Blogging Bible Study: The Heart of the Matter - Ecclesiastes, Part 4

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi 

Now, at the end, I can confess that Ecclesiastes is, by and large, my least favorite book in the Bible, which, I suppose, is no surprise.  It does have its good moments (the first bit of chapter 3) but, by and large,  it's just...a depressing read. 

I will also say it is the perfect example of the need for context; some verses in Ecclesiastes, taken out of context and without the understanding that they were written by a jaded, cynical fellow who tried and failed to find significance in life in every way but being devoted to God, could really mess with sound theology. For one thing, the Teacher apparently had no concept at all of eternal life, as we will see in the first verse in chapter 9 that mentions 'heart':

This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all.  The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead. --Ecc. 9:3;  the first occurrence of  'hearts' is Strong's H3820, Leb,  - inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding; but the second is Strong's H3824, Lebab,  inner man, mind will, heart, soul, understanding, Leb is actually a form of Lebab.

So, why the distinction in the verse?  The only real difference I see is that Lebab also carries the connotation of soul.  So, is the Teacher conveying that the hearts of men are full of evil, and there is madness in their souls?  That mankind is corrupt, 'heart and soul'?   That actually makes the most sense to me...and that does line up teaching throughout Scripture on the state of the unredeemed., the natural man. We, in our own selves and own strength, cannot purify our hearts or souls. And, while it's true that all die; the Teacher seems to think that is The End. Which, I believe, largely explains his gloomy outlook.  The cynical tone of the next verse kinda bears that out:

Go, eat your food with gladness and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do.  -- Eccl 9:7; 'Heart' is H 3820 again.

On the surface, this seems a rather pleasant instruction, but the following verses betray his sarcasm, using phrases like all the days of this meaningless life, all your meaningless days, in the grave where you are going is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.  (from Ecc. 9: 8 - 10).   Now, he is right...we should be glad and joyful in our daily life...but he's missing the point.  And if someone were to pull Ecc. 9:10 out of the context of the Teacher's sarcasm, s/he could use it as Biblical evidence that the Sadducees were right...there is no life after death.  It may have been part of their own argument.  But the actual mindset of the author needs to be considered.  (That raises a point that I'll discuss at the end of the post...)

Chapter ten is, again, a collection of proverbs. There's one that mentions 'heart'...and it has always amused me greatly.

The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left. -- Ecc. 10:2; 'heart' is H 3820  both times.

I am just going to say right off the bat that I really don't know what the point of that was.  It certainly did not apply to American politics.  It could be a reference to the kind of predisposition for anything on the right hand/ right side to be thought of as good, and anything on the left side to be thought of as sinister or shady...one of the reasons left handed kids suffered forced use of their right hand in times past.  But there's no context to help us, so we're just left with this proverb that seems weirdly applicable in some crazy coincidence...even though that application is really beyond reasonable.  But it does make me chuckle, not gonna lie.

One more passage to look at in Ecclesiastes:

Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.  Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things, God will bring you to judgment.  So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless. -- Ecc. 11:9-10;  all three occurrences of 'Heart' are H 3820

Interesting that we have the encouragement to 'follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see'...quickly followed by the caveat that 'God will bring you to judgment'.  After his earlier statements that the heart is corrupted, advising folks to follow their heart sounds...odd, to say the least. I confess, I am getting a brain cramp from trying to wrap my head around this.  Ecclesiastes is a rough thing to handle, even taking the cynicism and sarcasm into account.  For instance,  having said that I don't think the Teacher believed in life after death, he goes and says that 'God will bring you to judgment'.  Which implies an after-death thing, taken in context about what he has said earlier about the  righteous and the wicked sharing the same fate of death; it really appears that this judgment has to happen later.  So...see what I mean?  It's like he hasn't completely made up his mind what he thinks/ believes, but has come to the conclusion that it really doesn't matter anyway.

Which all gets me to wondering...why is the book of Ecclesiastes included in the canon of the Bible?  It's clearly Solomon's...er, the Teacher's...viewpoint and opinion and can't be taken at face value as The Word of God, yet I believe God did inspire him to write...if only to show the complete fallacy of being able to be able to find significance and meaning to life apart from one's obedience to God and gratefulness to Him.  It's a depressing book because living life apart from God is, as the Teacher says repeatedly, "Meaningless, a chasing after the wind."  Can we learn from The Teacher?

Blogging Bible Study: The Heart of the Matter - Ecclesiastes, part 3

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Well, we are halfway through Ecclesiastes in our look at the words 'Heart/ hearts' in the NIV 84, and we kick off with a flashback to Proverbs; as the first 2/3 of chapter 7 is basically just a list of proverbs, and there are a few that do mention 'heart'

It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.

Sorrow is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart.

The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

Extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart.

Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you -- for you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.

Prov. 7: 2 - 4, 7, 21-22; all instances of 'heart' are Strong's H 3820 leb - inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.

