liberty as this, it will be thy everlasting ruin; thou hast to do with a God who will not let it go unpunished." Note, (1.) There is a judgment to come. (2.) We must every one of us be brought into judgment, however we may now put far from us that evil day. (3.) We shall be reckoned with for all our carnal mirth and sensual pleasures in that day. (4.) It is good for all, but especially for young people, to know and consider this, that they may not, by the indulgence of their youthful lusts, treasure up unto themselves wrath against that day of wrath, the wrath of the Lamb.
3. A word of caution and exhortation inferred from all this, Ecc 11:10. Let young people look to themselves and manage well both their souls and their bodies, their heart and their flesh. (1.) Let them take care that their minds be not lifted up with pride, nor disturbed with anger, or any sinful passion: Remove sorrow, or anger, from thy heart; the word signifies any disorder or perturbation of the mind. Young people are apt to be impatient of check and control, to vex and fret at any thing that is humbling and mortifying to them, and their proud hearts rise against every thing that crosses and contradicts them. They are so set upon that which is pleasing to sense that they cannot bear any thing that is displeasing, but it goes with sorrow to their heart. Their pride often disquiets them, and makes them uneasy. "Put that away, and the love of the world, and lay thy expectations low from the creature, and then disappointments will not be occasions of sorrow and anger to thee." Some by sorrow here understand that carnal mirth described Ecc 11:9, the end of which will be bitterness and sorrow. Let them keep at a distance from every thing which will be sorrow in the reflection. (2.) Let them take care that their bodies be not defiled by intemperance, uncleanness, or any fleshly lusts: "Put away evil from the flesh, and let not the members of thy body be instruments of unrighteousness. The evil of sin will be the evil of punishment, and that which thou art fond of, as good for the flesh, because it gratifies the appetites of it, will prove evil, and hurtful to it, and therefore put it far from thee, the further the better."
III. The preacher, to enforce his admonition both to old and young, urges, as an effectual argument, that which is the great argument of his discourse, the vanity of all present things, their uncertainty and insufficiency. 1. He reminds old people of this (Ecc 11:8): All that comes is vanity; yea, though a man live many years and rejoice in them all, All that has come already, and all that is yet to come, how much soever men promise themselves from the concluding scenes, it is all vanity. What will be will do no more to make men happy than what has been. All that come into the world are vanity; they are altogether so, at their best estate. 2. He reminds young people of this: Childhood and youth are vanity. The dispositions and actions of childhood and youth have in them a great deal of impertinence and iniquity, sinful vanity, which young people have need to watch against and get cured. The pleasures and advantages of childhood and youth have in them no certainty, satisfaction, nor continuance. They are passing away; these flowers will soon wither, and these blossoms fall; let them therefore be knit into good fruit, which will continue and abound to a good account.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Truly the light is sweet,.... Here begins a new…
Truly the light is sweet,.... Here begins a new subject, as most think; and some here begin the twelfth and last chapter, and not improperly. This is true of natural light, which is exceeding pleasant, useful, and beneficial; by which men discern objects, behold the things of nature with pleasure, walk in the way without stumbling, and do the work and business of life: and also of civil light or prosperity; for, as afflictions are expressed by darkness, and adversity by night; so the comforts and good things of life by light and day, which are very desirable and delectable: and here "life" itself may be meant, for light is sometimes put for life, which is the light of the living; and what sweeter and more desirable than that, especially a life attended with prosperity and peace? see Job 33:28. The Targum and Jarchi interpret it of the light of the law; and which is indeed a light, and so is the whole word of God, Pro 6:23, Pe2 1:19; but may be better applied unto the Gospel, which is a great and glorious light, Isa 9:2; and a means of enlightening dark minds; not only of showing men their sinfulness, as the law does; but the insufficiency of their righteousness, of all their own goodness and good works to justify; it reveals Christ, and the glories of his person; it sets him forth evidently, as crucified and slain, for the worst of sinners; it makes manifest his fulness, ability, and willingness, as a Saviour; righteousness, peace, pardon, and salvation by him; it makes known things not to be discerned by the light of nature, even things wonderful and marvellous, as well as what is the way a man should walk in: and this light is sweet and pleasant, not to a blind and carnal man, who despises it, and reckons it foolishness, but to those who are enlightened by the Spirit of God; and to these it is very delightful, even to all their senses; it is sweet to their taste, a joyful sound to their ears, and beautiful to their sight are the feet of them that bring its good tidings. The light of grace, which appears in first conversion, and comes from God suddenly, which at first is small, but increases, is exceeding pleasant, strikes the soul with delight and wonder; it is marvellous light, Pe1 2:9; and so is the light of joy and gladness to believers, when it arises to them after a time of darkness, or the light of God's countenance, Psa 4:6; and such will be the light of the latter day glory, and more especially the light of the heavenly state;
and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun; the natural sun, shining at noon day, which is a luminous and glorious body, communicating light and heat to all the world: which is so glorious and so pleasant to behold, that Anaxagoras, the philosopher, being asked what he was born for, answered,
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"to see the heavens, the sun, and the moon (t);''
and Eudoxus, another philosopher, said,
"he could be content to perish, could he get so near to the sun as to learn the nature of it (u).''
