Ecclesiastes 9:1-12

Carpe Diem – Ecclesiastes 9:1–12

Main Theme: Because life is brief and death is certain, believers should seize the day by trusting God’s sovereignty, enjoying His gifts, and living faithfully in the present.

1. God Is Sovereign Over All (vv. 1–3)

• Solomon reflects personally—“I considered all this in my heart”—and concludes that the righteous and the wicked alike are in God’s hand .

• Life’s circumstances cannot be decoded as signs of God’s approval or disapproval.

• Righteous and wicked, clean and unclean, the one who sacrifices and the one who doesn’t—all meet the same end: death.

• Human sin is irrational madness, and death is a universal “disaster.”

2. Life Is Better Than Death—While There Is Life, There Is Hope (vv. 4–6)

• Even a despised living dog is better than a majestic dead lion.

• The living still possess opportunity—time to repent, to hope, to enjoy God’s gifts.

• The dead can no longer participate in life “under the sun”; their earthly stewardship is over.

• Solomon’s limited Old Testament view contrasts with the Gospel: Christ has abolished death and brought immortality to light.

3. God Approves of Joyful, Ordinary Life (vv. 7–10)

• Eat, drink, and rejoice—these are God’s good gifts, not guilty pleasures.

• White garments and oil represent festivity, joy, and God’s blessing.

• Husbands and wives should actively enjoy one another—marriage is God’s portion to you.

• Work diligently: use your God-given gifts with faithfulness and gratitude, not as idolatry.

4. Human Skill Cannot Guarantee Outcomes (vv. 11–12)

• The swift don’t always win; the strong don’t always triumph.

• Life is marked by unforeseen providences—not randomness, but God’s hidden guidance.

• Fish caught in nets and birds in snares illustrate how suddenly “evil times” fall on us.

• Therefore, live humbly, trusting God rather than your abilities.

Takeaway:

Seize the day by trusting God’s sovereignty, enjoying His good gifts, living joyfully and faithfully, and anchoring your hope in Christ, who conquers death.

1. Passage Overview

Ecclesiastes 9 is Solomon’s sober reflection on life in a fallen world. In a world where death is certain and outcomes are unpredictable, God calls His people to joyful trust, humble living, and a life shaped by hope in the One who overcomes death.

2. Key Themes

A. God’s Sovereignty Over All Human Life

• “The righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God” (v. 1).

• Solomon dismantles a mechanical view of providence—good behavior does not guarantee predictable outcomes.

• Historical note: Ancient Near Eastern pagans treated their gods as transactional vending machines. Solomon rejects this entirely.

New Testament Fulfillment:
Christ Himself demonstrates perfect trust in the Father’s sovereign will (Luke 22:42).

B. The Certainty of Death and the Opportunity of Life

• Death comes to all—righteous or wicked.

• The comparison of a living dog vs. a dead lion highlights that life affords opportunity; death ends earthly stewardship.

• Old Testament understanding of Sheol was shadowy; Christ brings clarity and hope (2 Tim. 1:10).

C. Joy as a Gift From God, Not a Guilty Pleasure

• Eating, drinking, marriage, work—ordinary things—are affirmed as God’s blessings.

• Joy is not worldliness; joy is obedience when received with gratitude in God’s presence.

D. The Limits of Human Ability

• Wisdom, strength, skill, and speed cannot secure outcomes.

• What appears as “chance” is actually God’s hidden providence unfolding.

3. Westminster Standards Connections

A. Providence

• Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF 5.1):
  God “upholds, directs, disposes, and governs all creatures, actions, and things.”
  Applied: Life’s unpredictability in Ecclesiastes 9 is not randomness but God’s wise governance.

• WCF 5.5:
  God’s providence often includes the righteous suffering for their sanctification.
  Applied: Solomon’s observation that the righteous and wicked suffer alike is consistent with God’s fatherly purposes.

B. Marriage and Earthly Blessings

• WCF 24.2:
  Marriage is for mutual help.
  Applied: “Live joyfully with the wife whom you love” (v. 9) is God’s intended design.

