No man can discover God's eternal purpose

Chapter 3

Foreword

This chapter has three major vignettes of which I have already discussed two in previous blog entries (To Everything there is a Season, published 12/31/2016; Humans themselves are beasts, published 3/24/2018).  Since both of these articles were fairly long by themselves, I will not repeat them here.  Rather, I will present my translation and a summary of their content and purpose within the book as a whole.  The remaining vignette deals with the situation in which mankind lives his daily life and the contradictions that entails.

TEXT OF CHAPTER 3

.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.

.[Wfn: r/q[}l' t[ew“	t['f'l; t[e	tWml; t[ew“	td<l,l; t[e	2
.t/nb]li t[ew“	6/rp]li t[e	a/Pr“li t[ew“	g/rh}l' t[e	3
.d/qr“ t[ew“	d/ps] t[e	q/jc]li t[ew“	t/Kb]li t[e	4
.qBej'me qjor“li t[ew“	q/bj}l' t[e	μynIb;a} s/nK] t[ew“	μynIb;a} Ëyliv]h'l] t[e	5
.Ëyliv]h'l] t[ew“	r/mv]li t[e	dBea'l] t[ew“	vQeb'l] t[e	6
.rBed'l] t[ew“	t/vj}l' t[e	r/Pt]li t[ew“	['/rq]li t[e	7
.μ/lv; t[ew“	hm;j;l]mi t[e	anoc]li t[ew“	bhoa‘l, t[e	8

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 apart) Time to remain silent Time to love Time of war

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)

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.  By implication, the scope of God’s purpose for life under the sun includes the entire scope of human experiences, and all of them are appropriate in their time based on God’s intended final result.  However, man’s subjective experience of these events is somewhat differant.  That is the topic of the next vignette.

.lme[; aWh rv,a}B' hc,/[h; ˆ/rt]YIAhm'''  9

What is the benefit of the laborer in what he does?

lme[; …' hc,/[h;            These two roots are related in semantic content.  The first, hc,/[h; is a definite qal participle used as the subject of the clause. It refers to the individual who does something.  The second is an adjective with the verbal significance toiling.  It typically refers to work requiring effort and even pain.

The overall verse is a rhetorical question.  Solomon has already stated that he has found no enduring benefit for all the labor, toil, and effort a man might expend.  This gloomy outlook is underscored by the above set 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, 11

.5/sAd['w“ varome μyhiloa‘h; hc;[;Arv,a} hc,[}M'h'Ata, μd:a;h;

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 (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 all human being.  Because God 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 men now live their entire lives under the sun with a continual internal conflict.  Evil men are in a state of overt rebellion against God himself; believing men desire to comprehend what God has chosen to keep hidden from them.  This latter fact is abundantly clear from the manifold differences in the content of interpretations men have made from the same passages in the bible.

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 peoples with equity, and we know essentially nothing about eternity past.  In short, our knowledge of God’s purposes is limited to what God himself reveals to us either indirectly through life experience or directly through one of his prophets, and the writings of the prophets are subject to a wide variety of interpretations.

.wyY:j'B] b/f t/c[}l'w“ j'/mc]liAμai yKi μB; b/f ˆyae yKi yTi[]d"y: 12

I know that there is nothing good in them except to enjoy and to practice goodness in his life.

μB; b/f ˆyae yKi yTi[]d"y: This verse almost repeats the content of verse 2:24a, but there are several significant differences.  My translation of the former passage is: ‘There is no good in the man that he should eat and drink and cause his soul to see the good in his toil.’  This passage reads, ‘There is nothing good in them (μB;) except (Aμai yKi) to rejoice and to do good in his life.’  The major interpretive problem is that μB; has no plural antecedent in the previous context.  Three possibilities exist:

1)    The existing text is a scribal error that should really read μd:a;B] -- ‘I know that there is nothing good among men (or in man) except to …’ 

2)    μB; is referring to the list of life experiences listed in verses 3:2 through 3:8 – ‘I know that there is nothing good in the vagaries of life except to…’

3)    μB; could be understood as a forward reference to wyY:j'B].  The noun has a plural form though a singular meaning, but the suffix is ms not mp in form – ‘I know that there is nothing good in one’s (his) life except to…’

The first possibility fits the context very well, and it certainly is within the range of potential scribal errors, but there is no textual evidence for it either in the Hebrew manuscripts or in the early translations.  The second two possibilities end up expressing a similar meaning.  Statements like this occur in 2:24, 3:12, 3:22, 5:18, 8:15, and 9:7-9.  Each one expresses a slightly different meaning, thereby forming one of the major developing themes through the course of the book.