To "see the sun", in the language of this book, is to live in this world, and to enjoy the light of the sun, and the comforts of life; see Ecc 7:11; and now a life, attended with outward prosperity and inward peace, that is spent in doing and enjoying good, is a very desirable and delightful one; though such a man should not think of living always, but of death, and the days of darkness, as in Ecc 11:8. This may he applied to Christ, the sun of righteousness, Psa 84:11; the fountain of all spiritual light and heat; the brightness of his Father's glory; and who is superior to angels and men; and is to be beheld by faith, and in his own light, as the sun is; and whom to look upon with an eye of faith is exceeding pleasant and delightful, and fills with joy unspeakable and full of glory, Pe1 1:8.
(t) Laert. in Vita Anaxag. p. 95. Lactant. de Fals. Sap. l. 3. c. 9. (u) Plutarch, vol. 2. p. 1094.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Truly - It cannot be denied that life is…
Truly - It cannot be denied that life is in itself desirable.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 7. Truly the light is sweet] Life is…
Verse 7. Truly the light is sweet] Life is dear to every man as the light of the sun is to the eye. A man would give all that he has for his life, and it is particularly dear to him when he is in ease and affluence: but let each remember that,
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Ecc 11:7-8. Truly, the light is sweet — It…
Ecc 11:7-8. Truly, the light is sweet — It cannot be denied, that this present life is in itself a great blessing, and desirable; but it is not perpetual nor satisfactory: for, if a man live many years — Which is a privilege granted but to few persons comparatively; and rejoice in them all — Enjoy all the comforts, and escape all the imbitterness of human life all his days; yet let him remember the days of darkness — Of death, or the state of the dead, often expressed by darkness, as Job 10:21; Psa 88:12; and here opposed to the foregoing light: for they shall be many — Far more than the days of this short life, especially if, to the days of the body’s lying in the dark grave, be added that greater and utter darkness reserved for impenitent sinners, which is everlasting. And this is added, for the caution of mankind, that they may not rejoice excessively in, nor content themselves with, the happiness of the present life, but may seek a life more durable and satisfactory. All that cometh is vanity — All things which befall any man belonging only to this life, whether they be comfortable or vexatious, are but vain and inconsiderable, because they are short and transitory.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain The preceding exhortation to a life of labor in…
The preceding exhortation to a life of labor in the sight of God is now addressed especially to the active and the young; and is enforced by another consideration, namely, the transitory character of all that sustains youth.
Ecc 11:7
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The light ... the sun - Gifts of God which cheer man’s toil, but which he almost ceases to appreciate in his old age.
Ecc 11:8
Days of darkness - The time of old age, and perhaps any time of sorrow or misfortune. Compare Ecc 12:2.
All that cometh - i. e., “The future,” which must not be reckoned on by the active man, as if his present state of healthy energy were to continue.
Ecc 11:9
Rejoice ... cheer ... walk - The imperative mood is used to encourage one who possesses certain gifts from God to remember that they come from God and are to be used in accordance with His will.
In the ways ... - The words are probably used in an innocent sense Ecc 2:10; Pro 16:9.
Judgment - This includes a judgment beyond the grave; though the writer’s view of it was dim and indefinite if compared with Christian’s.
Ecc 11:10
The sense appears to be, “Let the timely recollection of God’s judgment, and of the fleeting character of youth, so influence your conduct that you will refrain from acts which entail future remorse and pain.”
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain light--of life (Ecc 7:11; Psa 49:19). Life is enjoyable,…
light--of life (Ecc 7:11; Psa 49:19). Life is enjoyable, especially to the godly.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 7. Light is sweet — A cheerful and happy…
7. Light is sweet — A cheerful and happy temper is the unfailing reward of a life given to doing good. This verse should not be separated from the preceding. To none is the light of life so sweet as to those who, being delivered from selfishness and misanthropy, spend life in diligence and benevolence. Many beautiful instances will occur to every mind of men skilful and unremitting in business, yet liberal and kind in using their fortunes; and of those, too, who, having neither silver nor gold, have given such as they had to bless their race. Such are always cheerful, joyous people.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 7. Truly the light is sweet] Better, And the…
7. Truly the light is sweet] Better, And the light is sweet. The conjunction is simply the usual copulative particle. The word for “sweet” is that used of honey in Jdg_14:14; of the honeycomb in Pro_24:13. The pessimism of the thinker is passing away under the sunshine of the wiser plan of life in which he al last finds guidance. Life may after all, rightly ordered, be pleasant and comely, not without the “sweetness and light” on which the modern preachers of wisdom lay stress. A remarkable parallel to the form of the maxim (quoted by Ginsburg) is found in Euripides:
Μή μʼ ἀπολέσης ἄωρον• ἡδὺ γὰρ τὸ φῶς
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λεύσσειν, τὰ δʼ ὑπὸ γῆν μὴ μʼ ἰδεῖν ἀναγκάσῃς.
“Destroy me not before my youth is ripe:
For pleasant sure it is to see the sun;
Compel me not to see what lies below.”
Iphig. in Aul. 1219.
So Theognis contemplating death:
κείσομαι ὥστε λίθος
ἄφθογγος, λείψω δʼ ἐρατὸν φάος ἠελίοιο.
“Then shall I lie, as voiceless as a stone,
And see no more the loved light of the sun.”
The use of the phrase “seeing the sun” for living, may be noted as essentially Hellenic in its tone. So we have again “seeing the light of the sun” for “living” in Eurip. Hippol. 4.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 7-9. Section 17. The second remedy for the…
Vers. 7-9. Section 17. The second remedy for the perplexities of the present life is cheerfulness the spirit that enjoys the present, with a chastened regard to the future.