• WLC 135–136 (Sixth Commandment):
  Commands us to preserve our own and our neighbor’s life with joy, rest, and cheerfulness.
  Applied: Receiving God’s gifts with joy is obedience, not indulgence.

C. Good Works and Vocation

• Shorter Catechism (WSC 1):
  Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
  Applied: Daily joys (bread, wine, work, marriage) are means of glorifying and enjoying God.

• WSC 39–40:
  Duty of man toward God includes wholehearted obedience.
  Applied: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” (v. 10).

D. Death and Eternal Life

• WLC 84–87:
  Death is the wages of sin, yet believers’ souls are perfected in holiness at death and their bodies rest in union with Christ.
  Applied: Solomon’s realism about death is completed by Christ’s victory over death.

4. Historical & Literary Context

• Ecclesiastes as Wisdom Literature:
  Designed to teach how to live well in a broken world.

• Solomon’s old-age reflections:
  The sermon notes accurately reflect that “old man Solomon” looks back over decades of observations.

• Cultural Note: Dogs were unclean scavengers; lions symbolized royalty—thus the proverb is shocking.

5. Practical Applications

A. Trust God When Life Doesn’t Make Sense

• Don’t interpret God’s favor or displeasure by your circumstances.

• Look to Christ, the righteous one who suffered unjustly.

B. Enjoy God’s Gifts Without Guilt

• Meals, marriage, work, friendship, and even simple pleasures are tokens of God’s fatherly kindness.

• Joy is not only allowed—it is commanded.

C. Live With Urgency and Gratitude

• You have breath today; therefore, repent today, rejoice today, obey today.

D. Work Diligently but Not Idolatrously

• Work is good; overwork is not.

• Steward your gifts with a restful heart.

E. Humble Yourself Under God’s Providence

• Outcomes are in God’s hands, not yours.

• Prepare plans, but hold them loosely.

Will you please turn with me to Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes chapter 9. This morning we'll be looking at verses 1 through 12. Ecclesiastes chapter 9 verses 1 through 12.

There's a story about John Calvin, as you're flipping there by the way, that's on page 593. John Calvin, if you don't know, one time was pastor of Geneva, Switzerland, the church there, and well, they didn't like him after a while, and so they kindly asked him to leave at sword point. And so he went, and he was a pastor for a while out in another part of Switzerland, and eventually the church invited him to come back and be their pastor. And so he came back, and after a period of, I think it was like seven years of him being gone, he picked up on the next verse, where he had left off seven years before.

Well, it's only been about four weeks, so we're gonna pick right back up on the next verse in Ecclesiastes chapter nine, verse one. I do gotta say, Just as a personal point of privilege here, thank you for caring for my family. The saints on the other side of the globe thank you as well. Many of them specifically said, please tell the church there, thank you for giving you up to come and help us.

Let's look at God's word, Ecclesiastes chapter 9. For I considered all this in my heart, so that I could declare it all, that the righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God. People know neither love nor hatred by anything they see before them. All things come alike to all. One of it happens to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good, the clean, and the unclean. To him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As is the good, so is the sinner. He who takes an oath, as he who fears an oath. This is an evil and all that is done under the sun.

That one thing happens to all. Truly the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil. Madness is in their hearts while they live. And after that they go to the dead. But for him who is joined to all the living, there is hope. For a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die. But the dead know nothing. And they have no more reward. For the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished. Nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun.

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already accepted your works. Let your garments always be white, and let your head lack no oil. Live joyfully with a wife whom you love all the days of your vain life which she has given you under the sun. All your days are a vanity. For that is your portion in life and in the labor which you perform under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. For there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

I returned and saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favor to men of skill, but time and chance happen to them all. For man does not know his time, like fish taken in a cruel net, like birds caught in a snare, So the sons of men are snared in an evil time when it falls suddenly upon them.

