Slices
Prepare
Think about the root cause of oppression. Pray for justice and mercy for oppressed people.
Bible passage
Oppression, toil, friendlessness
4 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:
I saw the tears of the oppressed –
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors –
and they have no comforter.
2 And I declared that the dead,
who had already died,
are happier than the living,
who are still alive.
3 But better than both
is the one who has never been born,
who has not seen the evil
that is done under the sun.
4 And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
5 Fools fold their hands
and ruin themselves.
6 Better one handful with tranquillity
than two handfuls with toil
and chasing after the wind.
7 Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:
8 there was a man all alone;
he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
‘For whom am I toiling,’ he asked,
‘and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?’
This too is meaningless –
a miserable business!
9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labour:
10 if either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Advancement is meaningless
13 Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning. 14 The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom. 15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. 16 There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Explore
This chapter confronts us with two ways to live: the way of greed, envy and abuse of power resulting in lonely wealth (vs 1–8), or the way of sharing, resulting in community and wisdom (vs 9–12).
Read verses 1 to 8 again carefully, looking for the causes and results of living for self and wealth. Envy and greed result in the poor, weak and needy being trampled on, abused and oppressed, in contradiction of Jewish Law (see Deuteronomy 24:14,15). The fool (v 5) who lives this way may be wealthy but ends up alone. This is summarised in verse 8. It’s the result of people living in rebellion against God – ‘the evil that is done under the sun’ (vs 3,7).
Now read verses 9 to 12. Look for the reasons that prompt the teacher to say ‘two are better than one’ (v 9). It is striking that mutual cooperation and support result in a good return for work, as well as companionship.
Verses 13 to 16 seem like a change of subject, yet, in contrasting the wealthy but lonely king with the poor but accompanied youth, the teacher illustrates what he has said about two ways to live. He concludes that poverty with wisdom is better than wealth without meaning.
Respond
Take an honest look at your own life. Confess the times when you live ‘under the sun’ and chase what you think benefits you. Ask the Lord for strength to live in a way that benefits others.
Deeper Bible study
I bind unto myself today / the strong name of the Trinity, / by invocation of the same, / the Three in One and One in Three.’1
In chapter 2, the Teacher considered the idea of pleasure as a source of meaning. Now in chapter 4 we get the opposite. The Teacher looks at oppression and toil, acknowledging the deep reality of both in human living. He recognises the tragedy of human society, that the weak are oppressed by the strong. This evil is so great that his words echo the lament of Job as he declares that life itself is the problem and it might be better not to live. This is compounded by the idea that all of us are motivated by envy to work hard and to achieve in life. As you will guess, the Teacher declares this too to be meaningless. This idea is continued in verse 13 where the Teacher considers wisdom and folly in the hearts of young and old. There is irony as he talks about the wise young man, this being the very defining feature of the young King Solomon. Even in advancement, the Teacher concludes that there is little meaning.
Yet both these sections bookend a curious and seemingly out-of-character statement by the Teacher. Regularly read at weddings, verses 9–12 are a positive affirmation about not living in isolation. Two are better than one. It is a simple but fundamentally challenging truth about the importance of community. We should note that it is one of the few things that the Teacher does not conclude is meaningless. The mysterious shift from two to three in verse 12, declaring that the three-fold cord is stronger, is a suggestion that bringing God into any relationship will fortify it. It is also an anticipation of the Christian idea of the Trinity being at the heart of who our God is.
Pray for the oppressed in our world. Pray that God may show you ways in which you can stand up for those who are being exploited.
1 ‘St Patrick’s Breastplate’, tr CF Alexander
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Jeremiah 21,22; Psalms 117,118
Pray for Scripture Union
Please pray that God leads Sarah and the team in how best to communicate the Hybrid Mission learnings to churches in ways that are simple to put into action and effective in bearing spiritual fruit. (This week's prayers relate to this story)
