You know people who just always seem to be in a mood? Someone who has Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh as their spirit animal? That would appear to be the speaker at this point in Ecclesiastes.
The speaker is called “the teacher” in many translations, and is the character speaking the wisdom that is in this difficult-to-spell book. What the teacher is in the middle of doing is expounding upon his thesis statement, which is that “everything is hevel,” which is the Hebrew word that is often translated as “meaningless,” but is better translated as “fleeting.”
The Hebrew language uses words that describe something physical as a symbol for how we are to understand something else, and this is true with this word: it’s “vapor.” The teacher is going through the process of talking about the temporary nature of things, both positive and negative, to demonstrate this point. The speaker does acknowledge the value of things like wisdom, but it’s still fleeting due to the brokenness of the world that ends up foiling much of what wisdom gains.
Like I said, the “teacher” is a little bit of a bummer.
But as I said, Ecclesiastes is known as a piece of wisdom literature, and it’s saying something really important here: the problems we’re experiencing? The loss and ache? That’s fleeting – it’s very temporary, and is vaporous, meaning it isn’t the true substance of your life. It will indeed pass. The wisdom is true for those of us not going through a difficult time too: even if you’re in a great position in life, you might be without wisdom, and therefore destined for trouble. And even those with wisdom can’t view themselves as superior, as the teacher makes it clear that they experience struggle in this broken world.
You might be reading this and think, “Then what’s the point of it all? Why even try?” The point the author is making through the teacher is that all of us are powerless in trying to manipulate the circumstances of life – there’s no point where we somehow get to tell God and the rest of the world how things are supposed to go. Remember, vapor is like air, so all of these fleeting elements of life aren’t things we can hold on to. As the teacher says it in our text for today:
“No one has power over the wind to restrain the wind, or power over the day of death.” (Ecclesiastes 8:8)
Therefore, we are to act in wisdom, and then find enjoyment in the renunciation of those quests for control. In doing so, the teacher says, “So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 8:15)
This is not a simple “You Only Live Once (YOLO)” sentiment, but something much deeper: we shouldn’t go and live foolishly for pleasure, because that’s one of the fleeting things that will leave us empty. But we also can’t hold too tightly to our own righteousness and planning, because that, too, will fail. Freedom comes with enjoying the days we are given, living with God’s wisdom, realizing that God has given it to us. Where in your life would you benefit from the acknowledgement of this truth? Where might you be able to live in greater freedom after relinquishing control you never had in the first place. Thankfully, you don’t have to, because God is walking alongside you the entire time.