I’d like to say that this Bible study’s topic is a happy one, but that’s…not the case. This Ecclesiastes study focuses on death—something that many don’t really want to think about. But death is coming for all of us, so I think it’s worth thinking about, and so does the Teacher in Ecclesiastes. 

Before looking at the passage, take a moment to think about this first question.

Death

Okay, so real talk: I think about death every night before bed. It started back when I was around 5 or 6 years old when I learned this really famous prayer. It goes:

Now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
And if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.
Amen.

At 5 years old, I learned it was possible to die in my sleep. Because of that, I’ve been conditioned to think about death every night before bed, and was afraid of death most of my life. I still am a little bit, but I’ve learned how to cope with it over time.

But maybe you don’t think about death so often. Why would you? It’s not exactly a fun, happy topic. But let’s see what the Teacher says in Ecclesiastes 7:1-14.

The Teacher’s Thoughts on Death

The Teacher claims that the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth. Not only that, but it is generally better to experience negative, painful moments rather than happy ones—going to a house of mourning, processing grief, or listening to a rebuke. Why would he say this? The key, I think, is in verse 2, where he says, “…the living should take it to heart.” 

The Teacher here knows that death is coming for all of us, and he thinks we should take that seriously. Understanding the reality of your own impending death is really grounding. We’re all given just a little time on this earth, so we should be mindful and consider how we spend it.

Is it not better to have a good name and reputation than to own some fancy, expensive perfume? Is it not better to be even-tempered and patient rather than easily angered and prideful? Working for a good name or practicing patience and temperance isn’t easy. It’s usually boring and even a bit painful at times.

Or were the “good ole days” really better than the present? Of course not. The problems we have now don’t surpass those of the past. There has always been hardship, and there always will be. It’s foolish to wish for an easier past that never really existed. 

Gaining wisdom through hardship and suffering

We don’t always know why things in life are hard, but God has made it so. God has made both times of prosperity and adversity. However, instead of questioning God, a wise person considers God’s work here, and finds wisdom and knowledge in these hardships. Why? Because the happy times teach us less than the hard times do. Though it might be unsavory for us, we learn from the trouble. We learn from the pain and the sorrow. The fact is, we don’t learn much when life goes smoothly. That learned wisdom preserves our life—we make better choices and live life more fully.

It’s in those moments that we’re able to gain a deeper perspective on the realities of life—what’s important, and what’s not so important. We need sadness to understand what we care about. There’s also that English saying: “You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.” We can’t understand the value of our life unless we grasp our own absence of it—death. A wise person learns from those hard, heavy topics and experiences. They put their knowledge to good use instead of distracting themselves with pleasure, laughter, and foolish ignorance.

Life

Now take a moment to ponder this second group of questions and consider the other side of the coin.

Go ahead and take a look at Ecclesiastes 7:15-29 now.

Knowing that our time is short, how should we live our lives?

The Teacher’s Thoughts on Living Righteously

The Teacher here argues that it is no good to be overly righteous or overly wicked—there needs to be a balance. Time and again, the Teacher has observed the foolishness of the wicked, and has decided that isn’t the way to live. When you do wicked things, though you might live through your scheming, your quality of life is actually pretty bad. Your relationships are terrible, your heart becomes corrupted, and you can never rest easy. You’re forever trapped in your wickedness.

But he also argues not to be too righteous. Of course, it is good to be reasonably righteous (kind, good, etc.) with no ulterior motive. Doing the right thing generally prevents a lot of problems, and leads to a more peaceful, harmonious life. But if you seek righteousness in order to protect yourself against every bad thing and become legalistic about it, then it’s kind of pointless. Why?

Reason 1: Being righteous and good all the time will not protect you from hardship. It will often improve your life, but it doesn’t guarantee a life completely free of pain and suffering. It doesn’t save you from your end.

Reason 2: As verse 20 says, “There is certainly no one righteous on earth who does good and never sins.” No one is 100% righteous. There are many good, upright people in the world, but no one is perfectly good. We all sin in some way. It’s pointless to try to reach perfect righteousness on our own when it’s impossible for us to be so. But, it is far better to be reasonably righteous than to be overly righteous OR wicked. Righteousness pleases God, and God doesn’t let that go unnoticed.

Who is truly righteous?

In the end, the Teacher had searched for wise, righteous people, and could only find one in a thousand. He discovered that God made humans to be upright and to follow His way. However, we have turned to our own schemes instead, which has affected our relationship with God, and thus our quality of life. But if we seek God’s wisdom, we too can walk the path of righteousness and make the most of our life. 

And what do we find when we seek God’s wisdom? We find Jesus, who—unlike us—is perfectly righteous. Who, in his righteousness, also faced pain, suffering, and death on the cross, and defeated death and wickedness. Jesus knew God. He walked with God in wisdom, and experienced all the hardships we face. But because Jesus defeated death, he opened the path towards true life for us. Yes, if we follow Jesus—whose way was perfect and blameless—we will face hardships like Jesus did. But we’ll face hardships regardless; that’s just a part of life. But we will also find life after death. Death will not defeat us. Instead, we will conquer death through Jesus.

Making the Day of Our Death a Joyous One

The Teacher says the day of our death is better than the day of our birth because when we follow Jesus, that’s the day we are reunited with God and restored to our original uprightness and goodness. That’s the day our suffering is wiped away and God says to us, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

God pays attention to how we live now, and it does affect us after death. Will we follow Jesus down the path of righteousness and wisdom, living a life that pleases God, and make that moment of greeting a joyous one? Or will we turn towards our own schemes and lose our way to God?

Let’s make the day of our death a joyous one, where we have no reason to fear death.