Vanity of the Passions Untamed (Ecc 2:9-11)

VANITY OF THE PASSIONS- UNTAMED (Ecc 2:9-11):

The author of the book of Ecclesiastes experiences no meaning from the toils to the treasures and hence the author concludes the whole as meaningless things by continuing his act of self-reflection. The author doesn’t just blabber things emotionally as it comes out of his thoughts, but instead, the author is very sound and says the things with all his wisdom which remained in him. He says that he had become great and surpassed all those who were before him in Jerusalem with all wisdom remained with him. In the life of Solomon, God himself gave the blessing to him that there will not be anyone wiser and magnificent before and after him. Also, a man couldn’t identify what is pleasurable and really sustainable enjoyment without the factor of wisdom. Without wisdom, a person will be continuing to seek enjoyment without knowing that the untamed passions will never be satisfied and become content. The author is wise, still had untamed passions which never gratified his desires, emotions, and physicality.

Also, the author had never prevented himself from the passions of his heart and desires of the eyes. He says that whatever his eyes desired he did not keep from them. There is certainly happiness and pleasantness when a person successfully completes certain tasks, but it may not be sustaining. The author says that he had never kept his heart away from what seemed to be a pleasure, and it was considerable to him to toil, that provided further pleasure he had sought, and he considered it as a reward for his toil. There are always pleasures in admiring, accomplishing and achieving, but when it’s directionless without realizing the limitations of untamed passions, then the reward will not be pleasing though it is got all the times as it is full of selfishness without a common good and wellness.

Though the author feels that there is a reward for the toils when his heart finds pleasure, he concludes that all was vanity and a striving after wind. While considering all that his hands had done and the toils he had expended in doing for achieving pleasures and rewards, he is not satisfactory as he had known the limitation as a human being. The author affirms that all things are beheld vanity and a striving after wind, and there was no meaning without God. 

Stimulations for Self-Reflection:

1.    How the author describes himself? Why?

2.    What remained with the author? How it was helpful to him?

3.    What does the author say about the desires of the eyes?

4.    How the author kept his heart?

5.    What was the reward for all of the author’s toil? How?

6.    What are the things that the author considered? Why?

7.    What does the author conclude after considering things?

8.    Why the author says all things as a vanity?

9.    How do you think wisdom is helpful for us?

10. How we could find meaningfulness in the rewards and pleasures?