Truly the light is sweet. The verse begins with the copula ray, "and," which here notes merely transition, as Ecc_3:16 Ecc_12:9. Do not be perplexed, or despondent, or paralyzed in your work, by the difficulties that meet you. Confront them with a cheerful mien, and enjoy life while it lasts. "The light" may be taken literally, or as equivalent to life. The very light, with all that it unfolds, all that it beautifies, all that it quickens, is a pleasure; life is worth living, and affords high and merited enjoyment to the faithful worker. The commentators quote parallels Thus Euripides, "Iph. in Aul.," 1219
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Mh m ajpoleshv awron hJdu gar tossein ta d ujpo m ijdein ajnagkashv
O slay me not untimely; for to see The light is sweet; and force me not to view The secrets of the nether world.
Plumptre cites Theognis
Keisomai wste liqov Afqoggov leiyw d ejratoov hjelioio.
Then shall I lie, as voiceless as a stone, And see no more the loved light of the sun.
A pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun. To behold the sun is to enjoy life; for light, which is life, is derived from the sun. Virgil speaks of "coeli spirabile lumen" ("AEn.," 3:600). Thus Homer, "Od.," 20:207
Ei pou epi zwei kaiov hjelioio Eij d hdh teqnhke kaidao domoisin.
If still he live and see the sun"s fair light, Or dead, be dwelling in the realms of Hades.
Vers. 7, 8.
Carpe diem: memento mori; or, here and hereafter contrasted.
I HERE, A SCENE OF LIGHT; HEREAFTER, A PLACE OF DARKNESS. Under the Old Testament the abode of departed spirits was usually conceived of as a realm from which the light of day was excluded, or only dimly admitted. (Job_10:21, Job_10:22)
II HERE, A GARDEN OF DELIGHT; HEREAFTER, A WILDERNESS OF VANITY. Life beneath the sun, even to the most miserable, has pleasures which are wanting to the bodiless inhabitants of the underworld. (Ecc_9:10)
III HERE, A PERIOD OF FEW DAYS; HEREAFTER, A TERM OF MANY. At the longest, man"s duration upon earth is short (Job_14:1; Psa_39:5) in comparison, his continuance in the narrow house, or in the unseen world, will he long.
LESSONS.
1. Enjoy life heartily, as a good gift of God.
2. Use life wisely, in preparation for the world to come.
Vers. 7, 8.
Light and darkness.
The alternation of day and night is not only contributive to human convenience, it is symbolical of human experience.
I THERE IS APPOINTED FOR MEN THE LIGHT OF YOUTH, HEALTH, AND PROSPERITY. He who rises betimes, and, turning to the east, watches for the sunrise, and then beholds the glorious orb of day rise from the plain or from the sea, and flood hill and valley, corn-field and pasture, with the radiant splendor of the morning, can enter into the language of the preacher, "Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun." And if then he looks into the face of a companion, a noble and generous youth, unstained by sin, undimmed by care, untouched by disease, he can well understand what is meant by the morning of life, the luster of youth, and can thank God that such a period, anal such strength, joy, and hope, have been appointed as a part of human experience. In youth and bounding health and high spirits, how fresh and winsome is the present! how alluring the future! Who would wish to cast a shadow upon the brightness which God himself has created?
II THERE IS APPOINTED FOR MEN THE DARKNESS OF AGE, INFIRMITY, ADVERSITY, AND DEATH. The same individual whom we have regarded in the prime of his powers and the beauty of his joy will, if his life be prolonged, pass through quite other experiences. Clouds will gather about his head, the storm will smite him, the dark midnight will shroud him. There is no discharge in that war no exemption from the common lot. He may lose his health, his powers of body or of mind, his property, his friends. He must walk through the valley of death-shade. In some form or other trouble and sorrow must be his portion.
III THE DUTY AND THE WISDOM OF REMEMBERING THE APPROACH OF THE TIME OF DARKNESS. It may be objected that it will be time enough to think of the afflictions of life when they are actually present, and that it is a pity to cloud the sunny present by gloomy forebodings. Those who know the young and prosperous are, however, well aware that their natural tendency is altogether to ignore the likelihood of a great change in circumstances and experience. And to remember the providential appointment that our life cannot be eternal sunshine is, in many respects, a most desirable and profitable exercise. Thus shall we learn to place a due value, and no more than a due value, upon the pleasures, the diversions, the congenial pursuits of youth and prosperity. And, what is still better, thus may we be led to seek a deeper and surer foundation for our life to acquire spiritual treasures, of which we cannot be deprived by lapse of time or change of circumstances. And thus shall we, by God"s mercy, find that the darkness through which we needs must walk is but for a season, and that through it the people of God shall pass into the blessed sunshine of eternal day. T.
Vers. 7, 8.
The shadow of the tomb.