Well, in the reading of God's word there, the grass withers, the flower will fade, but the word of our God endures forever. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your word. Every jot, every tittle, the smallest stroke of the pen is true. And so Father, we trust that what you have spoken out by the power of your spirit is true, it is profitable, it teaches us, it corrects us, it trains us, it reproves us. So Father, we pray that you would thoroughly equip us for every good work. We pray that your spirit might make the reading and the preaching of your word effectual to salvation and for the building up of your people. Lord, please be with me. I pray that you would use my foolish brain and this mouth to impart grace and wisdom to those who hear. Father, please, we need your help to teach us. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Solomon, once again, comes to the point where he's just looking at life. This is him personally. Right, the preacher, the leader of the congregation, notice in verse one, for I considered. And this is old man Solomon looking at all the different friends he's had in life, all the acquaintances, all the relations, as he's seen people rise and fall in his kingdom, he's making observations of things that he's given over to his heart. And where I've titled the sermon is exactly where I want you to go home with. Seize the day. Carpe diem, the Latin phrase, carpe diem, seize the day. Today is the day the Lord has given you. We don't know what's gonna happen tomorrow. That's not our business. But there are good things that God's given us in our life today. And so while you have life today, seize life for God's glory.

So first, I want you to look with me at verses one through three about how our God is sovereign. Verses one through three. For I considered all this in my heart, so that I could declare it all, that the righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God. Did you notice that? In verse one, he's pondering this in his heart. The Hebrew there, for I considered all this, is I gave it all to my heart. He's churning over it, he's thinking about it, he's wrestling with it in his heart. And what he comes to as he observes people's lives, both the wise and the righteous, what does he see? They're in God's hand. They're in God's control. God's the one who knows their works. God's the one who knows their life.

Even though people know neither love nor hatred by anything they see before them. But there's a problem that Solomon observes in verse two. Everything happens, it seems, similarly. One thing happens to the righteous and to the wicked. He uses opposite ends of the spectrum here. Right? So one thing happens to the righteous, and what happens to the wicked? The same thing. They both die. What about for the good? What about for the bad? Same thing. What about for the clean and for the unclean? They both die. What about for the one who sacrifices and the one who won't sacrifice? Both of them die. What about for the one who is good and the other one who's a sinner? They both die. What about the one who is willing to take an oath or the other one who's afraid of taking oaths? What happens to both of them? The same thing that happens to one happens to the other. Six different pairs here. representing all of Israel's life, clean, unclean, righteous, wicked, sacrifice, non-sacrifice, oath, no oath, right? Everything moral, everything that's meant to be about who they are, both ceremonially and morally clean and unclean, righteous and wicked. He says the same thing happens to all of them.

And then notice what he says in verse three. This is an evil. The word evil there is the Hebrew word rach, which means it can be like destruction or something disastrous. And that's how I think it should be taken in this instance. This is a disaster and all that is done under the sun. That one thing happens to all. But then notice what he says after that. Truly the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil. Madness is in their hearts while they live. And after that, they go to the dead.

Solomon says this is what happens to all of us, right? We all have this disaster happen upon us. Why? Because all of us have that same madness of evil. I remember one time I was talking to someone, they were really trying to figure out, why did this person do these things? And they were going on for a while, like, maybe this, maybe that, but why didn't this, and why didn't... They were trying to work out all the contingencies of this person's soul for a logical reason, why they would commit this sin, and I just had to tell them, like, look, sin is inherently irrational. It's madness.

We may try to convince ourselves of all sorts of reasons for doing immoral things, but at the end of the day, It's an evil, it's madness, it's in our hearts while we live, but after that, they go to the dead, to Sheol. And so, see, what Solomon's doing here is, some people have this simplistic understanding of the wisdom literature, mainly because a lot of people love the Proverbs, and things like Ecclesiastes are harder to wrestle with.

But some people will come to the book of Proverbs and they treat it like a math equation. If I do A, then B is going to happen. If I live a good life, if I seek these good things, then thus B is going to happen. But that's not the case. Nor is it vice versa. Right, when you remember Job's friends, right? God must be bringing you these horrible things in your life because you're wicked. You must have hated the widow. You must have turned your back on the poor. You must have charged usury. You must have done these wicked things, and that's why God is treating you this way.

