The Distance between Man and God
Ecclesiastes 5:1-9

1. Preliminary Observations
   1. These are the first commands in the entire book.
      1. For four chapters, the Preacher has confined himself to observations
         1. He has described his frustration with the futility of life under the sun.
         2. He has chronicled his responses to that futility
            1. Work
            2. Wisdom
            3. Pleasure
         3. And he has observed that these responses are insufficient.
      2. But now, at last, he is going to answer the question:
         1. What should we do about this depressing situation?
         2. How should we then live?
      3. The "is" will now give rise to the "ought."
      4. Or if you prefer fancier language, the indicative will now yield the imperative.
   2. This is the first time the Preacher has spoken of a relationship between man and God.
      1. Prior to this, he has spoken of God as an omnipotent power
         1. He ordains everything and there's nothing you can do about it.
         2. In this way, God is rather like Fate, an impersonal fact of life to be accepted.
         3. In chapter 3, God is the one who appoints the times and seasons to everything under the sun (3:1-8)
         4. But God's power gave the Preacher no comfort because he could not discern that God was favorably disposed toward man. (3:9-15)
      2. And he has spoken of God as a Judge
         1. This aspect, the Preacher has dealt with more briefly in 3:16,17.
         2. He saw that under the sun the wicked were in the place of judgment.
         3. So he replied that God would judge the righteous and the wicked.
         4. Still, this speaks of a relationship with God that comes, if at all, in the future.
         5. We are offered no statement at that point that one may relate to God here and now under the sun.
         6. Further, the relationship of Judge to the one judged is rather one-sided.
         7. It may say something about how God will relate to us, but not as much about how we related to God (except as subjects of his judgment).
      3. Now the Preacher speaks of actual interaction between God and men
         1. It becomes a two way relationship.
         2. Men may speak with God as well as hear what God says to them.
         3. Yet such activity, we will find, is fraught with peril.
2. How to act before God
   1. Draw near to hear (1)
      1. It is only prudent to let God have the first word, even if there is to be interaction.
      2. Drawing near to hear is contrasted with offering the "sacrifice of fools."
         1. The language recalls Samuel's response to King Saul when Saul had imprudently offered sacrifices to God himself rather than following instructions and waiting for Samuel to come.
         2. Samuel denounces Saul and says, "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams" (1 Sam 15:22).
            1. The words "obeying" and "obey" in this verse can also be translated as "hearing" and "hear."
            2. The Preacher uses the same word here in verse 1 - It is better to "hear" (i.e. to obey) than to offer sacrifice like a fool who things he can buy God's favor even while ignoring his word.
      3. The prudent come before God to get their orders and go out to obey them.
      4. The fool presumes upon God to forgive whatever sins he commits as long as he offers sacrifice.
      5. They do not even understand, the Preacher says, that they are doing evil.
      6. A modern day parallel might be some Roman Catholics who feel they can sin as they please as long as they go to confession every so often.
      7. So if you want to put wisdom to work for you, hear and obey God's word rather than trying to buy him off with sacrifices.
   2. Be careful when you speak (2-7)
      1. First, the Preacher tells us be quick to hear (and obey).
      2. Next, naturally, he urges us to be slow to speak.
      3. Don't be rash with your mouth or even with what you think(2)
         1. Don't come making accusations against God, as though you are wise enough or high enough to judge his actions.
         2. "God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few." (2)
         3. Here, as we have seen before, is a great parallel to the book of Job
            1. Job was a righteous man, whom the Lord vindicated at the end.
            2. Yet Job did have one problem, for which God took him to task.
               • Job was rash with his mouth.
               • He presumed to judge the actions of God in bringing him low.
               • He felt that, since he was a righteous man, God ought not to punish him.
               • And he felt he deserved an answer from God as to why things didn't work out that way.
               • He spoke of things that were too wonderful for him, things he could not understand.
            3. And God responds by putting Job on the witness stand and asking whether Job has anywhere near the wisdom or the power that God himself has.
            4. And at the end Job admitted that he had spoken of things too wonderful for him, things he could not comprehend.
         4. The Preacher now warns us not to make Job's mistake.
         5. So even though the Preacher now speaks of a relationship between man and God, he also warns us not to think we are closer than we really are.
         6. There is a great distance between man and God.
         7. Only a fool will speak as though he understands God's ways or may judge them.
         8. When a man has many cares his dreams are troubled. In the same way you can spot a fool because he's the one who has a lot of words. (3)
         9. This is, of course, an opportune admonition.
            1. For four chapters the Preacher has described the futility of life under the sun, even for those who work, or are wise, or seek pleasure.
