Anyone familiar with popular music from the 1960's is likely familiar
with the hit tune Turn! Turn! Turn! popularized by the Byrds. The lyrics are primarily based on
Ecclesiastes 3:2-8. The summary message of
the song is presented in its last two Lines: … And a time for peace/ I swear it's not too late. Their song reflects attitudes and sentiments arising from the popular unrest during the Viet Nam
war. But, what function did these seven
verses actually fill within the overall message of the book of Ecclesiastes,
and what significance does it have for us today under the sun? The text as it is printed in the book is as
follows:
.μyIm;V;h'
tj'T' 6p,jeAlk;l] t[ew“ ˆm;z“ lKol
1 For everything there is an appointed time, and time for every matter under the sun.
6p,jeAlk;l] t[ew“ ˆm;z“ lKol' This verse
consists of two verbless clauses that consider the entirety of life under the
sun from two different perspectives. The
first perspective is that there is a time appointed (ˆm;z“) for everything
that does or may occur on earth under the sun.
The second perspective is that sufficient time (t[e) has been allocated for every matter. An item of particular note is the use of the
term 6p,je – delight or something that brings pleasure. Initially, use of this term appears to be
ironic. About half of the items listed
in subsequent seven verses would be considered by most people to be either
tragic or unfortunate, not delightful.
However, the matter is one of perspective. From an eternal perspective, the purposes
behind temporal relationships and experiences are not only desirable but
essential for realization of the reality beyond this present life under the sun
– ultimately, dam
bwf hyhy lkh (Everything will be very good). Ultimate restoration of the creation and
man's original relationship with God is the implication of God's statement in
Genesis 3:15 – the seed of the woman will bruise the head of the serpent.
.[Wfn: r/q[}l' t[ew“
|
t['f'l; t[e
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tWml; t[ew“
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td<l,l; t[e
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2
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.t/nb]li t[ew“
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6/rp]li t[e
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a/Pr“li t[ew“
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g/rh}l' t[e
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3
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.d/qr“ t[ew“
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d/ps] t[e
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q/jc]li t[ew“
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t/Kb]li t[e
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4
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.qBej'me qjor“li t[ew“
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q/bj}l' t[e
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μynIb;a}
s/nK] t[ew“
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μynIb;a}
Ëyliv]h'l] t[e
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5
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.Ëyliv]h'l] t[ew“
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r/mv]li t[e
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dBea'l] t[ew“
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vQeb'l] t[e
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6
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.rBed'l] t[ew“
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t/vj}l' t[e
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r/Pt]li t[ew“
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['/rq]li t[e
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7
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.μ/lv; t[ew“
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hm;j;l]mi t[e
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anoc]li t[ew“
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bhoa‘l, t[e
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8
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Each of the verses 2 through 7 contains of four infinitive phrases; verse 8 consists of two infinitive phrases followed by two noun phrases. Each pair of phrases in all seven verses is marked by a major disjunctive accent. Each pair of phrases within any verse consists of a ‘positive’ experience complemented by a ‘negative’ experience of the same sort. The tabulation below provides a translation of each pair of verses; the letter designation indicates the value judgment that most people would give to each experience (A for positive, B for negative). The peculiar thing about each phrase is that it is formed with t[e, ‘time’ in the sense of ‘enough time for …’ or ‘a time when,’ but many English translations have ‘a time (appointed) to ….,’ which would be a more appropriate translation for ˆm;z“.
Time to beget
(give birth)
Time to plant
Time to slay
Time to break
through
Time to weep
Time to
lament
Time to cast
stones away
Time to
embrace
Time to seek
Time to guard
Time to rend
(tear apeart)
Time to
remain silent
Time to love
Time of war
|
A
A
B
B
B
B
B
A
A
A
B
B
A
B
|
And time to
die
And time to
root up what was planted
And time to
heal
And time to
build up
And time to
laugh
And time to
dance
And time to
gather stones together
And time to
refrain from embracing
And time to
lose
And time to
send away
And time to
mend (sew together)
And time to
speak
And time to
hate
And time of
peace (completeness)
|
B
B
A
A
A
A
A
B
B
B
A
A
B
A
|
The
juxtaposition of one ‘positive’ and one ‘negative’ extreme of life experiences
is a figure of speech called a merism. A
merism implies that the author has included every possible life experience
between the two extremes actually mentioned.
