A few years ago there was a popular, yet pessimistic saying: “Life’s a bitch; then you die.”
Although that may be shocking or even offensive to some, I think King Solomon was the originator of this depressing thought. It permeates his writing in Ecclesiastes and it exudes from the text. In fact, an apt and concise summary of Ecclesiastes may well be: “Life’s a bitch; then you die.”
After ranting and whining for 12 chapters about the struggle of life and finality of death, it is easy to miss Solomon’s succinct conclusion nestled in the book’s concluding verses.
At this point in the reading, one is often so overwhelmed with negativity that there’s a tendency to skim to the end, or perhaps to even skip to the end.
Nevertheless, his one gem of useful truth is simply this: fear and obey God.
Perhaps Solomon was on to something after all.
[See Ecclesiastes 12:13.]
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
