For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes 1:18
Zach Elder and his friends pulled up to shore after a twenty-five-day rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. The man who came to retrieve their rafts told them about the COVID-19 virus. They thought he was joking. But as they left the canyon their phones pinged with their parents’ urgent messages. Zach and his friends were stunned. They wished they could return to the river and escape what they now knew.
In a fallen world, knowledge often brings pain. The wise Teacher of Ecclesiastes observed, “With much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief” (1:18). Who hasn’t envied a child’s blissful ignorance? She doesn’t yet know about racism, violence, and cancer. Weren’t we happier before we grew up and discerned our own weaknesses and vices? Before we learned our family’s secrets—why our uncle drinks heavily or what caused our parents’ divorce?
The pain from knowledge can’t be wished away. Once we know, it’s no use pretending we don’t. But there’s a higher knowledge that empowers us to endure, even thrive. Jesus is the Word of God, the light that shines in our darkness (John 1:1–5). He “has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). Your pain is your reason to run to Jesus. He knows you and cares for you.
Read:Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 (NIV)
Wisdom Is Meaningless
12 I, the Teacher,l was king over Israel in Jerusalem.m 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens.n What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind!o 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.p
15 What is crooked cannot be straightened;q
what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I said to myself, “Look, I have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me;r I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom,s and also of madness and folly,t but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.
18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;u
the more knowledge, the more grief.v
INSIGHT
- What’s something you wished you didn’t know?
- Tell Jesus about it. Then leave it with Him. Whenever it troubles you, take it to Jesus again.
The book of Ecclesiastes is as strange as Proverbs is familiar. Author Ray Pritchard notes that “the ratio of regular readers of the Proverbs versus Ecclesiastes is probably 1000:1.” Though less popular, the significance of the book must not be missed. Ecclesiastes reads like somebody’s journal entries as the author (believed by many to have been Solomon), records his search for fulfillment, the results of his search, and some recommendations. The thesis statement of the book is given in verse 2: “Meaningless! Meaningless! . . . Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” How does one hold in tension the reality that our worldly existence is a gift from a loving God? While the point is highlighted over and over in the book that “all is vanity” (nkjv)—the fact that such a fragile life is best lived in the “fear of God” is also emphasized (see 12:13–14).
PRAYER
Jesus, I don’t enjoy pain, but if it drives me to You, it’s worth it. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen!!
Read: Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 (NIV) | Bible in a Year: Psalm 132-134 ; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34