.ayhi μyhiloa‘ tT'm' /lm;[}Alk;B] b/f ha;r:w“ ht;v;w“ lk'aYOv, μd:a;h;AlK; μg"w“ 13

And moreover, any human who eats and drinks and sees good in all of his labor – it is a gift of God.

μd:a;h;AlK; This passage repeats 2:24b with development.  The previous verse asserts that there is nothing good in the man (possibly, Solomon himself) that produces the capacity to enjoy life in general and the fruits of his own labor in specific.  This verse is inclusive. μd:a;h;AlK; refers to all of mankind.  Each and every human who has this life experience has received it as a gift from God.  This is a development from a specific example (stated negatively) to a general principle stated positively.

μl;/[l] hy<h]yI aWh μyhilaoh; hc,[}y" rv,a}AlK; yKi yTi[]d"y: 14

.wyn:p;L]mi WarYIv, hc;[; μyhiloa‘h;w“ ['rog“li ˆyae WNM,miW 5ysi/hl] ˆyae wyl;[;

I know that everything that God does will be for eternity.  Nothing is to be added to it, and nothing will be taken from it; and God has done (this) so that they (men) might fear before him.

μyhilaoh; hc,[}y" rv,a}AlK; The fundamental interpretive problem is whether the expression hc,[}y" rv,a}AlK; should be understood in its collective (everything God does) or its distributive (all things of a particular sort or type) sense.  The earth and the entire physical universe are works of God, yet we know that they had a beginning, and God himself stated that this present creation will end.  Clearly, not everything God has done or made will last eternally.  So, what is the point?  Verse 11 introduces the idea that God’s purpose encompasses eternity, but that purpose cannot be discovered by man.  This present creation has been bent by a curse because of rebellion by God’s own creatures, yet both the human and the spiritual creatures (now called angels by us) will prove to be eternal whether they like it or not, but this present material heaven and earth will have an end so that it can be made new.  Rather, the wording ['rog“li ˆyae WNM,miW 5ysi/hl] ˆyae wyl;[; reflects the commands in Deut 4:2 and 12:32 – neither add to or take from what God has specifically commanded.  (This is echoed by Yeshua – heaven and earth will pass away but my words will remain forever -- Mat 24:35 and 5:19 -- as well as Revelation 21:19.)  Alternatively, this verse may not refer to the present material creation at ll.  Since God’s character is immutable, his judgments, his purposes, and his standards remain unchanged from eternity past to eternity future.

.5D:r“NIAta, vQeb'y“ μyhiloa‘h;w“ hy:h; rb;K] t/yh]li rv,a}w" aWh rb;K] hy:h;V,Ahm' 15

What has been exists already, and what is to be already has existed; but God seeks what is being pursued.

aWh rb;K] hy:h;V,Ahm'   The NASB renders the first clause as ‘That which is already has been.’  The problem with this translation is that 1) aWh is a pronoun and so the subject or the predicate nominative of a verbless clause, 2) the perfect form hy:h; is not the main verb of the clause but bound within a relative clause, 3) rb;K] is classified as an adverb meaning ‘already’ but the Masoretic accents separate it from hy:h;V, (a verb) and join it to aWh (a pronoun).  The NASB translation does not represent what the text states, but the content of the Masoretic text seems to be contradictory.  Apparently the NASB translators have emended the text by interpreting hy:h;V, as the participial form h/<hV, and aWh as if it were hy:h;.  These changes make the first two clauses state essentially the same thing as the first statement in verse 1:9.

Such corruptions as these are certainly possible, but scribes usually do not transform a simple text into a difficult text.  The LXX text supports the Hebrew text as it now stands, so if there was textual corruption, it occurred prior to c. 200 BCE.  If we assume that that the text of the original composition has been accurately preserved, the only relevant question is what could this text signify?  The text in verses 1:9 and 1:10 refer to the monotonous repetition of cyclic events in nature.  The present context addresses God’s eternal purpose from beginning to end, which man wishes to comprehend but cannot.  Now, God’s purposes include the cyclic events of nature but extend far beyond them.  Verse 3:11 states than man has eternity in his heart but in such a way that he cannot comprehend God’s purposes.  However, man can comprehend some portion of God’s eternal purposes – the portion that has already happened and is part of our history as a race of beings.  In that sense, the portion of God’s purposes that have taken place in history already exist in a form we can perceive, even if we cannot understand it fully.  Similarly, that which is to come really does exist already.  It has existed from eternity past in the mind and purpose of God, but it remains hidden from men’s eyes and experience until it happens in time.

