Queen's Road Cell

  A good name is better than precious ointment,      and the day of death than the day of birth. 2  It is better to go to the house of mourning      than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind,      and the living will lay it to heart. 3  Sorrow is better than laughter,      for by sadness of face the heart is made glad. 4  The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,      but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. 5  It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise      than to hear the song of fools. 6  For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,      so is the laughter of the fools;      this also is vanity 7  Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,      and a bribe corrupts the heart. 8  Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,      and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. 9  Be not quick in your spirit to become angry,      for anger lodges in the heart of fools. 10  Say not, “Why were the former day

  7  All the toil of man is for his mouth, yet his appetite is not satisfied 8  For what advantage has the wise man over the fool? And what does the poor man have who knows how to conduct himself before the living? 9  Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite: this also is vanity and a striving after wind. 10  Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he. 11  The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? 12  For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?   In this study we see Qoheleth asking many questions and not providing answers. We will unpack his thought in 3 parts to unravel his meanings: v.7-9 (What is Qoheleth saying here?) v.10-11 (Compare the idea of naming in Gen 2:19-20 and Psalm 91:14-15) v.12 (How do these

  There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: 2  a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil. 3  If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life's good things, and he also has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4  For it comes in vanity and goes in darkness, and in darkness its name is covered. 5  Moreover, it has not seen the sun or known anything, yet it finds rest rather than he. 6  Even though he should live a thousand years twice over, yet enjoy no good—do not all go to the one place?     1. Qoheleth continues his reflection on greed and wealth. What new ideas does he raise as seen in the contrast between his stories in 5:18-20 and 6:1-6? In contrast