Ecclesiastes 11:1-10
1 Cast thy bread upona the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.
2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth.
3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be.
4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
5 As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.
6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper,b either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun:
8 But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.
10 Therefore remove sorrowc from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.
The method of worldly wisdom is not that of discretion only; it is, moreover, that of diligence, and this passage urges such diligence. Again, we have taken more than one text out of this passage to preach the truth of God, and therein we do not necessarily do wrong, for there are high spiritual applications of all these things. However, it must be remembered that here they are related to the outlook which has characterized the whole discourse. We have not yet reached, though we are fast approaching it, the point of correction. The whole of this may be summarized by saying that it teaches the necessity for diligence in the midst of the things of this life, "Cast thy bread upon the waters" is an injunction to the toiler that makes harvest possible. "Give a portion to seven" is advice to use all opportunity speculatively, because one does not know what calamities may be ahead, and because it is well to have provided beforehand for such contingencies. All this is followed by advice not to waste time in attempting to decide improbable things; and, finally the words of verses six and seven may be expressed in latter-day language as, "Get at it"; "Keep at it"; "Make hay while the sun shines." Almost weirdly this section, setting forth the value and method of worldly wisdom, ends in the same wail of disappointment which has characterized the whole of the discourse. "If a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity."
The last division of the Book begins with the ninth verse of this chapter. Its first word, like the first word of the Manifesto of the King in later days, indicates the true thought and desire of God for man: "Rejoice." A statement of life which includes all of truth recognized in the discourse, and yet which far transcends the whole of it, is first made. A man is to enter into life, his own life, and his present life, with avidity; and he is constantly to do so in the sight of God, remembering his relationship to God. Judgment here does not mean punishment but verdict. Everything is to be tested first by the supremacy of God. To attempt to find Him through the medium of our self-pleasing use of life is utterly to fail. To enthrone Him first, and then attempt to find life through Him, is to cancel forever the word "vanity."