2006-11-30 19:12:17 · 11 answers · asked by ~ 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I think you are referring to Ecclesiastes 12:8?
After mentioning many things in the previous chapters of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon was expressing that everything in life is practically done in vanity, aside from serving our Creator, because you work hard and you can accumulate many many things, like he did, and then you end up dying and someone else gets your things. It's like it was futile to work so hard because in the end you lose it all.(Ecclesiastes 2:17,18)
But this is not so when you use your life to worship God. That's not vanity. God rewards those faithful to Him. (Hebrews 11:6) At the end of the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon said: "The conclusion of the matter, everything having been heard, is: Fear the [true] God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole [obligation] of man. For the [true] God himself will bring every sort of work into the judgment in relation to every hidden thing, whether it is good or bad. (Ecclesiastes 12: 13,14)
That was the only thing that wasn't vanity, serving God.
Interestingly, Solomon was the wealthiest man, he had everything, but it just goes to show that as the saying goes today: "Money can't buy you happiness". He still looked at all that he had as vanity, a striving after the wind. (Ecclesiates 1:14) Material pursuits were empty pursuits, they weren't lasting. But those who feared displeasing God and kept his commandments, remained righteous, he said "it will turn out well" with them. (Ecclesiastes 8:12)
2006-11-30 20:32:19 · answer #1 · answered by Kally 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In this day and age, fearing and obeying God is, at best, considered impractical. But the book of Ecclesiastes, written some 3,000 years ago by King Solomon, describes the futility of human endeavors that ignore God’s purpose.
What makes this book so fascinating is the wide range of subjects the writer delves into, human wisdom and rule, material wealth and pleasures, formalistic religion, and so forth. All these things are vanity, for they are not lasting. On the other hand, meditating on them leads the perceptive mind to one conclusion: “Fear the true God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole obligation of man.” Ecclesiastes 12:13.
Some may think that the wise man’s words are not very encouraging to anybody, young or old. “‘The greatest vanity!’ said the congregator, ‘Everything is vanity.’” (Ecclesiastes 12:8) Actually, it is the very height of vanity to ignore the Grand Creator in youth, to grow old without serving him, and to have only advanced age to show for a long life. All has been vanity, or emptiness, for such a person, even if he dies with wealth and fame in this world
2006-11-30 20:03:28 · answer #2 · answered by BJ 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
WHY not read the whole Ecclesiastes. U will then understand that everything we do in life is because we want to live and life is vanity - we die anyway!
2006-11-30 19:41:36 · answer #3 · answered by Chellie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ecclesiastes was written from the standpoint of a person who has rejected God and is living stickly for his own pleasure. It's written from a hedonistic worldview. The word for vanity in that passage in the hebrew means futility or emptiness. That's what life is like without God according to Solomon who wrote this book when he was backslidden from God.
2006-11-30 19:37:36 · answer #4 · answered by upsman 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means to realize useless state of life, when you don't know your purpose and reason behind things...
If you have wisdom, you observe everything in the perspective of God....while the fool only sees his own vanity, passing by him. After all,The book of ecclesiastes is a wisdom book.
2006-11-30 19:22:43 · answer #5 · answered by Philadelphia 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Yea I gave my heart to know wisdom, and madness and folly and I perceived that everything under the sun is vanity and vexation of spirit." Ecclesiastes sounds a lot like Buddha, all suffering is caused by desire,etc.
2006-11-30 19:33:10 · answer #6 · answered by enslavementality 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think that it is necessary to over think this line I think it is simply stating that in life we sometimes are too obsessed with material objects.
However I don't think that it ALL is vanity, there is noting wrong with getting joy from a material object just don't over do it.
2006-11-30 19:18:02 · answer #7 · answered by abcdefghijk 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think "all is vanity" means that ultimately life is empty and meaningless. That's how I would interpret it.
2006-11-30 19:16:05 · answer #8 · answered by STFU Dude 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means to the unbelieving that everything in their sight & mind is ll made up things, But not to the Believers.
2006-11-30 22:53:30 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"meaningless, meaningless... all is meaningless" - that's what the "preacher" (ecclesiastes) is trying to say.
2006-11-30 19:24:15 · answer #10 · answered by Phoebhart 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