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Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries)

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Ecclesiastes has long been my favorite book of the Bible--though people laugh whenever I say it, and assume that I'm joking or trying to get some kind of shock value. My love of Qoheleth began in high school, when I first heard the song "Sad Face," by The Choir, and wondered what in the world it meant. My youth pastor didn't have an answer, so it was up to me to slowly work my way deeper into what is really going on in the book.

I go back to Ecclesiastes quite often, and recently my interest was rekindled by Terry Gilliam's film The Zero Theorem, which spins a futuristic sci-fi narrative out of the big questions considered in Ecclesiastes. I'm still amazed that a major motion picture would start with Ecclesiastes as its foundation, and I find most of the film really fascinating. By the end, however, it's clear that the film is only able to show us the "under the sun" world; Qohen Leth will never receive his divine phone call, and when he pulls back the curtain, there is only confirmation of his fears that life is meaningless, if not deliberately vindictive toward him.

The book of Ecclesiastes, on the other hand, offers a view of the natural world as it is--which leads to a hopeless, negative perception of life--as well as the same world seen through the eyes of faith. The faithful human doesn't escape the impossible-to-understand seeming absurdity and illogic of the way the world works, but he or she sees the big picture from a truer vantage point. We pursue joy not because that's all there is, but because that's what God created us for. Our almost desperate attempt to grab hold of life and enjoy it for all it can offer is not because death terrifies us and meaning is absent, but because this is the time for us to love life. Death is inevitable for everyone, and what comes after...the Preacher doesn't give us much detail. But we know that it is good to see the sun right now and live life to the full.

That's one of the central points that Michael A. Eaton draws out of Ecclesiastes in his classic commentary, Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary. This is my second readthrough of Eaton's commentary and I find it very helpful as a guide through Ecclesiastes. The writing is a model of simple and direct prose, showing the varied ways that people have interpreted Qoheleth, but not dwelling on one or another viewpoint too long, and never being dogmatic about the correct way to translate a word or phrase. I read Eaton's text with Ecclesiastes (in the English Standard Version) open beside me, which is the only way to get into a book like this. A number of times I marked different translations into my Bible, as I (not knowing biblical Hebrew) either appreciate multiple ideas or am convinced that Eaton's preference is better than what the ESV team (mostly following the RSV) decided on. It will make my future readthroughs of Ecclesiastes richer and bring back to mind some of Eaton's comments on interpretation and meaning.

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