            2. With such information, we might be very tempted to call God on the carpet and demand that he explain himself.
            3. We might conclude from chapters 1 through 4 that God must be pretty cruel. He must hate his people.
            4. And even if we suppress such words outwardly, we may think them.
            5. So the Preacher warns you not to "let your heart utter anything hastily before God."
            6. Further, we've already noted some tension between Psalms and Proverbs on the one hand and Ecclesiastes on the other.
               • We have not said there is contradiction.
               • But we have noticed some differences that might cause us to speak rashly and say that God is speaking out of both sides of his mouth, or is not all wise.
               • Better to keep our mouths shut.
            7. This tension, as we have said, is resolved by Christ bringing in a new creation that is not subject to the futility of life under the sun.
               • The Preacher's admonition comes to those who did not know how this tension would be resolved.
               • But we have the light of Christ.
               • So we may make our words many in a way that Old Testament believers could not.
               • Think, in this context, of how the book of John ends: "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written."
               • In a sense, we can say, "Christ has come! Let your words be many!"
               • But let them all be seasoned with grace as with salt.
      4. Pay what you have vowed (4-6)
         1. In Israel, a man might come into the temple and make a vow.
         2. For example, he might say, "Lord, if you heal my son, I will give to you 30 percent of the year's harvest instead of the usual 10."
         3. You can see how tempting such transactions might be.
         4. After all, life is dreadfully uncertain, as the Preacher has constantly told us.
         5. So the temptation is to bargain with God to see if you can get a better deal.
         6. So the Preacher says, if you make such a vow, be sure to pay it in the congregation of God's people if God should grant your request.
         7. It is better not to vow at all and just suffer the futility of life under the sun than to vow and not pay.
         8. Otherwise, your mouth will have caused you to sin (6)
         9. And the temptation will be to try to get off on a technicality.
            1. You say to the messenger "It was an error."
            2. "Error" is a technical term in the Hebrew meaning "a sin of ignorance."
            3. So the Preacher is saying, don't pretend you didn't know that God requires all vows to be paid.
            4. It's not a "sin of ignorance" if you open your mouth and stupid things come out. You ought to know to keep your mouth shut.
            5. Since our tendency is to make rash vows, it would be better not to vow at all.
            6. Doing so might provoke God to anger so that he destroys your work.
      5. Because in the multitude of dreams and words, there is futility (7)
      6. Fear God (7)
         1. This is the bottom line command.
         2. We're going to come back to this at the very end when we are told "the conclusion of the matter."
         3. The conclusion will be "Fear God and keep his commandments" because there will be a judgment (12:13).
      7. So the relationship established between man and God is a somewhat uneasy one.
         1. Listen up and watch your step.
         2. God is going to put up with any nonsense.
         3. But even if you succeed in this, it's not that satisfying a relationship.
         4. You want more than just to get God off your back.
         5. You want God to be on your side.
         6. You want God to be your comforter because you are oppressed.
         7. You want to know him and be known by him.
         8. For this, the recommendations of the Preacher are insufficient.
         9. Such intimacy can only come through Christ.
3. Our response to oppression (8,9)
   1. Do not be amazed by it. (8a)
      1. On earth there is "oppression of the poor" and "violent perversion of justice and righteousness."
      2. The first response the Preacher counsels is, "Do not be amazed" and "Do not marvel."
      3. Why does God allow it?
         1. Why does he not judge the oppressors of the poor?
         2. Why does he not set right the perversion of justice?
         3. Is God even in control?
      4. If we marvel at these things, we will certainly multiply words like fools.
      5. Yet the Preacher does more than simply tell us not to say such things.
      6. He actually gives us what we dare not demand: an explanation.
   2. God is not the oppressor (8b)
      1. There are all kinds of officials on earth.
         1. They are the ones who oppress in their desire for power they do not legitimately have.
         2. The King oppresses the nobles
         3. The nobles oppress the merchants
         4. The merchants oppress the peasants
         5. And the peasants weep and long for a comforter.
      2. This is not God's fault.
      3. All labor springs from a man's envy of his neighbor, remember. (4:4)
         1. You've got all these people over you.
         2. And there are higher officials over them.
         3. Why should it surprise you to see justice so often perverted and righteousness so little enforced in such a system?
   3. What goes around comes around (9)
      1. "The profit of the land is for all. Even the king is served from the field."
         1. This is the New King James translation, which is a good one.
         2. The Hebrew is tremendously difficult to understand, but this translation makes the most sense.
      2. Even the king, who is the highest official, benefits from and depends on the work of the peasant farmer.
      3. So there's a sense in which the king is subject to the farmer, the peasant, the lowest in the land.
         1. If the farmer is lazy, then the king suffers.
         2. So, in a way, the peasants can oppress the king as well as the king oppressing the peasants.
         3. It's not an entirely cheerful notion, but there is something positive being said.
         4. In essence, the king can't oppress the peasants too much, because the king needs the fruit of the field. And therefore there are some natural limits to oppression based on the king's appetites and desires.

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