For example, the first clause indicates that there is time under the sun
for begetting as well as time for dying; this expression implies that all
physical life experiences from begetting to death have been included. The overall pattern to the positive versus
negative elements may be illustrated as follows:
A common
approach to these verses is to assume that they merely relate extreme
experiences of life and do not have any sequence or relation to one
another. However, the passage begins
with beget-death and ends with war-peace, so perhaps both internal
relationships and a sequence of logical development was intended by the author. Consider also that the specific choices of
vocabulary and verb forms may be significant.
tWml; 333 td<l,l; Both verbs are qal
infinitive construct forms. The first
verb means either ‘to beget,’ ‘to bring forth,’ or ‘to give
birth’ (not ‘be born,’ which would require a niphal infinitive -- להבלד); the second verb
means ‘to die.’ One might have
expected the merism to cover the natural range of any human life – from one’s
birth to one’s death. (Note: The LXX
reads beget, the Vulgate reads be born, and English translations
are divided between the two readings.) Instead, the author limits his consideration
to the period of productive life – the time from sexual potency (begetting, bringing forth children) to death.
The periods of birth, infancy, and childhood are all excluded from
consideration.
[Wfn: r/q[}l' 333 t['f'l; This
second pair of verbs echo this same theme: the period between when something is
planted to when it is uprooted. The
first infinitive, ‘to plant,’ envisions someone causing something (a
plant, a tree, a people) to come forth – like begetting. A different word (['/rz“li) would be used for sowing seed. Up rooting causes what has been planted to
die.
a/Pr“li 333 g/rh}l' The
third pair presents a complementary idea in the reverse order (chiasmus): ‘to
slay’ versus ‘to heal.’ The
verbal root grh means ‘cause
death’ in a general sense, more like ‘slaughter’ without the moral
implications of ‘murder.’ The
term aPr means to restore someone or
something to a healthy, productive condition.
t/nb]li 333 6/rp]li This pair seems to
break the thematic pattern established by the previous phrases. The first verb root 6rP means ‘to break through (from the outside);’ the
second root hnB means ‘to build
up’ or ‘to rebuild.’ If we
assume that parallelism is the primary basis for interpretation, then ‘slay’
is parallel to ‘root up' and ‘die,’ and ‘heal’ is parallel
with ‘plant’ and ‘beget.’
This understanding results in a kind of progression within these
clauses: One generation brings forth another and then dies. This ‘bringing forth’ plants the new
generation, which will flourish until up rooted. Uprooting is equivalent to slaying, but what
about the healing? By natural
implication, healing applies to someone or something (man, animal, or plant)
whose life and health are diminished, not to something that is healthy or newly
planted. If the thoughts within this
context are intentionally connected, the healing must occur after the
death, uprooting, slaying mentioned in the previous verses, which could allude
to the author’s expectation of continued existence after death and elimination
of the curse (the cause of the bent condition in which we and the natural world
presently exist) after this life under the sun is complete. In the final phrase, ‘to break through’
implies a forceful penetration from the outside, and this is set parallel to ‘to
slay.’ Could this penetration
correspond to the acts of God to reach out to his creature by breaking through
the barriers that man himself has created against God? After ‘breaking through’comes ‘building
up,’ which is parallel to healing.
q/jc]li 333 t/Kb]li This pair could introduce a different figure, a new sequence, or
the start of an overlay for the previous verses. The root hKB
means ‘weep.’ The root qjc means ‘laugh, play,’ but it can
carry the idea of contempt or derision with it.
The second half of the verse appears to exactly parallel the first half
– d/qr“ … d/ps] ‘lament – dance.’ If the previous verse does refer to God’s
breaking through to his human creatures, then the first response is to lament
in repentance, which leads to expressions of rejoicing – laughing and
dancing. Another possible structural
scheme is that of an overlay. If the
construction is understood as an overlay, then t/Kb]li
is parallel to any one or all of the previous ‘negative’ elements, and q/jc]li is parallel to any one or all of
the positive elements.
