It seems that from the time that Zadok the priest anointed Solomon as king, 1 Kings 1:29, he began to hear the people say, ‘Long live King Solomon.’ In his first trial, where he rendered just judgment as to which woman the baby would be given, 1 Kings 3:16-28.
His fame began to spread, and people talked about his great wisdom. Both power and prestige became a part of his life. He heard praise and honour from faraway places.
The Queen of Sheba said ‘but I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard,’ 1 Kings 10:7.
Power and prestige often cause the downfall of men of God, even in the Lord’s church. Power is like a devastating pestilence as it pollutes, poisons, and profanes those whose convictions are not true to the Almighty.
The desire for power can turn men into ‘Diotrephes’, 3 John 9-10. Prestige, popularity, and power are three dangerous words. They can lead one to lose sight of who they really are. They begin to think more highly of themselves than they should.
Solomon begins by asking who is like the wise? Who knows the explanation of things? Ecclesiastes 8:1. He then says a person’s wisdom brightens their face and changes its hard appearance, Ecclesiastes 8:1.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The possessor of wisdom excels other people; it imparts serenity to his countenance and removes the expression of gloom or fierceness.’
Solomon then addresses those who reign but are unjust, and we can also apply this to anyone who is living under a corrupt government, Romans 13:1-5. If anyone gave an oath of obedience to a king, then they must fulfil that oath because the oath was made in the presence of God, Ecclesiastes 8:2 / 1 Chronicles 29:24.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘It appears that the Jewish princes and chiefs took an oath of fidelity to their kings. This appears to have been done to David, 2 Samuel 5:1-3, to Joash, 2 Kings 11:17, and to Solomon, 1 Chronicles 29:24.’
They must obey the king and not leave the king’s presence in a hurry or rebel against him, Ecclesiastes 8:2-3. This is about being submissive to the king, and so, we must be willing to do what he says, as it’s the king who has all the authority in the land they’re living in and people, his subjects, and so, no one can question him, Ecclesiastes 8:4.
If they are obedient to the king, they will avoid the king’s wrath, Ecclesiastes 8:5 / Ecclesiastes 3:11 / Ecclesiastes 3:17. In other words, if people want to avoid civil war, they must respect the civil laws.
So often we hear about unjust kings and governments; however, the wise will know that the time will come when that unjust king or government will be judged, Ecclesiastes 8:5-6 / Ecclesiastes 6:1.
None of us knows what the future holds, so we should be patient and wait for that time of judgment to come upon the king or government, Ecclesiastes 8:7. Remember, unjust kings die eventually too, Ecclesiastes 8:8 / Ecclesiastes 3:19.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Though the life of the wicked may be prolonged, Ecclesiastes 7:15, yet wickedness itself has no inherent power to prolong that life.’
As it is in most cases where unjust kings or governments rule unjustly, we will always find those who rise up against them. The problem is that most people go about it the wrong way, and so they end up doing things which are just as bad as those in charge.
Solomon says anyone who uses wicked means to topple a wicked king or government will only get worse, Ecclesiastes 8:9 / Ecclesiastes 8:2. In other words, two wrongs don’t make a right.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following concerning Ecclesiastes 8:9.
‘This may be spoken of rulers generally, who, instead of feeding, fleece the flock; tyrants and oppressors, who come to an untimely end by their mismanagement of the offices of the state.’
Solomon tells us that even though a king is unjust or a government is evil, they will all eventually die, and before long they will be forgotten, Ecclesiastes 8:10. It appears these wicked rulers went back and forth to the holy place to receive praise, Ecclesiastes 8:10 / Deuteronomy 19:17 / 2 Chronicles 19:6.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The place of the holy is the sacred office which they held, anointed either as kings or priests to God and, not having fulfilled the holy office in a holy way, have been carried to their graves without lamentation, and lie among the dead without remembrance.’
It’s very easy to think that these unjust rulers will get away with their actions, Ecclesiastes 8:11, but we must remember that they will face the judgment of God when they die, Acts 17:31. Solomon says that everything will be well for the righteous, regardless of any judgment in this life on the wicked. Ecclesiastes 8:12.
It’s not within the power of the wicked to prolong their lives, and so we must be patient for God to deliver us from those unjust rulers, Ecclesiastes 8:12. In other words, we must focus on God and all the blessings He pours upon us, knowing that God will eventually bring about their judgment, Revelation 6:10-11.