But that's not real life. Solomon's saying you can't decode providence that way. No, and, That's treating God like the ancient Near Eastern pagans did. You can use God as a tool for certain things. If I just make these certain sacrifices, and if I could just do these certain things, then my future is going to be secure. But God's not some type of vending machine that we just put in the right amount of quarters, press the right buttons, and then the right thing that we want for life pops out and goes to the bottom and we get to enjoy it. That's not how God works. He is sovereign.

In Israel, Solomon here is, and all the scriptures show us that that is not how the Lord operates. The wisdom literature acknowledges that the righteous, being righteous does not guarantee predictable outcomes. Because still the righteous suffer in this life and die. The clean may still suffer and die. There may still be hardships and calamities. Solomon is dismantling the idea that we get to look at our lives and we can interpret how God feels about us by the circumstances we're in.

I mean, just think about if Joseph treated his life like that. Right? You know the Joseph I'm talking about? The one who is thrown into a pit by his brothers and sold into slavery? The one who was falsely accused of putting on to Potiphar's wife and then thrown into prison? The one who rotted in prison even after he told the baker and the cupbearer of what was going to happen? If he had looked at his life and said, look, I know I'm righteous, and so my life should be good. But no, see, what's the mystery that we find? We find that What Joseph tells his brothers, that what you intended for evil, God meant for good. So we don't look at the circumstances of our lives and go, oh, okay, God must be happy with me if I'm doing X, Y, and Z, because this good thing is coming. That's not how God works.

But even better than Joseph, I turn your eyes to Jesus. In Luke chapter 22, Jesus is on the mountain, he's about to be betrayed and to die. Luke 22 41 through 44 says, And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw. And he knelt down and prayed, saying, Father, if it is your will, take this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony, he prayed more earnestly. Then his sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground."

If there was ever any person who could say that there was a real injustice done to a righteous person, it's Jesus. And yet he still submits himself to God's hand, knowing Even though in this life we may look at things and think why is this horrible unrighteous thing happening to me? We can know that we have a heavenly father who cares for us Solomon states that the doctrine That God is sovereign Everything is in his hand so we trust him as a good and loving father and Christ models that for us and So seize the day, brothers and sisters. And by that, this morning, I mean seize the Lord himself.

It doesn't seem like this just person went to, they died so early in their life, and yet this old person gets to live until they're 90. Guess what? The beauty is we don't have to be in charge of those questions. Today is a day that you get to trust. And to say, Father, I believe in you, and all things are in your hands, and so I leave it to you to make the judgments. Because one thing I know for sure, unless Jesus returns again, we're all gonna die. So I don't need to be in charge of the end product of all of this. You can seize trust knowing that God is in control, and you can take your Father's hand knowing that Christ has proved that it is trustworthy.

But secondly, look with me at verses four through six. There's a contrast here between death and life in verses four through six. But for him who is joined to all the living, there is hope. For a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing. And they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished. Nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun.

I love this comparison. A living dog to a dead lion. I mean, lions are strong, they're powerful, they're seen even when we think of Jesus coming as the lion of the tribe of Judah, right? The one of strength, that his roar makes the animals and people tremble. And yet a dead lion is just, the only thing it's good for is for the ravens to come and pick its body. And yet a dog. We may miss some of this, but dogs are, Unclean creatures to Israelites. You don't let them in your house You don't let them snuggle with you in bed. They're unclean. They belong outside and I mean this is in the place I was for the last three weeks This is how they treated dogs You walk down the market street and there's a dog is all mangy missing half its fur ain't got a collar who brought it there who knows who owns a dog who knows and what's it eat the trash and the rats and But at least that mangy, ugly dog is alive compared to the lion who's rotting away dead. That's Solomon's picture here. Even though the lion may be royal and the dog despised, at least the dog has an opportunity to live, still has capability in life.

Why? Well, he's using that as a picture, but he's saying in verse 5, right? Because you know, now, for the living know, verse 5, that they will die. We know someday we're going to die. If you don't know you're going to die someday, newsflash, you're going to. I know it's shocking, right? But if you think I'm wrong, after church, let's take a walk next door. That's where we're all gonna go unless Jesus returns beforehand.