(Note: An overlay is a narrative style that is essentially unknown in English or modern European languages in general. In this narrative style, the same story is presented two or more times, and each time a different combination of details is presented. The result is that each presentation embellishes rather than contradicting the other. So, for example, the two creation stories of Genesis 1 and 2 could be understood as an overlay rather that the remnant of two disparate source documents.)
(Note: An overlay is a narrative style that is essentially unknown in English or modern European languages in general. In this narrative style, the same story is presented two or more times, and each time a different combination of details is presented. The result is that each presentation embellishes rather than contradicting the other. So, for example, the two creation stories of Genesis 1 and 2 could be understood as an overlay rather that the remnant of two disparate source documents.)
.qBej'me
qjor“li t[ew“ q/bj}l' t[e μynIb;a} s/nK] t[ew“ μynIb;a} Ëyliv]h'l] t[ee Verse 5 appears to function as a boundary between
two sets of three verses each. It does
not appear to be specifically parallel either to the preceding verses or to those
that follow. If we take μynIb;a} ‘stones’ as symbolic, then either
element in the first pair could be positive or negative, depending on the
significance of the symbol. The second
pair reverses the order of the first. If
we take the second pair as a clue to the force of the first pair, then the
following is a possible significance: There is time in life for holding close
to real or potential life experiences (the ‘stones’) and time for
letting them go. This interpretation
makes the middle verse thematically parallel both to the first group of three
verses as well as to the second group of three verses without really being part
of either group.
.Ëyliv]h'l] t[ew“
r/mv]li t[e dBea'l] t[ew“ vQeb'l] t[ee Verse 6 resumes the kind of pattern that was present in verses 2
through 4, yet there is a semantic difference.
Each of the pairs in the first three verses focuses inward – i.e., the
circumstances of life as it affects an individual experiencing them. These verses all focus outward – i.e., the
impact that the conditions of life have on relationships outside oneself. dBea'l] … vQeb'l] - both verb forms are piel infinitives. The first has the meaning of ‘seek,’
and the second normally means ‘slay, destroy;’ however, BDB lists
two instances where the verb has the force ‘lose,’ which is the more
common meaning in modern Hebrew. The
second pair of verbs in the verse are a qal infinitive of rmv meaning ‘guard, keep, watch over,’
and a hiphil infinitive of 9lv
meaning ‘throw, cast away.’ If
this is viewed as an overlay, then these actions could be understood as the
possible range of reactions to the positive/negative experiences listed in the
first set of three verses. However, the
associations are not direct. For
example, a particular life experience might cause one person to guard (draw
closer) the relationship with another, but the very same experience could
produce the opposite reaction (abandon, forsake) in a different person.
.rBed'l]
t[ew“ t/vj}l' t[e r/Pt]li t[ew“ ['/rq]li t[ee The first phrase contains two verbs
dealing with fabric or clothing. ['/rq]li is a qal infinitive meaning 'tear,
rend,’ and r/Pt]li is a qal
infinitive meaning ‘sew together, mend.’ The pair could be literal or figurative with
equal probability, but parallelism suggests that this couplet relates to
relationships between people rather than to clothing. The second pair of verbs -- t/vj}l' ‘to be silent’ and rBed'l] ‘to speak’ – appears to
affirm a relational interpretation.
Returning to
the initial comment, the song was written by Pete Seeger in 1959, but he did not record
it until 1962. They Byrds recorded it in
1965, after which it became widely popular and was covered by numerous
artists. The popularity of the song at
that time fits into the context of general social upheaval over the Viet Nam
war, which was then becoming increasingly bloody and divisive. This result may or may not have been Pete
Seeger's original intention when he wrote the song, but what was Solomon's
original purpose for these verses? That
question is answered by the next three verses.
.lme[; aWh rv,a}B' hc,/[h; ˆ/rt]YIAhm'''
9 What is
the benefit of the laborer in what he does?
This is a rhetorical question. Solomon has already stated that he has found
no enduring benefit for all the labor and effort a man might expend (Ecclesiastes chapter 2). This gloomy outlook is underscored by the
above set of merisms: Regardless of how much effort any individual expends, that
person will have the same range of positive and negative experiences (and
responses) as any other person, whether the other person tries to do anything
or not. So what is the point of
expending any effort?