When I was younger, I was fascinated by my shadow, especially when the sun came out. At different times of the day, it would point in different directions and have different lengths. Solomon says the wicked can’t prolong their life as a shadow becomes longer as the sun sets, Ecclesiastes 8:13.
Like a lot of people who live, Solomon here sees the injustice between the wicked and the righteous. He sees the righteous being rewarded according to the deeds of the wicked, and he sees the wicked being rewarded according to the deeds of the righteous, and he says it’s meaningless, Ecclesiastes 8:14 / Ecclesiastes 3:17 / Ecclesiastes 7:16 / Ecclesiastes 12:14.
Because of this, he says that we should just eat, drink and be glad, Ecclesiastes 8:15. He says then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun, Ecclesiastes 8:15 / Ecclesiastes 2:10.
However, this is what we would do if we didn’t believe in God and follow His ways, Ecclesiastes 3:22 / Ecclesiastes 5:18. We must remember there’s more to life than eating, drinking and being glad, there is eternal life to think about, Colossians 3:1-2.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following concerning Ecclesiastes 8:15.
‘Solomon again recommended the enjoyment of life, not in a pleasure-mad way but in the sense of enjoying the fruits of one’s labour, Ecclesiastes 2:24 / Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 / Ecclesiastes 5:18-19. This joy will make labour more enjoyable. We should receive each day’s joys as God’s good gifts and rejoice in them.’
Solomon lost sleep trying to figure it out worldly things and the purpose of the world and he lost sleep trying to figure out how the world is in the mess it was in, Ecclesiastes 8:16 / Ecclesiastes 1:13 / Ecclesiastes 3:10.
Those who focus so much on worldly things and those who focus so much on the purpose of our world, will often become irritated because they can’t find the answer, Ecclesiastes 8:17 / Isaiah 55:6-11, and as a result, they can’t find anything good about life at all, they can’t comprehend it, Ecclesiastes 8:17 / Ecclesiastes 7:14 / Ecclesiastes 7:28 / Ecclesiastes 6:10 / Matthew 9:34.
People often ask why there is so much suffering in the world. The only way to answer that question is by reminding them that there is a God who has a purpose for each of us, and it’s people’s sin that causes all the suffering in the world.
Pain and suffering are a real part of most people’s lives, and Christians aren’t exempt. It comes at us in all kinds of ways; a mother may have lost her children due to a relentless drunk driver.
A father’s son has been murdered by his next-door neighbour. There are health issues, famines, earthquakes, and wars where children and adults are slaughtered by the thousands.
As Christians, we will get asked all kinds of questions from non-Christians; some of the questions are relatively easier to answer than others. But one question which keeps being asked, even by Christians, is this: Why is there evil in the world?
Another question closely linked to that question is this: if God is good, why is there pain and suffering in the world? Or, as some may ask, how can a perfect God allow suffering and evil?
It’s interesting to listen to the world’s reasoning with these questions; if you listen closely, they almost blame the God they don’t even believe exists in the first place.
Now I can’t even begin to try to answer all these questions, and to be honest with you, I hardly know where to begin because I know that pain and suffering are real.
However, there are some Bible teachings that can help us understand a little about pain and suffering, but please know I’m not trying to diminish or put down the reality of it all. As a Christian, I believe that the Bible has some important things to say on the subject at hand.
1. The very fact that people even talk about ‘evil’ or ‘suffering’ should tell us that there’s something wrong in the world.
Asking the question, why is there evil and suffering in the world? assumes that something is wrong or disordered, something is different from what it should be!
Where would we ever even get such an idea or standard if there were no God? Romans 2:15 speaks about God’s law being written on our hearts. We judge things to be unjust based on a standard that is outside of ourselves.
2. The reality is that most suffering and pain are caused by people.
Think about! There are wars, famine, poverty, murder, and most of the pain that exists in the world is evil perpetrated by people on other people. In the fall of humanity, Genesis 3, we see the introduction of enmity between people, creation, and God.
Our own experience of death, suffering, evil, sickness, and calamity can all be traced to a hostility of people from God and the curse that lies over all of creation due to sin, Genesis 3:17 / Romans 8:20-23. Sin often directly results in pain and suffering; it also can result in judgment from God that brings pain and suffering, Amos 3:6.