Let a man rejoice, says the Preacher, in his long bright days of prosperity; but let him remember that the time is drawing on when he will sleep his long sleep beneath the ground; and many as his days have been when the light of the sun was sweet to his eyes, very many more will be the days of darkness which will follow. It is open to us all to indulge in some
I SENTIMENTAL SADNESS, IN VIEW OF THIS LONG FUTURE. We may stroll in the churchyard, and as we read the names and ages of men who lived for thirty or forty years, but who have been in their graves for, it may be, two hundred years, we may think how small was the measure of the light on which they looked compared with that of the darkness in which they have been sleeping. And as we yield to these thoughts we feel the vanity of human affairs. Thus the shadow of the tomb falls upon and darkens the brightness of our life. It seems to us a poor thing for a man to come out of the infinite darkness behind; to walk in the sunshine for a few swiftly passing, soon-departed decades, and then go out into the immeasurable darkness on the other side. There is, however
II A CORRECTING THOUGHT. Why should the excellency of human life be spoiled to us by the reflection that it is limited, bound by a line which is not far off us? If it be so that there is nothing but darkness beyond, if it be true that what we see comprises all that is to be seen, then let us, for that very reason, make the most of all that we hold. If the worth of our existence is confined to the present, let us compress into the present time all the action and all the enjoyment which it will hold shall we not say
I will drink Life to the lees.... Life piled on life Were all too little, and of one to me Little remains: but every hour is saved From that eternal silence"?
III THE CHRISTIAN ASPECT OF THE SUBJECT. We know that this life will soon be over, may reach its terminus any day, and must come to its conclusion before many years have gone. What shall we be concerned about in this?
1. Not the hour or act of dying. Common human fortitude will carry us through that experience, as it has done in countless millions of cases already; much more will Christian faith and hope.
2. Not the silence and darkness of the grave. What does it signify to us that our mortal body will lie long in the grave, when we are hoping to be "clothed upon with our house which is from heaven?
3. The long future of heavenly life. Not the many days of darkness, but the long, the everlasting day of glory is before us who believe in Christ, and who hope to dwell with him forever. For that endless day of blessedness the life we are now living is not only the preliminary but the preparation. Therefore let every day, every hour, be sacred; be so spent in faith, in love, in holy labor, in ennobling joy, that the future will be but the continuance of the present the continuance, but also the enlargement, the glorification. Thus shall there not fall upon the life that now is the shadow of the tomb; there shall shine upon it some beams from the glory that is beyond. C.
Vers. 7, 8.
Enjoyment of the present.
The cloud of pessimism rises from the Preacher"s mind as he thinks of the happiness which a well-ordered life may after all yield. God has placed some pleasures within our reach, and if we do not by our willfulness defeat his purpose, we may enjoy much innocent peace and happiness. And this assertion, coming so closely as it does upon the admonition to be diligent in carrying out the business that we have to do, implies that it is the well-earned reward of the worker, and not the ease and luxury of the idle sensualist, that wins the word of approval. "This joy of life, based upon fidelity to one"s vocation, and sanctified by the fear of God, is the truest and highest enjoyment here below" (Delitzsch). Only those have a right to enjoy life who are zealous in the discharge of the duties that belong to their lot. The order of thought is the same as in Rom_12:11, Rom_12:12, "In diligence not slothful rejoicing in hope." The Revised Version (in ver. 8) brings out the full meaning more clearly than the Authorized Version: "Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun. Yea, if a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity." The light here praised is the light of life; the existence passed in the world on which the sun shines, as contrasted with the darkness of the grave, the unseen world, which to the mind of the Preacher, unillumined by the full revelation in Christ, seemed a region of shadows, dreary and insubstantial. To our thoughts such a view of the world beyond the grave, if world it could be called, in which all was dark and without any order, (Job_10:21, Job_10:22) would seem calculated to rob the present of all delights. But evidently our author did not regard it as necessarily doing so. Neither did those ancient Egyptians, who had the representation of a corpse in its cerements at their banquets. To grosser minds among them the sight probably suggested the thought, "Let us eat and drink; for to-morrow we die." But doubtless to graver minds it suggested something nobler that pleasure, chastened and restrained by wise foresight, is pure and more lasting than any other. So, too, the enjoyment of life commended by the Preacher is not found by him incompatible with a contemplation of death.
He does not say, "Let the young and thoughtless have out their time of frivolity and short-lived mirth; the sad thoughts by which the closing years of life are naturally darkened will only come to them too soon." He rather would have men to rejoice in all the years of their life, though they be many. "Days of evil may come; clouds may, during long hours of sorrow, obscure the glory of the sun; but even if a man live many days, he should endeavor to rejoice in them all: and all the more so, if a long night of darkness awaits him at the close of his earthly career" (Wright). By the days of darkness, which are many, he evidently means the condition after death; for he distinctly differentiates them from the days of life, in all of which there should be joy, in spite of passing trials and distresses. For all men days of darkness are in store; let all, therefore, make the most of the present, and by a wise guidance of their conduct, by a beneficent activity, let them acquire the right and the ability to enjoy the innocent joys with which God has been pleased to bless and enrich our lives, seeing that "all that cometh" after life is vanity. It is true that to us the world beyond the grave appears in a different light. We believe in the everlasting felicity of the righteous in the "many mansions" which remain for those who have during this life been faithful to God, and have qualified themselves for higher service and more perfect enjoyment of him in the world to come. But this belief need not, should not, lead us to despise the bounties we have in this world from the hand of God. A devout and grateful acceptance and use of all the blessings he has bestowed upon us, a joy in living and seeing the light of the sun, should be much easier to us if we are conscious of reconciliation to God, and regard death as the entrance to a higher life. J.W.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Truly the light is sweet.
Ecc_11:7
Truly the light is sweet.
