Tag: under the sun

August 12, 2013 / / Apologetics

Solomon began his reign well.  When God granted him any request, Solomon asked for wisdom and was given riches, peace, and length of days to boot.  He realized his father’s vision by building God’s house in Jerusalem.  He expanded Israel’s territory to its farthest extent and accumulated great wealth for God’s people.  However, the many wives and concubines he collected for both political and pleasurable ends influenced Solomon’s apostasy.  Ecclesiastes briefly chronicles his life apart from God. Solomon states his purpose in 1:3, “What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun?”  Profit or gain is generally a business term that describes what is left over when all the expenses are paid.  In Ecclesiastes, it expresses Solomon’s search for meaning, value, or purpose in human existence.  “Under the sun” tells us that Solomon searched for these things without involving God.  Solomon puts his earlier faith as well as his father’s faith to the test.  Is life worth living without God?  Can man find happiness or contentment in the world apart from a God worldview?