A while ago, my pastor did a series on Wednesday nights, in which he went through Ecclesiastes. Ever since then I've been fascinated by the book. The message of the book is a sobering and urgent reminder of the fact that, no matter what it is, if you're finding your pleasure and satisfaction somewhere other than God, you'll be let down. So, starting Monday (d.v.) I'll be devoting the next few weeks to Ecclesiastes.
Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher,
"Vanity of vanities! All is vanity."
What advantage does man have in all his work
Which he does under the sun?
A generation goes and a generation comes,
But the earth remains forever.
Also, the sun rises and the sun sets;
And hastening to its place it rises there again.
Blowing toward the south,
Then turning toward the north,
The wind continues swirling along;
And on its circular courses the wind returns.
All the rivers flow into the sea,
Yet the sea is not full.
To the place where the rivers flow,
There they flow again.
All things are wearisome;
Man is not able to tell it.
The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor is the ear filled with hearing.
That which has been is that which will be,
And that which has been done is that which will be done.
So there is nothing new under the sun.
Is there anything of which one might say,
"See this, it is new"?
Already it has existed for ages
Which were before us.
There is no remembrance of earlier things;
And also of the later things which will occur,
There will be for them no remembrance
Among those who will come later still.
"Vanity of vanities! All is vanity."
What advantage does man have in all his work
Which he does under the sun?
A generation goes and a generation comes,
But the earth remains forever.
Also, the sun rises and the sun sets;
And hastening to its place it rises there again.
Blowing toward the south,
Then turning toward the north,
The wind continues swirling along;
And on its circular courses the wind returns.
All the rivers flow into the sea,
Yet the sea is not full.
To the place where the rivers flow,
There they flow again.
All things are wearisome;
Man is not able to tell it.
The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor is the ear filled with hearing.
That which has been is that which will be,
And that which has been done is that which will be done.
So there is nothing new under the sun.
Is there anything of which one might say,
"See this, it is new"?
Already it has existed for ages
Which were before us.
There is no remembrance of earlier things;
And also of the later things which will occur,
There will be for them no remembrance
Among those who will come later still.
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So this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
"See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;
the one who trusts will never be dismayed.
---------------------
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
"See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;
the one who trusts will never be dismayed.
---------------------
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
hey girl, You definitly need to start blogging more! (ok, I shouldn't be talking...) but put on more of those awesome quotes you always do! I want to know how it's going in all those books your reading!
ReplyDeleteBtw- how is the Aeneid coming for you? I've found that it isn't as hard as I thought! I'm actually enjoying it! blog about that book! LOL love, Maddie
Maddie.....yeah, howbout that spec in your brother's eye, log in your own? Hmmm? ;-)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the Aeneid! Especially how it tells the tale of the Trojan Horse. Homer ended the Iliad at Hector's death, so I was totally bummed! So Virgil earned Brownie points for including it. You know, if you like the Aeneid, you might like Livy's Early History of Rome. It's SO not hard. And he tells history as a story, like Susan Wise Bauer. But of course, not everybody shares my passion for ancient history...sigh...
Hope you have fun at the play tonight. I command you or Callie to tell me all about it.
Love,
Sarah