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The sweet light of life
The light of the sun is at all times sweet and pleasant. Glorious orb! His beams not only reveal, but create ten thousand forms of beauty, that lift the soul to its highest moods of thought and admiration. But there are other lights in life which are very sweet.
I. There is the light of an amiable temper. A countenance beaming with good nature has often dispelled the gloom of a disheartened man and carried sunshine into his heart. Some are amiable by nature, all can be amiable by cultivation.
II. There is the light of a noble character. Christ said of His disciples, Ye are the lights of the world, and truly he whose motives are disinterested, whose honesty is incorruptible, whose spirit and aims are Christly, is light indeed, a sweet light. A light that animates, cheers, and refreshes the observer.
III. There is the light of good fellowship. As social beings we are wondrously influenced by the character of the circle in which we move. By good fellowship is not meant the fellowship of the wealthy, the fashionable, and the gay; but the society of men, the fountains of whose nature are pure, the thoughts of whose minds are fresh, true, and exhilarating, in whose conversation there flows ideas to enlighten, and humour to charm.
IV. There is the light of redemptive truth. This is the best of all the lights. A light this that not only scatters moral darkness, and makes clear God and His universe, duty, and destiny, but quickens with the highest life all the faculties of the soul, and brings them out in harmony with the Divine will. It is what Paul calls a marvellous light. (Homilist.)
The sweetness of light
Sweetness of almost every kind is an evidence of the Divine goodness. The fragrance of flowers, and of many plants and shrubs, is grateful to the smell; music is sweet to the ear; the whispering of the gentle breeze, and the murmuring of the purling stream, are soft and soothing to the soul; and specially sweet is the prattle of our children, the conversation of our friends, and the voice of the preacher in the house of God. And our sight, which Addison justly described as the most perfect and delightful of all our senses, has a universe of enjoyment peculiar to itself; and as all the pleasures of vision are dependent on light, and to a great extent on solar light, it may be emphatically said, in the language of the text, Truly the light is sweet, etc.
I. Artificial light. Were the world to be henceforth deprived of this, how large a curtailment of human comfort, industry, commerce, study, and even divine worship, would be thereby occasioned through the half of every year! The tiny taper in the widows cottage is not only essential to her toil, but also the companion of her solitude. The floating light in the chamber of the invalid cheers his solitary midnight hours. The sight of the lighthouse is always grateful to the imperilled mariner.
II. Natural light.
1. Light is sweet in itself. It is so admirably adapted, not only to our organs of vision, but also to the whole of our nervous system as to be the source of no small part of the pleasures we enjoy.
2. Light is sweet on account of the manifold and varied beauties, magnificence, and grandeur which it unveils to us.
3. Light is sweet on account of the cheerfulness and confidence which it inspires. Gloom and dread are usually spirits of darkness. Though we are sometimes afraid of things we see, we are far more frequently afraid of what we merely imagine. Hence fear often vanishes at the dawn of day. This is one reason why light is conducive to health and length of life. Inspired penmen frequently associate death with darkness (Job_3:5; Job_10:21-22; Psa_23:4; Psa_49:19; Psa_88:12; Jer_13:16); light with life (Job_33:28; Job_33:30; Psa_56:13; Ecc_7:11).
III. Intellectual light. This light irradiates the chambers of the soul, and thus enables reason to perform her high and important functions. It shines upon the balance-beam of judgment, and thus enables us correctly to decide. By the aid of this light we hourly gather up ideas from without, and store, and arrange, and amplify, and compare, and compound, and contrast them in the laboratory of our souls. It is this light which illumines the closet of memory, and thus enables us to review the bygone, recall the past, and revivify the dead. This light enables us to anticipate the future, and thus originates and sustains hope within our bosoms. To this light, too, we are indebted for the power of being able rationally to love, and thus to partake the sweetness of social converse and domestic joy. In all these, and in numerous other ways, it is a source of blessedness to us.
IV. Scriptural light. The commandment is a lamp, and the law is light. Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. By this light we discern our characters and their shortcomings; our hearts and their desperate wickedness; our sad deserts and our terrific prospects. But it does not leave us thus. It shows us God, too; not merely as the God of holiness and justice, but also as the God of mercy, grace, and love, who is ready to pardon our transgressions, receive us graciously, and love us freely. Moreover, it shows us Christ as the brightness of His Fathers glory, God over all, blessed for ever. It shows us the power and willingness of the Eternal Spirit to enlighten our minds, regenerate our hearts, and sanctify and save our souls. It also shows us the world in its vanity and vexatiousness, its sinfulness and its sorrows; and it shows us heaven in its holiness and love, its glory and its blessedness. Truly this light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is thus to behold the Lord God as our sun and shield. And there are times in the experience of every Christian when this light has special sweetness.
1. When we first derive therefrom a soul-gladdening hope of salvation.
2. When we find its directions specially suited to our circumstances.
3. When we find its promises specially suited to our wants.
4. When we are thereby enabled to obtain soul-reviving views of God, of Christ, of providence, of the future of the Churchs history, and of heaven at last.
V. Spiritual light. The same Divine Spirit who enkindled the lamp of revelation for us by the agency of His inspired servants has imparted to us spiritual light by the operation of His grace. It is sweet--
1. On account of the discoveries it makes to us. It shows us ourselves. It shows what monuments of Divine forbearance we have been. It shows us the way to the throne of grace. It reveals to us the way of acceptance with God.