5D:r“NIAta, vQeb'y“ μyhiloa‘h;w“ This clause stands in contrast to the first two but is no less of an enigma.  God is not part of this material creation and is not bound by its limitations.  The finite verb vQeb'y“ states that God is actively seeking (habitual or ‘gnomic’ use of the imperfect) something.  The direct object 5D:r“NIAta, is peculiar.  Formally, it is a niphal participle from the root 5dr (pursue); it is indefinite, but it is introduced by Ata,, which normally is used only with a definite direct object.  The LXX renders the form with to;n diwkovmenon, which is a definite passive participle meaning ‘the thing being pursued.’  If we accept the LXX as a reflection of the original text (equivalent to 5D:r“NIh'Ata,), then what is being pursued, and why should God seek after it?

First, 5D:r“NI is a passive participle, which means that the thing is being pursued by somebody, and use of the participial form implies this pursuit has been unsuccessful.  There are only two agents in this context – God and humans.  God is the subject of the clause and could also be the active agent with respect to the thing being pursued.  However, throughout this entire context Solomon as a representative man is pursuing understanding.  The immediately preceding context indicates that humans in general desire to understand God’s eternal purposes but can never succeed in this pursuit.  So let me suggest that the thing being pursued is God’s secret purposes behind this present creation, and human beings are the ones in pursuit. 

vQeb'y“ μyhiloa‘h;w“ If man is the one who is pursuing, then what is God seeking and why?  The answer to this question might be resolved in the usage of the verbal root vqb.  The fundamental root meaning of the verb is ‘seek,’ but it also has a range of related uses such as ‘desire, demand, exact, request.’  God has revealed throughout the scriptures that the final judgment and resolution of all inequities that occur under the sun constitutes one of his major eternal purposes.  Men claim to pursue justice and equity, but what usually results is a travesty of these terms.  Micah 6:8 states:  ‘It has been told to you, oh man, what is good and what YHWH seeks from you: to do justice, to love mercy (covenant loyalty), and to walk humbly with your God.’  A different root (vrd) is used for ‘seek,’ but vrd is a more common root having essentially the same range of meanings as vqb.  This understanding of the verse is consistent with the content of the following two verses.

[v'r<h; hM;v; fP;v]Mih' μ/qm] vm,V;h' tj'T' ytiair: d/[w“ 16

.[v'r:h; hM;v; qd<X,h' μ/qm]W

Yet still, I see under the sun instead of judgment there is wickedness
And instead of the righteous man there is the criminal.

ytiair: d/[w“ When the term d/[ is used as an adverb, it expresses continuance or continuity, and it may be rendered by ‘still, yet, again.’  The vav conjunction has been rendered above with an adversative sense due to an apparent contrast between this verse and what God appears to be seeking in men.  ytiair: is a qal perfect form, but the perfect form with verbs of perception frequently express a stative idea, which may be rendered by an English present tense.  The overall force of the first clause is this:  ‘Despite what God seeks (demands or requires), I continue to see (perceive) on the earth under the sun…’

[v'r:h; hM;v; qd<X,h' μ/qm]W [v'r<h; hM;v; fP;v]Mih' μ/qm] These two phrases are exactly parallel.  fP;v]Mih' μ/qm] – the place of the judgment - qd<X,h' μ/qm] – the place of the righteousness.  There is no exact parallel to these expressions anywhere else in the Hebrew scriptures, so it is not possible to determine if Solomon is making a reference to a specific kind of location.  However, BDB lists a special syntactical usage of μ/qm] (a construct form use) in which ‘place of’ is equivalent to ‘instead of.’  This is the meaning that has been used in the above translation.  In the first clause, [v'r<h; ‘wickedness’ has become the substitute for right judgment; in the second, [v'r:h; ‘the criminal’ has become the substitute for the righteous man.  Both of these assertions are so consistent with each of our daily experiences that we – or at least I – have come to expect it, especially in public figures.