Now we are hitting the darker side of Ecclesiastes, in which the Teacher proclaims the doom and gloom that Ecclesiastes is known for.  I mean...'sorrow is better than laughter because a sad face is good for the heart'?  Where did he get that idea?  Unless he's talking about being honest about one's emotions...that an honest sad face is better than a false smile?  But he seems to be saying your heart is better if it is suffering than if it is glad.  That makes no sense; especially when we've already considered Prov. 17: 22... 'A cheerful heart is good medicine...'  The only conclusion that makes sense is that the Teacher has become so disillusioned and disappointed that he is expressing himself in extreme cynicism.  He's wallowing in his misery and proclaiming it a good thing.

Verses 21-22 are interesting; The Teacher basically tells everyone to not put too much emphasis on what other folks say...because, paraphrased, your heart knows how much smack you talk.  And if you talk smack...so does everyone else, so don't take offense.   

The Teacher also clearly has had some...issues...with the women in his life.  And, given that the Teacher is understood to be Solomon, he had a LOT of women in his life. I think the end of chapter seven was likely penned after a particularly unpleasant interaction...because we do know he thought highly of at least one woman, as we'll see in the next book, but on the day he wrote these words he was clearly in a bad spot.  One verse in his complaint has the word 'heart':

I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains.  The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare. -- Ecc. 7:26 ; 'Heart' is H 3820 again.

I have to wonder what happened to Solomon...the king!...that he had that experience.  Did he himself fall victim to a scheming woman...or did he watch someone near and dear to him experience that?  Solomon did have an emotional attachment to at least some of the ladies in his harem and he allowed them to continue practicing their pagan religions, even joining them in their rites at times.   It is a puzzle that Solomon, for all his wisdom and knowledge, was so easily led away from such a foundational boundary. "The sinner she will ensnare" is a pretty clear self-indictment.   But I am also reminded of Frollo in the Hunchback of Notre Dame...who was obsessed with a woman who truly wanted nothing to do with him, and yet whom he blamed for his infatuation.  She did nothing to entice or entrap him...but he held her to be evil and guilty.  Of course, Frollo is fictional, but he is a representation of actual folks who blame innocent people for their own compulsions/ obsessions.   And the truth is...whether the lady Solomon had in mind when he was writing this was running a con or running away, he is absolutely correct in saying that the man who seeks to please God will not get entangled with either a temptress or his own misplaced attraction.       

There are a few more proverbs in chapter 8; we'll look at a couple of them.

Since a king's word is supreme, who can say to him, "What are you doing?"  Whoever obeys his command will come to no harm, and the wise heart will know the proper time and procedure.    --Ecc. 8:5; 'Heart' is, again, H3820.

There is knowledge in a wise heart;  I see two ways that could go.  One is that the intuition of a wise person will be correct; the other might be that a wise heart will make a point to know protocol; the proper way to respond to a command from the king.  But, as intuition comes from having a solid knowledge base, perhaps they aren't so different.  Being proactive in learning what might be expected and the best way to accomplish a task certainly is wisdom...and will go far in knowing what to do when called upon to act.

The final verse in today's selection is Ecclesiastes 8:11 -- 

When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.  'Heart' is, you guessed it, H 3820.

I remember attending parenting seminars when my kids were little; one of the things that stuck with me is that punishment for wrongdoing should be 'swift, severe, and short'...soon enough that the consequence is equated with the action, bad enough to discourage a repeat offense, and over quickly so it doesn't drag out so long that the original issue is lost.  Because we do lose the connection between the cause and the effect if the punishment is delayed too long; the assumption becomes that, if you're careful, or crafty, you can get away with [whatever].  

We'll finish Ecclesiastes next week...

Blogging Bible Study: The Heart of the Matter - Ecclesiastes, Part 2

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Back from last week's trip, it's time to dive back into the look at 'heart/hearts' through the Bible, specifically the NIV 84 translation, which is the basis of my Exhaustive Concordance.  We're in the book of Ecclesiastes, the account of one who has ALL the resources trying to find meaning and purpose in life in every way but following God's commands and decrees.

I personally think chapter three is the highest point of the whole book, with poetry in the first 8 verses that became a hit song in the 1960's. It certainly contains some of the more...positive...thoughts in the book. 

He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. -- Ecc. 3:11;  'Hearts' is Strong's H 3820 , leb - inner man, mind will, heart, understanding; the most common Hebrew word translated as 'heart/ hearts'.

'He has set eternity in the hearts of men' is one of the most profound concepts you'll find related to the heart, I do believe.  That yearning in the heart for the transcendent; to connect to the divine, was put there on purpose.  God is, of course, far beyond our ability to understand or comprehend in anything but the smallest glimpses...but God is the only thing that truly can connect to that spiritual USB port.

I thought in my heart, "God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time fore every activity, a time for every deed." -- Ecc. 3:17; 'heart' is H 3820 again.