It's an advantage for us because we're alive that we know we're going to die. Why? Because we can still embrace the Lord. We can still enjoy His good gifts. We can still come to Him. There is still reward to be had in this life. We can still work, we can still love, we can still enjoy, and we can even foster the fruits of the Spirit. We can build communities. There are good things that bring God glory that we can do.

But the dead, nothing. Even the pictures that we have in Revelation of those saints that have gone into glory and are sitting in heaven, they can't do anything about what's going on on earth. Are there even those people who think that you can pray to those who are in heaven, maybe they'll be able to intercede for you? No, they don't. They're praying for themselves to God, even when those who are in heaven and they're martyred, they were killed for their faith. Do you know what they're praying about for the earth? Lord, how long until we're avenged? They can't do anything to avenge themselves on earth. They can't do anything other than praise God and pray to Him. There's no more for them once we die.

The dead know nothing and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Once someone is dead, there's no rehabilitating that reputation. There's no starting to build a legacy once they're in the grave. Nobody wants to think about them anymore. But what went down to the grave with them? Their love, their hatred, their envy. Evermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun. All the sinful emotional attributes that were done here on earth are gone.

Life under the sun, Solomon believes, is more meaningful to you than to anybody who's in their grave right now. See, this is part of the beliefs of the ancient Near East. People would go down to the grave, Sheol, and it's just like this shadowy existence. That's just kind of how the Old Testament would talk about the grave, Sheol. doesn't give us much. Actually, we find out way more about what happens after death from the lips of Jesus, and especially the rest of the books of the New Testament. But in the Old Testament, it was a shadowy thing. People went down to the depths, they go down to the grave, but they didn't quite know exactly what was going on there. But what they did know is that once you go down there, there's no more. Earthly stewardship ends. There's a separation between the living and the dead that seems to not be able to be overcome.

But notice, but for him who is joined to all the living, there is hope. Why is there hope? Specifically for us this morning, I want to encourage you that there is hope because death isn't the final thing. 2 Timothy 1, verse 10, or verses 8 through 11, but specifically verse 10. Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.

And now notice with me. Verse 10, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel to which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and a teacher of the Gentiles.

See, Solomon sees Sheol going down to the grave as bleak and shadowy, and he doesn't know what to do with it other than you're just there. But the gospel tells us that, hold on, Jesus has abolished death because like the first fruit, he was put into the ground, but he rose up from the grave, and he ascended up into heaven, and our life is now hidden in Christ. This is why Jesus was able to say, though you die, surely you will yet live. See, Christ has abolished death.

Now, we're waiting for the last great day. when the same way in which he went up, so he will also come down at the last trumpet, at the twinkling of the eye, there will be the resurrection of the dead, and that we will receive life eternal. So Solomon says that life is the only hope that can be exercised, but Jesus tells us that life continues beyond death because he lives.

So do you have any hope, or is the grave just a shadowy existence for you? Brothers and sisters, seize the hope of Jesus today while you still have breath in your lungs. Seize the hope that is found in Jesus Christ today. There is good news offered to you today, and that hope expires the day you die. Once you go down to the grave, If you are not in Christ at that point, you are outside of Christ. It is only now, while you have air in your lungs, that there is hope, and so I plead with you today. Seize the gospel. Cling to Jesus Christ as your only hope in life and death.

But thirdly, Solomon goes on, even about just this life, verses 7 through 10, about what God does approve. Okay, so Sheol's on that side, death is on that side, but what about today? Look with me at verses 7 through 10.

go eat your bread with joy drink your wine with a merry heart for god has already accepted your works let your garments always be white and let your head lack no oil live joyfully with a wife whom you love all the days of your vain life which he has given you under the sun all your days of vanity For that is your portion in life, and the labor which you perform under the sun. Whatever your hands find to do, do it with all your might. For there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

Seize the day with the ordinary gifts that God's given you while you got light in your eyeballs. There's good things that God's given you today. We pray, Father, give us this day our daily bread. So don't eat it with bitterness. God's given you bread, so go downstairs and enjoy a donut. I'm not saying eat the whole box of donuts, but maybe half a donut. But the point is, if God's given you good gifts, you can eat it. Let your heart be made merry by the wine, right? Is this the whole idea? Like when you're drinking that wine, feel it go down into your belly and making it warm and thank God. Let your life be filled with joy, right? We weren't called by a sovereign God so we could just be frozen grumpies, right, all day long, the frozen chosen. Right? We don't want to talk to each other. We don't want to have any joy because then maybe that would be a bad thing.

