ECCLESIASTES
The Authorship
The author of Ecclesiastes indentified himself, in Hebrew, as Qohelet...
1:1 – 2..."The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. "Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher, "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity." (NASB)
1:12..."I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem." (NASB)
7:27..."Behold, I have discovered this," says the Preacher, "{adding} one thing to another to find an explanation..." (NASB)
12:8 – 10..."In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly." (NASB)
...which translates as “teacher”, “preacher”, or “the leader of the assembly”. The author also indentifies himself as “the son of David”, “king in Jerusalem”, and “king over Israel in Jerusalem”. These descriptions, amongst others, has led many Jewish and Christian interpreters to indentify the author as Solomon though his name is never explicitly used in the book.
Solomonic authorship of Ecclesiastes was generally accepted until The Age of The Enlightenment (17th Century A.D.) when the use of literary and historical criticism and linguistic analysis led to its general abandonment by scholars of all persuasions.
1:1 – 2..."The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. "Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher, "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity." (NASB)
1:12..."I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem." (NASB)
7:27..."Behold, I have discovered this," says the Preacher, "{adding} one thing to another to find an explanation..." (NASB)
12:8 – 10..."In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly." (NASB)
...which translates as “teacher”, “preacher”, or “the leader of the assembly”. The author also indentifies himself as “the son of David”, “king in Jerusalem”, and “king over Israel in Jerusalem”. These descriptions, amongst others, has led many Jewish and Christian interpreters to indentify the author as Solomon though his name is never explicitly used in the book.
Solomonic authorship of Ecclesiastes was generally accepted until The Age of The Enlightenment (17th Century A.D.) when the use of literary and historical criticism and linguistic analysis led to its general abandonment by scholars of all persuasions.
The Date
On the basis of vocabulary and syntax (linguistic), Ecclesiastes is generally assigned to the late Post-Exilic Period (350 – 250 B.C.), though some argue for the late Persian Period (450 – 350 B.C.). The presence of fragments of manuscripts of Ecclesiastes at Qumran from the late 2nd Century B.C. and its acknowledged influence on the Apocryphal Ecclesiasticus (190 B.C.) exclude any date later than 250 – 200 B.C.
The Theme
There can be little doubt about the theme of Ecclesiastes; it is announced both at the beginning and at the end of the book and is often echoed throughout. The author declared that everything is “meaningless” and “vanity”.
The Outline (Bible Knowledge Commentary on The Old Testament - Walvoord, Zuck, Cook
Pt 1: Introduction – The Futility of All Human Endeavor (Eccl. 1:1 – 11)
A) Title (1:1)
B) Theme – The Futility of Human Effort (1:2)
C) General Support – The Futility of Human effort demonstrated from Nature (1:3 – 11)
Pt 2: The Futility of Human Achievement Empirically Demonstrated (Eccl. 1:12 – 6:9)
A) Personal observations on The Futility of Human achievement (1:12 – 2:17)
B) The Futility of Human labor empirically demonstrated (2:18 – 6:9)
Pt 3: The Limitations of Human Wisdom Empirically Demonstrated (Eccl. 6:10 – 11:6)
A) Introduction – Everything is immutably and inscrutably fore-ordained (6:10 – 12)
B) Man cannot fathom The Plan of God (7 – 8)
C) Man does not know what will happen (9 – 11:6)
Pt 4: Conclusion – Live Joyously and Responsibly in The Fear of God (Eccl. 11:7 – 12)
A) Call to live joyously and responsibly (11:7 – 12:7)
B) Final advice in view of futility of all human endeavor (12:8 – 14)
A) Title (1:1)
B) Theme – The Futility of Human Effort (1:2)
C) General Support – The Futility of Human effort demonstrated from Nature (1:3 – 11)
Pt 2: The Futility of Human Achievement Empirically Demonstrated (Eccl. 1:12 – 6:9)
A) Personal observations on The Futility of Human achievement (1:12 – 2:17)
B) The Futility of Human labor empirically demonstrated (2:18 – 6:9)
Pt 3: The Limitations of Human Wisdom Empirically Demonstrated (Eccl. 6:10 – 11:6)
A) Introduction – Everything is immutably and inscrutably fore-ordained (6:10 – 12)
B) Man cannot fathom The Plan of God (7 – 8)
C) Man does not know what will happen (9 – 11:6)
Pt 4: Conclusion – Live Joyously and Responsibly in The Fear of God (Eccl. 11:7 – 12)
A) Call to live joyously and responsibly (11:7 – 12:7)
B) Final advice in view of futility of all human endeavor (12:8 – 14)