There's an interesting thought about judgement in this verse, which is worth pondering, but the focus today is on the heart...as a place of reasoning and insight. It's worth noting that the place of this revelation was in the heart...not the mind, and we know from past study that what is determined in the heart is of utmost importance in God's sight.

Which is probably a good thing to keep in mind while reading the next verse:

Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God.  God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. -- Ecc. 5:2;  'heart' is, again, H 3820.

Notice that there is a distinction made here about words spoken out loud ('with your mouth') and words that are not ('in your heart')...and that both matter.  We are not just cautioned to be careful what we SAY, but also to be careful how we THINK.  If that eternal place is in our hearts, then the thoughts/ words we hold in that space will affect that connection.  

I am going to list the next two verses in the list, with context, because, you know, there wasn't any kind of division when it was written:

Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work -- this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.  I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men: God gives a man wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead.  This is meaningless, a grievous evil.   Ecc. 5:19 - 6:2 ;  the first occurrence of  'heart' is, once more, H 3820; the second is Strong's H 5315, nepes - soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.

Looking at the text in my Bible, it seemed kinda contradictory...on the one hand, it was a blessing to have gladness of heart; on the other, it was meaningless to have the heart's desire and not be able to enjoy it, but looking at the Hebrew...it's not quite contradictory.  They're not the same words.   The first is 'heart', but the second is a more idiomatic translation, going with the English 'heart's desire' when, in actuality, it's not talking about desires of the heart, but desires of the soul or the appetite. And you could also infer that the second man died before he could properly enjoy all his accomplishments, so they passed to someone else, but those accomplishments were still not on the same level.   That's worth a ponder...the first guy accepts what he has, and is happy in what he does.  The second guy, to me, seems to be someone who has all this stuff but isn't satisfied.  He can't enjoy it...because, even though it appears to be everything he could want, he still wants more.  He's not content.  And, the passage implies, that contentment is a gift from God.  But...I'm going to pull on the USP port idea; if a person doesn't desire that connection with God, if the source for satisfaction is the stuff and not the gifts of God, then...yeah, there would be no true enjoyment or contentment.

So...a good introspection question...where is my fulfillment coming from?  The stuff I have or influence I've gained...or my connection to God?

A Weekend Split...what I did, but more importantly, what My Sweet Babboo did...

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi.

Last week, My Sweet Babboo and I headed to Florida...for different purposes.

He was an instructor for a Royal Ranger ministry conference, which was held at the Florida State Royal Ranger camp/ conference center near Fort Meade...which was about 15 minutes south of the apartment of The Flute Player and her Hubby The Jokester.  So I planned to ride down with him and stay with the kids whilst he did the Ranger conference.  He had to be there on Wednesday, to prepare for the conference that began Friday afternoon.  The Flute Player took Friday off of work, as both her hubby and her brother (they are all on staff at the same church) have every Friday off, and the Actor's wife just rearranged her work schedule to have Friday off.  The plan was to spend the day resort hopping up at Disney, which is about an hour from the kids.

HOWEVER,  The Flute Player and her hubby up and rented a house about halfway between the church and their apartment and began the moving process on Memorial Day weekend.  So my visit with them was a lot of boxing up things and cleaning.  We did get everything done by the deadline, and we got an evening of poking about Disney Spring and the Boardwalk area, which was fun...despite being exhausted, lol.

But I really wanted to talk about My Sweet Babboo's week...or really, about the Royal Ranger program.

It began in the 1960's as an Assembly of God ministry to boys, modeled after the Boy Scouts, with a much greater emphasis on faith and Bible content.  It has expanded now to churches outside of the denomination, given the issues that BSA have had of late.  But it's so much more than just a ministry to boys.  I have talked a bit about the auxiliary to Rangers, the Frontiersmen Camping Fellowship, in which men and boys research the 16th and 17th century American History and build a character based

My Sweet Babboo demonstrating leather craft at the FCF 2022 National Rendezvous

 on that era (My hubby's character is a Long Hunter).  They camp, do hand crafts, etc., in ways that are true to the period, as well as develop their outfit and accessories/ gear.

And all of that sounds just fine, but that is just the surface level.  At it's heart, it is a true men's ministry, and the guys who commit to it are providing community, camaraderie, encouragement, accountability and prayer support to one another.  They have a motto... 'Mentoring Future Men' to describe what they do in teaching and training boys...but the benefit they get from it is of a nature that's difficult to cultivate in these crazy times.  

And this weekend was a rich one for My Hubby.  He has taken the class before,  but this year he was an instructor, even though he hasn't officially quite finished the instructor training for this level.  This was a national conference, and they had 35 guys there from all over...half a dozen came from New Jersey, several came from Missouri, and of course there were those from the southeast part of the country.  The instructors had some teaching themselves, going into the weekend, and the experience of working with the guys who truly wanted to learn how to reach and teach young men made a deep impression on him.

I can't begin to express how proud I am of him for digging into this...or how glad I am he gets to do it.

Even though my experience last week was completely different, lol.