No, God's given us good gifts. Which one of you, when you give your children a birthday gift, do you go, don't you dare show any happiness when you open this gift? Don't you dare enjoy this? Now, can that gift that we give our children be used in a sinful way? Yes, of course. That's not what this is talking about, though. This is saying, while you're still alive, while you're breathing God's air, enjoy the good things he's giving you.

No, it's an imperative. Take action towards joy. Make your heart drink and your heart with a merry heart for God has already accepted your works. God's already approved your works. This is God saying he knows you and he's given you good gifts. So take them with an open hand.

But he also says in verse Eight, that we're to let our garments always be white and let your head lack no oil. This is a symbol in the ancient Near East of festivity and of cleanness, of joy and well-being. The point is that as you walk through your life, there's a time to weep and there's a time to rejoice. And when it's that time to rejoice, rejoice. Now if it's a time for sorrow, put on the black and grieve well. But when there's days that God has given you sunshine through the windows, take a deep breath and smile. Feel the warmth on your skin. Remember that his grace is good for you. Let your head lack no oil. Enjoy God's blessing.

But notice verse nine. I love verse nine. Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your vain life, which he has given you under the sun, all your days of vanity. For that is your portion in life and in the labor which you perform under the sun.

Hey, guys. Here's a really hard commandment. Ready for it? Love and enjoy your wife. I mean, like, this is a real hard check. Do you actually enjoy spending time with your wife? I mean, I know that as the years go on, there may be things that bug you and nag at you and cut you the wrong way. You become overly sensitive on things. Do you love your wife? There's all sorts of horrible things that can happen in your life. But guess what? You have somebody by your side. He who finds a good wife, finds a wife, finds a good thing. God's given you your spouse as a blessing to you.

For your wives, I think this goes for you as well. I was just in a church, and in the last two years, four widows in that church I was praying with, in this rural area. All of them, their husbands, were under 50. Four young widows in that congregation. You don't know how long your husband's gonna be with you. Are you there encouraging them and loving them and knowing that God has even given you a good gift in your husband? This is God's gift to you. Your whole life may seem vain. Like you're toiling for all this stuff. You earn money and it slips out your fingers. You repair the house and it goes into chaos. You do the laundry and there's more dirty laundry. You fix the car and the car breaks down. You do all the things and all the other things still happen. Man, this life can seem vain. But you have a spouse. Praise God. Enjoy the good things that God has given you.

And then verse 10. Whatever you find your hand to do, do with all your might. For there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. God has given you gifts, God's given you skills, God's given you wisdom and ability. Some of you are able to make things and create things, and some of you are able to clean things and administrate things and heal stuff and teach things, and God has given you those good gifts, so use them for the glory of God.

It's not a bad thing to work. God created work, Genesis chapter two, before people screwed up work in Genesis chapter three. We're the problem, we don't like to work, Because we got bad attitudes about work. But then there's also the saying that creeps into especially American culture where people have taken this verse in verse 10, whatever you find, whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might. And boy, some bosses really love that because they want to squeeze every drop of efficiency and work out of you. This is not saying you work yourself so bad that you can't even sleep. That's not what this is saying.

But as we find the things that God's given us to do, work is good. You don't need to be ashamed if you like to work. Do it with all your might to the glory of God, whether you eat or whether you drink or whatever you do, do it all under the glory of God. Because when we go, we close our eyes, our body will rest in the grave until the resurrection. You'll have a good long nap, don't worry about it. Someday you'll wake up and your eyes will see Christ again, but your body still being united to Christ will rest in the grave.