2. On account of the transforming influence it exerts. By the light of heaven the sick are often restored to health, and the feeble frequently made strong. So by the light of grace the sinners soul is renovated, strengthened, sanctified, and saved.
VI. Eternal light. Heaven is emphatically termed, The inheritance of the saints in light. There shall be no night there. In closing we remark--
1. How abundant, how varied, how precious, how suitable, and how gratuitous are Gods bestowments.
2. We learn why it is that sinners hate Christ and His Gospel, the Bible and its teachings (Joh_3:19-20). But surely this must enhance their guilt, and will aggravate their doom.
3. This subject will enable us to account for much of the darkness and distress of soul in which even true believers are at times involved. We wander from the light, or are too distant from it to derive the full pleasure and advantage which it is designed and adapted to impart.
4. It assures us that personal religion is a truly blessed thing. Our sorrows and our gloom are to a great extent the result of our shortcomings; but the light of grace is truly sweet.
5. It shows the necessity of faith. That which sight is to the body, faith is to the soul, Light may be around us in all its beauty and effulgence, but without the power of vision we can make no discoveries thereby.
6. Be thankful for the light.
7. Pity those who are in darkness. Many such are around you; millions are in other lands. Carry the light to all you can; send it to those to whom you cannot go. Above all, pray God to send out His light and His truth, that the light of His revealed will may be universally diffused, the light of His grace universally enjoyed. (J. Jenkinson.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain Ecc_11:7. Truly the light is sweet.] Light as the…
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Ecc_11:7. Truly the light is sweet.] Light as the symbol of life. (Psa_36:9, Job_3:20.)
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Ecc_11:8. Yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many.] Days of misfortune and gloom in this world, and a yet longer season in the dark sojourn of the dead. In the imperfect revelation of the time, the state of the departed was considered as dark and cheerless. All that cometh is vanity.] Everything that happens in the course of the world’s history and in daily life; more especially every man, since men are the prime movers and chief figures in all these things.
Ecc_11:9. Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth.] These words need not be understood as ironical. There is a sober and healthy joy which is consistent with the remembrance of the judgment. And walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes.] There are lawful pleasures both for the heart and eyes; yet in all these things the solemn reckoning of the future must be kept in view.
Ecc_11:10. Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart.] The word signifies “sorrow, dissatisfaction,” not as in the LXX. and Vulgate, “anger.” The command to “rejoice,” in Ecc_11:9, is here followed by a warning against the opposite state of feeling. Put away evil from thy flesh.] Evil in the sense of misfortune—some evil condition of life.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Ecc_11:7-10
THE COUNSELS OF WISDOM TO THE CHILDREN OF PLEASURE
Wisdom commends the rational and sober use of pleasure. But when pleasure is pursued for its own sake, leads to forgetfulness of God, or weakens the power of moral control, it becomes an evil. But even those who are most careful herein have need constantly to keep before them certain solemn truths.
I. To Remember how Empty the Most Favoured Life is of any Solid Good. The wise man is ready to admit all the good that life contains. He does not, in the spirit of a gloomy philosophy, condemn all enjoyment,
1. The consciousness of existence is itself a pleasure. (Ecc_11:7.) Light speaks to us of all that is glad, joyous, and free; and light is the symbol of life. Existence is an inheritance, and we fondly cling to it, even when bereft of all else. To enjoy the light of the sun and the comfort of the elements is, in itself, pure delight.
2. Some lives may have a large capacity for pleasure. This may be favoured by the length of life. A man may live “many years, and rejoice in them all.” Time is, at least, one dimension of the capacity of life; and if it be extended in other dimensions by the ability to enjoy and improve it, life may be filled with much good. Or, take life in the season of its greatest power of enjoyment. (Ecc_11:9.) Youth is the time of the greatest vigour, when the sense of enjoyment is keenest. Care has not yet begun to corrode the mind, nor faith in man to lessen, nor hope to lose her charms. The young man may well “rejoice” in his “youth.”
3. A life devoted entirely to pleasure, however favoured, has no solid worth. He who lives to satisfy his appetites, unmindful of the claims of duty and of his solemn reckoning with God, will find at the close of life that he has been grasping a shadow. The pleasing forms die in his embrace, like those of a dream when one awaketh. If a man has anything to dread from the judgment, life, however blessed by outward favours, must be but a sad portion after all. But, taking man at his best estate here, and comparing it with the sublimer destinies awaiting him in future worlds, it will be found that the successive stages of life are vanity. The rosy dawn and the bright morning of life may be beautiful, but they hold their perfection only for a little moment. The day, meanwhile, hastens on to its close, and a night of uncertain duration shuts up the scene. The contemplation of life must produce a despairing sadness, unless a man has the hope of immortality. This hope shifts the centre of the soul from the region where all is unsubstantial and vain, and places it where all is real and abiding. This idea raises and transforms life. Without it, life will be found to be empty of any enduring worth.
