Ecclesiastes 3 - 4

A Time And Season

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. (3:1).

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 are some of the more well known verses of scripture. Poetic and poignant, they discuss the idea that everything has a time and season.  This is not a declaration of determinism, per se, but is an indication of the cyclical nature of life on Earth and existence in time. We all exists in overlapping cycles: circadian rhythms (day and night) dominate and define our daily existence, as do weeks, and years, and seasons.  Yet within the cycles of our life, we also have the arrow of time continuously progressing from birth to death. Some events we have no control over, i.e. our birth and our death, and other events are rife with choice, i.e. planting and reaping, searching, etc.

The progression that Solomon delineates is these verses describe the complexity of events and the levels of control intrinsic to some.  First we have birth and death - the beginning and ending boundaries of all the other events and activities he lists.

There are three areas that Solomon discusses.  First is our relationship to the world and our community. There is a season for planting and harvesting - a type of birth and death, but one we decide. Even if we are not actual farmers, we still plant and reap.  We plant our education and reap it rewards. We plant our friendships, investments, etc. and reap their rewards or suffer their consequences. Next is killing and healing and tearing down and building up. Again, this is not necessarily literal but is applicable in relationships and ideas.  Some ideas we kill, others we rehabilitate. There are people from whom we estrange ourselves and there are people who, when offended, we take pains to repair the relationship. Next he moves to the emotional realm and discusses crying and laughter, grieving and dancing (expressing joy physically).

The second area is our personal and intimate relationships. Solomon then discusses our efforts to reach out: gathering stones and strewing stones, embracing and pushing away, searching and not searching, retaining and throwing away.  All of these involve external objects or people or valuables about which we must decide to gather or release.

Finally, Solomon has us look inward-our relationship to ourselves.  We tear and we mend. We are quiet and we speak. We love and we hate.

He concludes with a time for war and a time for peace.  This is the ultimate choice for all of us individually and as a community.

May God bless you and bless the reading of His Word.