./B
t/n[}l' μd:a;h; yn´b]li μyhiloa‘ ˆt'n: rv,a} ˆy:n“[ih;Ata, ytiyair:
10 I have seen the task that God has given to the sons of man to be
occupied with.
ax;m]yIAalo
rv,a} yliB]mi μB;liB; ˆt'n: μl;[oh;Ata, μG" /T[ib] hp,y: hc;[; lKoh'Ata,
.5/sAd['w“ varome μyhiloa‘h; hc;[;Arv,a}
hc,[}M'h'Ata, μd:a;h;
11 He has made everything
appropriate in its time. Moreover, he
has placed (lit., given) eternity in
their hearts yet in such a way that man cannot find out the work that God has
done from the beginning to the end.
/B
t/n[}l' μd:a;h; yn´b]li μyhiloa‘ ˆt'n: rv,a} ˆy:n“[ih;Ata, ytiyair: This statement almost
duplicates the statement in 1:13b, but the conclusion is different. The previous statement asserted: ‘I set my
heart to seek out and investigate everything that is done under the sun – God
has given men an unpleasant task ([r: ˆy:n“[i) to
be occupied with.’ But here in verse 11a he states, ‘He has made everything
beautiful (hp,y:) in its time.’ This assertion must encompass both the
positive and the negative life experiences listed in verses 2 through 8. How could the negative experiences be called
‘beautiful in their time’?
Perhaps Solomon means essentially the same thing as Paul (Rav Shaul) in Rom
8:28, ‘All things work together for the good of those who love the Lord.’ Alternatively, he may mean that we human
beings need the negative experiences of life to be convinced of our
own limitations and to be driven to trust the Lord. As in a tapestry or a painting, the dark hues
provide the contrast necessary to bring out and sharpen the overall image.
μB;liB;
ˆt'n: μl;[oh;Ata, μG" This
clause begins with the adverb μG", which indicates that the following
assertion is added to and combined with the first. Even if one accepts the interpretation for
the previous clause, this addition creates a fundamental problem for men. Because God has made man to possess the
spiritual image of God, man desires to understand eternal realities – that is,
God has put (lit., ˆt'n: - given) eternity in men’s
hearts as part of their essential being.
ax;m]yIAalo
rv,a} yliB]mi This expression
is a negative pleonasm (a cluster of words used to express a single idea or
concept) expressing a limitation on the capacity of the divine image God has
put into man: God has limited man’s faculties in such a way that man cannot
discover what he seeks to understand. As
a result, all humans now live their entire lives under the sun with a continual
internal conflict. Evil people are in a
state of overt rebellion against God himself. This rebellion may take any of several different forms, including: hostility toward God and all those who profess belief in him,; devotion to anything other than the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; total indifference toward God and his standard of righteousness. Believing people honestly desire honor God and adhere to his standard, but they frequently also desire to
comprehend what God has chosen to keep hidden from them.
5/sAd['w“
varome μyhiloa‘h; hc;[;Arv,a} This is a relative clause modifying hc,[}M'h' – the deed,
work – which is the direct object of the verb.
This noun is surely being used in a collective sense of ‘work’
encompassing many individual deeds. The
scope of the relative clause is ‘from beginning to end’ – another
merism. We know the beginning of God’s
work with respect to us from Genesis 1, we know about selected deeds over the
course of human history, and believing people have a limited range of direct experiences
with God. However, we know little more
about the overall purpose of God’s work except that he will judge all people
with equity, and we know essentially nothing about eternity past. In short, our knowledge of God’s purposes is
limited to what God himself has revealed to us either indirectly through life
experience or directly through one of his prophets.
In
chapter 1 of the book Solomon stated that his purpose was to undertake an
examination of human activities to determine what activities were beneficial
for a person to pursue. The first
investigation in chapter 2 examined the pursuit of hedonism as the supreme goal
of life. This, he concludes, has no
enduring benefit because the richest, most self-indulgent person must die just like any fool and leave
everything to someone who may not deserve it.
Here in chapter 3 he examines the pursuit of ultimate knowledge,
particularly the knowledge of God's eternal purposes. This pursuit, too, is ultimately futile
because every human has the same range of experiences, and nobody is immune to
calamity. Although human beings were
created in the image of God, we are finite, and we can comprehend eternal
realities only to the degree that God himself has revealed them. This remains as true today as it was 3000 years ago.