μyhiloa‘h; fPov]yI [v;r:h;Ata,w“ qyDIx'h'Ata, yBiliB] ynIa} yTir“m'a; 17

.μv; hc,[}M'h'AlK; l['w“ 6p,jeAlk;l] t[eAyKi

I said within my heart, ‘God will judge both the righteous one and the criminal, because (there is allocated) time for every matter (delight) and concerning every deed there.’

yBiliB] ynIa} yTir“m'a; This expression appears in slightly different forms five times in the first half of the book (1:16, 2:1, 2:15, 3:17, and 3:18).  Each time it introduces a significant conclusion drawn from the preceding discussion.  Here the discussion has centered on man’s unsuccessful pursuit of God’s eternal purposes and what God requires of man.  Man has substituted his own perversion of God’s purposes (wickedness and criminality instead of honest judgment and righteousness).  His conclusion is that God will impose his judgment on both the righteous and the criminal alike, so God’s eternal purpose will be established.  The expression is again based on a merism, so Solomon is asserting that all human beings will stand before the judgment seat of God, just as Paul (Shaul) wrote about 900 years later.

μv; hc,[}M'h'AlK; l['w“ 6p,jeAlk;l] t[eAyKi The clause is introduced by yKi, which is a conjunction that may be rendered by ‘that, for, when, because,’ depending on context.  Here, it introduces the basis for his conclusion in the first clause.  6p,jeAlk;l] t[e  is a repetition of the usage found in verse 3:1.  Refer to that discussion for an explanation for the peculiarity of this usage.  hc,[}M'h'AlK; l['w“ could be understood either collectively or distributively.  I have opted for the collective interpretation because of the merism that introduces the verse.  The term μv; is something of an interpretive puzzle.  Grammatically, it is the adverb ‘there,’ but one would expect some indication within the immediate context to identify what location is being referred to.  The LXX omits the term from its text; some interpreters attempt to emend the text, and some interpreters merely render it literally without explanation.  As a suggestion: Solomon has stated that God’s eternal purposes are beyond the grasp or understanding of mankind, but they will be established.  One of those purposes is the final establishment of justice and righteousness.  That will take place outside the bounds of this life and this present creation.  ‘There’ is where God will finally establish his righteous standard of rule without the curse under which we now all live.  As before, this implies continuity of human life beyond death.

μyhiloa‘h; μr:b;l] μd:a;h; ynEB] tr"b]DIAl[' yBiliB] ynIa} yTir“m'a; 18

.μh,l; hM;he hm;heB]Aμh,v] t/ar“li

I said within my heart concerning the manner of mankind, God has been testing them that they may see that they themselves are beasts.

hz< t/m ˆKe hz< t/mK] μh,l; dj;a, hr<q]miW hm;heB]h' hr<q]miW μd:a;h;AynEb] hr<q]mi yKi 19

.lb,h; lKoh' yKi ˆyIa; hm;heB]h'Aˆmi μd:a;h; rt'/mW lKol] dj;a, jWrw“

For one and the same fortune befalls both the human and the beast in that one dies just like the other and both have the same breath.  So the human has no advantage over the beast, for everything is an illusion.

.rp;[;h,Aal, bv; lKoh'w“ rp;[;h,Aˆmi hy:h; lKoh' dj;a, μ/qm;Ala, Ële/h lKoh' 20

Both are going to the same place: both were taken from the dust and both are returning to the dust.

hl;[]m;l] ayhi hl;[oh; μd:a;h; ynEB] j'Wr ['dEwOy ymi 21

.6r<a;l; hF;m'l] ayhi td<r<YOh' hm;heB]h' j'Wrw“

Who knows whether the spirit of humans go upwards while the spirit of the beast goes downward to the ground?

/ql]j, aWhAyKi wyv;[}m'B] μd:a;h; jm'c]yI rv,a}me b/f ˆyae yKi ytiyair:w“ 22

.wyr:j}a' hy<h]YIv, hm,B] t/ar“li WNa,ybiy“ ymi yKi

So I have seen that there is nothing better than that the human should rejoice in his toil, because that is his portion.  For who will be able to bring him to see what will be after him?

As previously mentioned, this vignette has been covered in a previous blog posting.  The point of the text is that from all external appearances there is little or no difference between the physical/material life of a human and that of a beast.  Therefore, the most beneficial thing any human can do is to seek to find enjoyment and contentment within his present life circumstances (without forgetting that God ultimately will judge both the righteous and the wicked).  All those who succeed in doing so receive this capacity as a gift from God.