Solomon roots joy, love, and labor in God's creation of the world, not in self-indulgence. This isn't telling us to become a bunch of hedonists. Solomon gives us instead enjoyment, relationship, and work as God-given gifts, not as idols, but as gifts. So again, it's Jesus himself who taught us this. He taught us to pray to our Father in heaven, give us this day our daily bread. It's also Jesus who gave us a model of this. When Jesus was at a wedding feast, did he say, oh no, no, no, I can't eat any bread, I can't drink any wine because maybe I'll be a glutton or a drunkard. No. No, he was able to eat and drink to the glory of God.

Sometimes he would purposely not eat. And his disciples would be like, whoa, what's wrong with you, Jesus? You need to eat. And he'd say, I have food from heaven that you don't know about. But the point is, is that Jesus gives us even this model that there are times to be weary and to just go away. And when the crowds are pressing upon him, there are times that Jesus said, no, I'm not doing this anymore. And he would depart, and he would go, and he would have a respite, and he would pray and just regroup with his disciples. But when he was working, he was working.

God has enabled us by the indwelling of his Holy Spirit to eat and drink and to do all things for his glory. So brothers and sisters, seize the joy in the good things God has given you today. Maybe you just need to just take a moment and put down your pen and grab your spouse's hand so they know that you still love them and that they're a gift from God to you. Maybe you need to sip a cup of coffee downstairs and remember, as it warms your belly, that's a good gift from the Lord. Maybe when somebody asks you how work is going today, instead of grumbling and complaining about it, you can say, you know it was hard, but I'm thankful to have a job. Seize the day, Christian. Seize God's glory as you live your life. But also know, For our last point, skill can't guarantee outcomes, verses 11 and 12. I returned and saw under the sun that the race is not for the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor the bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favor to men of skill, but time and chance happen to them all. for man also does not know his time, like fish taken in a cruel net, like birds caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared in an evil time when it falls suddenly upon them."

Again, six different reversals here. Swift, do not win the race. The strong don't win the battle. The wise don't get the bread. The discerning don't obtain the riches. The knowledgeable don't get the favor. Why? Time and, as the New King James Version puts it here, chance happened to them all.

And it illustrates this, right? You could be the fastest fish in the pond, and yet somebody throws down a net, and you're caught up in it. You can be the smoothest flying bird in the air, but you land on the wrong piece of ground, and a snare catches your foot and takes you up. Solomon's attacking a basic human presupposition, a basic human idea that we hold assumed in ourselves, that if we're skillful enough, we'll be able to do the things of this life, and we may be even able to skirt death for a while. He says, no. No.

Now, I want to lean in here, right, because he says, Well, we know that time happens to us all because, again, this is talking about death. Eventually, you're going to run out of time. The Lord numbers our days. He's the one who has appointed our time. But yet, in the ancient Near East, the idea was that, like, chance was this idea that, like, there were tablets, and your whole life was, like, written on these tablets, and at any point, some little demigod could come and steal the tablets from a stronger god and run off and ruin your life. And that's not the picture here. It's not blind fate like the Greeks had it. It's not just randomness of chance. But it's the idea here for the Hebrew word mikre, is the idea not of randomness, but that there's unforeseen providence. Like God is doing stuff in the background that we don't know. It doesn't mean blind fate or chaos or luck, but it means human unpredictability.

One of my favorite words, just because I think it's spelled funny and sounds weird, serendipitous. I think that's the idea of the word here, right? There's certain serendipities that happen in our life, things that we don't expect, stuff that happens. We're going through something really, really traumatic and horrible and wrong, and then there's something good that comes out of it or something that comes around the corner we didn't expect.

I remember Olivia and I, we were married, really newly married, and we lost our first child to a miscarriage. I mean, we were just crushed for weeks. And then there was another couple in the church And they were married about six months after us, and they had a miscarriage. And I remember thinking, man, this is so horrible. So we went to their little tiny apartment. It was like, literally, it was like a shed. And we brought them some pizza, and we just sat out. There wasn't enough space to sit inside their little tiny house, so we sat outside on a table, like a bench, and we just had this pizza, and we just cried with each other and prayed for one another and tried to encourage them. And still to this day, whenever we're in town, they're a family we're gonna see. Because that was what the Lord used to form a bond and a friendship with them that has lasted for 15 years.