II. To Consider the Dread Abode to which They are Hastening. (Ecc_11:8.) The Old Testament speaks in very gloomy language of that dark house where souls are detained after death. The darkness that rested upon life and immortality could not be cleared away until His coming who was the life and light of men. Yet even the advanced light of the Gospel does not completely relieve the gloom with which this dread subject afflicts and oppresses the human mind. Departed saints have still, in some form, to submit to the long reign of death. Still, “waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of the body,” they groan for perfection and full investiture. With all the superior light and hope of the Gospel, the subject is yet sufficiently solemn. There are views of the state of the dead upon which it is salutary that we should dwell, even while we cherish the brightest hope of reward. This tends to preserve that humility which is proper to our present condition, and to set the pleasures of the world in their true light. The following thoughts arise whenever we contemplate the state of the dead:
1. There is the sense of obscurity and neglect. A man is removed from the eyes of the living, and though his memory is preserved awhile, he is, at length, forgotten. There is an idea of utter neglect. It seems as if the invisible thread of love and memory, which connects the two worlds, becomes at last severed. With all the dear human hopes and feelings that now fill us, we cannot contemplate such a fate without due solemnity.
2. There is the sense of uncertainty. Whenever we think of what is beyond our knowledge, and especially of that in which we ourselves must play an important part, vague fears arise in the mind. With our present experience, we are not able to conceive of the manner in which they live who have put off this vesture of mortality. And this very uncertainty becomes an oppression. This is, indeed, relieved by faith; yet despite of all, it will now and then suggest itself to contemplation.
3. There is the sense of privation. There must be such, as far as this life is concerned. When we have passed the bounds of time and space, the pleasures of this world exist for us no more. We seem half afraid that even there we shall lack many enjoyments. Thus, in certain moods of mind, must we think of that long night which succeeds our mortal day. Though such thoughts should not be the governing ideas of our spiritual life, yet they are valuable for several purposes of discipline. They impart that soberness to the mind, by which we learn to taste the pleasures of life as those who have shortly to enter upon a scene of unknown and untried things. To every one, the wise man says, “let him remember the days of darkness: for they shall be many.”
III. To be Mindful of the Solemn Judgment Awaiting Mankind. (Ecc_11:9.) This does not refer to any penalties of sin in the present life, though these are Divine Judgments, but rather to that solemn reckoning which God will make with all mankind. The fact of human responsibility makes a future Judgment necessary. Mankind will not be judged in masses, but each one by himself. “God will bring thee into judgment.”
1. The moral worth or worthlessness of each human life will be estimated. The true character of each man will be revealed. The Judgment is spoken of as that which shall make manifest what we really are. (2Co_5:10.)
2. The judgment will be against all lives in which there has been a non-recognition of God. The youth is reminded that for the joy which is so natural to his season of life, for walking in the ways of his heart and in the sight of his eyes, God will bring him into judgment. This does not necessarily mean condemnation. He who in life’s work or pleasures recognises God, and is governed by spiritual ideas, though he may feel solemn as he thinks of the test to which he shall be brought, has yet nothing to fear. It will be a test discovering what he is, not one which destroys. Like gold which is proved in the fire, the Judgment will, indeed, be a trial for all the righteous, but it will not be destruction. But he who in his pleasures and works has forgotten God, has lived without a due sense of responsibility, and of the awful future, has all to fear from the Holy One, who is determined to put all sin out of His sight. Nothing that is evil can live in the light of His countenance, and all is sad and unprofitable upon which that light does not shine. Human life in all its duties, joys, and sorrows, is sanctified and raised by the continual desire to please God. Without this the whole of life comes under condemnation.
IV. To Allow these Facts Practically to Influence the Conduct. (Ecc_11:10.) In this section the wise man dwells upon the chief facts of probation and destiny. No stage of life is permanent, but all is fleeting. All are hastening to that long dark night in which no man can work. All alike await the Judgment, even the best and holiest needing to find mercy of the Lord in that day. What course of conduct is the wisest in the face of these solemn truths? How, especially, is the youth, to whom the world offers the strongest temptations, so to order his life, lest he should come into the condemnation of the Judgment?
1. He should remove the causes of inward trouble. “Remove sorrow from thy heart.” Sin, in its many forms, is the cause of all trouble and sorrow. All disorders in the universe arise from this one bitter root. If sin is put away, though a man may have outward trouble, yet the depths of him will be lightened up with the presence of God; and in a rich hope, and an approving conscience, he will have the comfort of an unearthly joy. The youth who follows his desires, without any moral restraint, must sooner or later know sad grief heavy at his heart. Conscience will one day awake and afflict his soul.
2. He should avoid the physical penalties of sin. There are spiritual sins for which the flesh is not chastised. There are carnal sins whose penalties man is made to bear in his body. Some vices injure health, exhaust physical vigour, and bring acute misery. “Put away evil from thy flesh” is the counsel of wisdom to those who are tempted to try dangerous pleasures. A man may well reflect whether he does not pay too high a price for the sinful indulgence of the flesh. These natural chastisements foredate the Last Judgment, and full retribution for all sin. Their lessons should be early learned, lest youth should transmit to age the inheritance of suffering and shame. To put away evil from the heart, and sorrow from the flesh, is to garnish and prepare the soul, that heavenly influences there may take up their abode. The joy of opening life is a hollow vanity, unless a man has learned to cherish those joys which time can never fade.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Ecc_11:7 : All light is pleasant; ’tis the very smile of nature, the gloss of the world, the varnish of the creation, a bright paraphrase upon bodies. Whether it discover itself in the modesty of a morning blush, and open its fair and virgin eyelids in the dawning of the day; or whether it dart out more vigorous and sprightful beams, shining out in its noonday glory; whether it sport and twinkle in a star; or blaze and glare out in a comet; or frisk and dance in a jewel; or dissemble and play the hypocrite in a glow-worm; or epitomize and abbreviate itself in a spark, and show its zeal in the ruddiness of its complexion in the yolk of the fire; or grow more pale, pining, or consuming away in a candle. However it is pleased to manifest itself, it carries a commanding lustre in its face.… Is it not a pleasant thing to behold a sun? nay, to behold but a candle, a deputed light, a vicarious light—the ape of a sunbeam? [Culverwell.]