3. Don’t forget, no matter how tough life gets, God works even in the midst of pain and suffering.
Nobody wants pain of any kind to come into their lives, but the reality is, there are times we just can’t avoid it. As Christians, we need to remember that God’s work of redemption in Christ through the cross shows that suffering can lead to life and hope, Romans 5:3-8 / James 1:2-4.
There is something predominantly redemptive about the suffering of the righteous when fully understood. 1 Peter 2-3. Sigmund Freud called religion an illusion that humans invent to satisfy their security needs.
To him, a benevolent, all-powerful God seemed unrelated to natural disasters and human evil. It’s always easy to blame others rather than take a long, serious look at ourselves.
God, even though He is all-powerful, blessed mankind with freedom, a freedom which gives us a choice as to whether to follow Him or to disobey Him. This doesn’t answer all our questions but suggests that the problem of evil isn’t as great an intellectual obstacle to belief as some imagine.
Remember, God sometimes does intervene to prevent evil. Pain’s emotional barrier to belief, however, remains formidable. Jesus understands suffering. He was scorned, beaten, and cruelly executed, carrying the guilt of our rebellion against God, Isaiah 53:10.
Do you remember the very first murder and family feud recorded in the Bible? Remember what Cain did to Abel? Originally, Cain was angry at God, so why did he turn his anger at God onto his brother? Genesis 4:8.
Worldly people can’t stand to be reminded that their lives aren’t lined up with the will of God. Abel is telling us that devout people should expect this kind of question and hostility from an ungodly world, 1 John 3:11.
In the New Testament, we find that when Jesus was talking to the Pharisees, Jesus says, ‘you know, you guys, you kill prophets and then your kids make monuments to them’, he says, ‘you’ve been doing that ever since the days of Abel,’ Luke 11:51.
So, Jesus says Abel was a prophet, so perhaps not only did Abel’s own righteous life rebuke Cain, but perhaps Abel even preached to Cain. Perhaps Abel tries to say to his brother, ‘Brother Cain, you need to listen to God, you should not go your own way, you should not rebel against God, you need to do what God says, and you need to honour God.’
Jesus knew something; He knew that the murder of Abel was really the work of the serpent, John 8:44. Jesus knew who was behind the murder of Abel. Jesus knew the offspring of the serpent would always be at enmity with the offspring of the woman, Genesis 3:15.
Paul said to his dear young friend Timothy. ‘Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.’ 2 Timothy 3:12. We can just count on that; there’s not going to be any peace talks.
There is only one way we can avoid hostility from the world, and that’s to compromise and look so much like the world that they can’t recognise their own actions as evil as they are; that’s the only way.
There is going to be enmity between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman as long as this world turns, Genesis 3:15. It is going to be with us until Jesus comes back.
If you accept a standard that is different from the world. There are going to be clashes. If you pursue loyalties that are above earthly loyalties, you’re going to be opposed.
When God said, ‘from this woman’s seed there’s going to be a head crusher’, Genesis 3:15, Satan made up his mind that he was going to attack every godly seed that comes from this woman.
He did it to Abel, he did it to every prophet who came after Abel, and he’s still doing it today. Don’t deceive yourselves that someday there is going to be great harmony and there is going to be great peace between the people of God and the people of the world. There’s never going to be peace because Satan doesn’t want peace.
What I’m saying is that Christians need to feel good that we are on the serpent’s enemy list, and when he comes after us, and he attacks us, and he sends the Cains of this world to attack and oppress and confront and ridicule us, we need to feel good that we’re on the serpent’s enemy list. Because this thing is going to keep going until the world stops.
People of the world are always going to ask these questions because they don’t know and don’t understand God and His ways. But please know that if you’re a Christian and are suffering in any shape or form, you’re not alone. God had blessed you with a spiritual family to help you get through these times, Galatians 6:2.
We all have difficult questions, and not many of us have the answers to these questions. Why does divorce hurt so much? Why have I got this terminal disease? Why did my child have to die so young? Why are there famines, wars, and earthquakes?
Why? Why? Why? I don’t know, I can try and settle the questions in my mind, but deep down, I don’t really know. But one thing I do know as a Christian, because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, I have seen enough to trust Him, Romans 8:28.