Ecclesiastes 4:1-6 – a verse by verse devotional Bible study

Main Reading: Ecclesiastes 4:1-6

Well, if there’s one thing you learn by skimming through Ecclesiastes, it’s that—if you want to—you can see the bad in everything…and that’s partially because everything is bad. All is vanity…meaningless…purposeless.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, the things you’d expect to have meaning often have a bad one! Last time, Solomon’s big statement was: “in the place of justice, there was wickedness!” This time around, he sees a few more travesties…Aren’t you excited?

v. 1 — “Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them.”

Solomon is taking a break from complaining about vanity and he’s moving onto violence. Now you might quickly remember that there were no wars in Solomon’s day…So "when and where did he see violence or oppression?" you ask. "He lived in a cushy kingdom and a great economy…What did he know about that kind of thing?" Well, in Solomon’s days, it all depended on who you were in society…If you were the rich & famous, you might be kicking back in the king’s palace or lounging around in luxury.

But other people were forced to work on Solomon’s building projects and pay the taxes to fund them…And these things were such a burden on these people that they eventually rebelled and revolted. So, Solomon had firsthand experience with oppression—not as a victim but as a perpetrator.

The problems that The Preacher—Qohelet—sees in the world boil down to this:

❶ Innocent people are experiencing pain & sorrow.

❷ Those who could help don’t care.

❸ The people causing the problems have the most power.

There is hardly anything in life more frustrating—in my opinion—than the harsh reality that, too often, might prevails against right. There are people trying to do the right thing in the world, in the church, in the home, but the people with the most control, influence, or resources prevent it.

Life on earth is a constant struggle for power—in politics, in relationships or marriage, in work, and sadly in church! And there are people who have no business making decisions, being an authority leading congregations, handling money, etc., but the situation is rigged in their favor.

But there’s an assumption in my complaint…and it’s that if power was in the hands of the right people— namely myself and people I like—we could make more sense out of life and make the world a better place. But, instead, all that would likely happen is that we would become the new oppressors…And, as a result of these oppressors, people are in tears. And the ones in power pay no regard to them. This is so depressing, deflating, and discouraging that Solomon says this:

v. 2-3 — “And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive. But better than both is he who has not yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.”

Sophocles, the Greek playwright, said: “it’s best not to be born, but if you are it’s best to die early.” And Solomon, Qohelet, concluded that it’s better to be dead & gone than alive and oppressed…This has played out in history. People have killed themselves to get out from under wicked governments.

And I’m not trying to give a pass to anyone who’s being overdramatic… Like the people in the Bible who wished they were dead…Remember Jonah? He wanted to die because God had been merciful to an oppressive government and they repented (Jon. 4:1-3). Or remember when God brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt? (Num. 14:2). I’m not talking about that…but in this corrupt world, it can actually seem like there are some situations where death would be more pleasant than dealing with current circumstances.

v. 4-5 — “Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from a man's envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh.”

Well, the justice system had obviously let Solomon down…so now he ventures into the marketplace to see how people work. Maybe he could find some goodness in the world there… After all, Ecclesiastes 3:13 says labor is a gift from God! But here’s what Solomon saw:

❶ There was an ambitious, industrious person who had skilled hands but a sinful heart.

This guy was doing good work, but he was only in it because it would earn him more money and get him ahead of the guy living next door—keeping up with the joneses, we might say. There’s nothing better in this life than doing an honest day’s work and enjoying what you earned. But even this turns into a game of being better than the people around you…

Now, you might not immediately see a connection between this verse and the beginning of chapter 4, but there is one! This game of getting ahead leads to—or is the result of—jealousy. And when you’re envious of other people, you might try to oppress them to keep them down, bring them down, or put yourself on top. Jealousy is the root cause of oppression because jealousy makes our neighbor our rival. As much as I’m an American and a free-market capitalist, one of the downsides of capitalism is that the weak get oppressed and everything is based on competition, which can lead to jealousy and oppression.

And another downside is that if and when you’re at the top, everyone below you wants everything you’ve got—you become the object of envy. So, if you needed one less reason to be a good, successful, stand-up citizen there it is…

❷ Meanwhile, Solomon also saw lazy people.

Yes, it’s bad to have the wrong motivation–getting ahead of others–but it’s also bad to be lazy and do nothing. One extreme is to do everything you can to keep up. The other extreme is to drop out of society altogether. These people fold their hands—picture a guy taking an all-day nap in a recliner. And they slowly but surely waste away.

"I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense, and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down. Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction. A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest , and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man" (Proverbs 24:30-34).

So, at the end of the day, what does Solomon say?

v. 6 — “Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.”

In other words, having one hand empty—to rest and receive—and one hand busy with work is better than having both hands full or having both hands empty.

Paul described this balance in 1 Thessalonians 4:11; "aspire to live quietly , and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands , as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one."

There are some serious misfortunes in this life—and that’s putting it lightly… People in history and around the world have been persecuted for knowing, worshipping, & proclaiming the true God…But don’t let the evil and oppression on the earth fool you into thinking that God is absent or not in control…

2,000 years ago, God came to earth. And He had an affinity for the oppressed.

"And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as was His custom, He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and He stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to Him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed , to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor'" (Luke 4:16-19). In one scene from the Gospels, Jesus had compassion on a crowd that was “harassed & helpless” (Matthew 9:36).

Throughout the course of His life, Jesus befriended tax collectors, sinners, foreigners, soldiers, prostitutes, lepers, bleeding women, grieving families, poor fishermen, widows, blind beggars, children, and criminals. As that throwback worship song Everlasting God says, “You’re the defender of the weak.”

It’s true that in a world without Christ, there would be no comforter for those in tears. But Jesus has changed that. He’s given the Holy Spirit, who is called our Comforter (Jn. 14:26).

He wept alongside grieving families. And listen to what Revelation 21:4 promises! "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."

So, the saying from Jesus’ most famous sermon is now true: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).

Our God is all powerful. He has armies–plural–of angels. He calmed storms. He raised the dead. And, unlike the oppressors in this world, He always uses His power for good.

People that feel the need to oppress are the true weak ones because they’re scared of losing control. Jesus on the other hand did not consider His status as God something to be afraid of losing (Phi. 2:5), so He freely gave Himself and His help to us!

It’s true that, from what Solomon could see, it was a burden to be born under oppression…But now Jesus has come to earth and it is now a bad day to be born for anyone who oppresses. It would be better for them to never have been born— (Judas being the prime example, given in Mark 14:21)!

People in this world may plot to take control and do everything to serve themselves—like Judas—even if it means killing and betraying the Son of God but He takes their evil plans and uses them for good!