Ecclesiastes 3:16-17 - Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness. I said to myself, “God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man,” for a time for every matter and for every deed is there.
Message: The Hope of Final Judgment
Time: Solomon's authorship is not stated. Solomon's reign as king of Israel lasted from around 970 B.C. to around
930 B.C. The Book of Ecclesiastes was likely written towards the end of
his reign, approximately 935 B.C.
What the Lord is Saying:
Background
One of the big arguments for there being a Creator is then life has meaning. Without a Creator mindset then life has meaningless. As I speak to a friend that is an atheist, the one thing that I can't seem to see him understand is the meaningless of life. He has values and things that he loves, but if all life is the in-between then there is no in-between, just now then right and wrong are indeed relative to each situation and no one person has in claim on an overall moral compass. But, with a Creator there is purpose. This is why faith is compelling.
He says that man wants there to be hope in the future, hope in tomorrow, hope in an after life. I say, "Yes." This is how we are strung. This is how we are made. This is what aches inside of us.
The focus of Ecclesiastes seems simply -- only God can make sense our of life.
The Present Absurdity - Wickedness is Here
The writer of Ecclesiastes, Solomon, or the Preacher exclaims that life appears to not make sense,
Here in verse 16, where there is justice, there is wickedness, and where there is righteousness, there is wickedness. Wickedness is Present.
God will Judge
But, the evil that is done will be judged. We look at wickedness and many times it doesn't make sense. There is truly dark evil. But, the focus here is that God will judge the wicked and the righteous. Both will be judged. There is a time for every matter and every deed.
Again, as I ponder this passage and my atheist friend, it does seem reasonable that a person should hope for justice or revenge. He himself has said many times that if religion was just out the window, then there would be peace on earth because religion is the reason so many bad things are happening. I can understand that a little. None of the religions want to be judged by the radicals that are in it. I think there is a tendency in any belief to think that what you have should dominant others. With the atheist, I often don't hear answers, but what I hear is God couldn't be the answer. Yet, that is good enough for them. But, what if these tendencies towards hope and judgment are actually planted in us.
It's an interesting thought and idea.
Promise: From Tabletalk - One day, everyone will will receive their due. Believers will receive heaven because they are so closely united to Christ that His perfect obedience and its due reward is reckoned as theirs. Unbelievers will be condemned for their sin, for they are not covered by Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
Further readings:
Ezekiel 34:11-24
John 12:48
Romans 2:12-16
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