Light is the emblem of all that is joyous in life. Sorrow and melancholy seek the shade and the darkness.
It is only the brightest passages, the best moments of life, that can be aptly and truly represented by the light. Sin has disturbed the harmony between the natural and the spiritual worlds.
Ecc_11:8. If a man’s life is not approved of God, prosperity, however long continued, will end in the darkening of all that is hopeful and bright in life. This is but the prelude of a sadder privation beyond life.
The most favourable instances of the worldly prosperity of godless men do not affect the truth, that all that cometh of such a life is vanity.
In the years of thy life, therefore, remember these days. In thy days of delight, remember these days of trouble, and let the remembrance of them make thee to provide against them by well ordering thy life [Jermin].
As long as life is coming, or to come, its vanity does not appear. On the contrary, there is nothing thought of then but content and satisfaction; nothing but Elysian prospects, dreams of happiness, and landscapes of Paradise. For there is a strange fallacy in Hereafter; and distance, which lessens objects to the eye, magnifies them to the mind. We are big with the hopes of that part of life which is coming on, and live day after day upon the fancy of what to-morrow will produce, like the spectators of a play still in expectation of the next scene; but yet, when to-morrow comes, we find it just like yesterday, vain and without content; and so will every to-morrow be when it comes to be to-day [Norris].
There are days of darkness which will come to the just, in this world; but it is not a darkness which hides God. Rather is it like that of night, which uncovers the celestial globe, and reveals bright glories in the heavens which were never seen by day.
Ecc_11:9. When the heart is in a right state no joy will harm, provided only it be true joy, and not merely a corrupting mirth. Enjoy it, then, if there is anything pleasant for the sight or hearing provided you sin not against God [Luther].
To walk in the ways of the heart and in the sight of the eyes may be taken in a bad sense, as representing that wilfulness in conduct which does not acknowledge God. But there is a proper use both of the heart and of the eye. God denies no lawful pleasures to that faculty which loves, or to that which appreciates the forms of beauty in the world. The principle by which life is governed is the chief thing. To the pure, all these things are pure.
The stronger the temptations to unlawful pleasures, the stronger should be felt the restraints of religion.
In the enjoyments of pleasure, a man should have the thought ever present with him that he is living under the shadow of the Day of Judgment—a shadow which is deepening fast. This will prevent him from abusing that which was intended for his training and improvement.
To be brought face to face, at last, with God will of itself be terrible distress to all who have not learned in life to find their chief delight in Him.
Ecc_11:10. There are inward and outward troubles—sources of pain to the body and to the mind. From some of these our goodness cannot deliver us; but from the worst forms of them we can be saved by obedience to the will of God.
That heart which God’s Spirit has renewed and occupies, however oppressed with the troubles of life, can have no essential and crushing sorrow.
He who is saved from sin is saved from the cause of the deepest troubles. He possesses the true life, and therefore enjoys the gladness which it brings. He becomes a partaker of the Divine nature, and is blessed.
Godliness, while it raises and purifies the spirit of man, does also redeem the flesh from many evils. Herein is a prophecy of a more complete redemption for the body. The tree of life in Paradise heals all the ills of man.
Let, therefore, the youthful worldling pause. Let him not suffer his fond hopes, and dazzling visions of the future, to deceive him, “for childhood and youth are vanity.” The promises they make to the thoughtless, carnal mind, are false. The halo which they throw around the world is a deceitful glare. The joyous anticipations in which they indulge are continually liable to disappointment; and every day, every hour, events may arrive that will sweep them utterly away, or bury them in darkness and death [Buchanan].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Rejoicing with Trembling
Rejoicing with Trembling
v. 7. Truly, the light is sweet, life is most agreeable and beautiful if spent in the manner urged by the author in the first part of this chapter, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun, if one is engaged in godly pursuits;
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v. 8. but if a man live many years and rejoice in them all, in the manner set forth in Holy Writ, Php 4:4, yet let him remember the days of darkness, the long night of death; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity, this world, with all it offers, is empty and futile in comparison with the eternal realities which await the true believers.
v. 9. Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth, the general admonition of the preceding verses being addressed to young people in particular, as living in that period of life which is especially favorable to cheerful enjoyment, and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, with the proper happiness in the midst of the turmoil and troubles of this present world, and walk in the ways of thine heart, in seeking enjoyment of the right kind, such as is acceptable to the Lord, and in the sight of thine eyes, in innocent pleasures and pastimes, the eyes being trained for proper observance of God’s rules of conduct; but know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into Judgment, wherefore a most careful and circumspect conduct, a most godly caution, is required at all times. It is necessary to serve the Lord with fear and to rejoice with trembling, Psa 2:11; Php 2:12.
v. 10. Therefore remove sorrow, a false sorrow, a gloomy sanctimoniousness, from thy heart and put away evil from thy flesh, namely, in the form of a melancholy asceticism which is not in agreement with the cheerfulness required by the Christian religion; for childhood and youth are vanity, both early infancy and the dawn of the days, that is, adolescence, are in themselves futile and empty without the cheering presence of the Word of God.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.