No one ever expects these serendipitous events to happen in our lives. That we're gonna say yes to this little thing over there and we find out the Lord used this to change our entire life. This is how God works in things. That we think our lives we can manage by skill and by wisdom and by strength and yet we find out when we look at our lives, we've been in God's hand the entire time. That he's the one who determines the race. He's the one who fixes the battle. He's the one who knows who he's going to give bread to. He's the one who bestows riches on whom he decides to bestow riches because God knows what he's doing with all of those things.

And so there's evil times, there's disastrous things that happen, famine, invasion, and disease, and yet Solomon is saying, we don't believe a blind fatalism. We believe that we are in God's hands, and that even though disastrous things happen in life and death is coming for all of us, yet we know that we have a God we can trust. Again, this is looking to Christ. There's a time that every man is going to die. And things may even seem like why would they have died that way? And I think of Jesus's death and how shocked the disciples were. Why did this happen? How could it happen this way? This does not meet our expectations. We thought he was going to be the king of Israel. And yet he died like a thief outside the city.

And then When Peter is preaching in Acts chapter two, we find out this was no accident at all. Acts chapter two, verses 22 through 23, Peter says, men of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves also know, him being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God. You have taken by lawless hands, have crucified and put to death. Did you hear that part? Jesus being delivered over by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God. It was no accident. God knew exactly what he was doing when Jesus entered into Jerusalem. This is why Jesus could trust himself. Father, not my will, but yours be done. Even as he was sweating drops of blood.

Brothers and sisters, you could trust the Lord that your life is in his hands. And even when disaster, turmoil, chaos, or even death is facing you, you can still trust the Lord who preserves your life and soul. So seize the day knowing your limits. Seize the day with humility, knowing your skill will only get you so far. Seize the day by trusting the one who governs every day of your life. Seize the day through Christ. Live your life with full knowledge that you are in God's hands. Live your life knowing that all the circumstances that surround your life are according to God's plans for his glory and for your good if you are in Christ. Live your life knowing that though you will surely die, yet if you are in Christ, you will live. Live your life filled with joy for the good things that God has given you while you're alive on the side of the grave. Live your life filled with joy for the family and the spouse that God has given you. Live your life working to the glory of God. Live your life with humble reliance on God's goodness shown to you in Jesus Christ.

Brothers and sisters, today, today, God has woken you up from your sleep. Seize today. Live your life for His glory, for His goodness is new every morning. Let's pray. Father, we thank You that Your compassions do not fail. You are good and Your goodness is new every morning. We thank You for the mercies You have shown us in Jesus, and we pray that we would rejoice always and at all times. We pray, Lord, that we would enjoy, most of all, your Son, and knowing that your face shines upon us. We thank you for freeing us, for living as slaves to the enjoyment of this world. But instead, we get to live our lives before your face. Father, we pray that your Holy Spirit would indeed let us live with wisdom. Lord, thank you for all you've done for us and your Son. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

• Why is it tempting to interpret God’s favor or disfavor based on circumstances?

• How does Christ’s death and resurrection change the way we read Ecclesiastes 9?

• What good gifts are you prone to overlook or fail to enjoy rightly?

• How can we cultivate gratitude without drifting into indulgence?

• Where do you tend to rely on your own skill or wisdom rather than on God’s providence?

• How does the certainty of death give shape to your daily living?

• What might it look like for you to “seize the day” in this specific season of life?

• Providence: God’s continual upholding and governing of all things.

• Sheol: The Old Testament term for the grave or the place of the dead; a shadowy existence.

• Serendipity (Unforeseen Providence): Events that appear accidental but are governed by God.

• Vanity (Heb. hevel): Vapor, breath; life’s fleeting nature.

• Joy: A commanded reception of God’s good gifts with gratitude.

• Sovereignty: God’s absolute rule over all events, big and small.