The Search for Meaning
Lessons from Ecclesiastes
King Solomon wasted years in the search for meaning in his life, and he lived to regret them. But fortunately for us, in his old age, God inspired him to look back and write about that time. Therefore, you and I do not need to make the same mistakes and endure the bitterness of learning life’s lessons the hard way.
When people become unhappy, they look for something to fill their emptiness. And, like Solomon, they seek to fill the void in all the wrong places, so their fixes are temporary, and their search is never-ending. Even Solomon described his pursuits as meaningless, a “chasing after the wind,” a fruitless exercise devoid of meaning.
However, if you are willing to seek God, your Creator has answers for you. Because like a loving parent, He longs to show you the dead ends and the pitfalls of life. Therefore, it is not a coincidence that the Bible records King Solomon’s search for meaning in the Book of Ecclesiastes. So, together, let’s learn from the wisest man who ever lived because there is more to life than what you can see.
Solomon’s Search for Meaning
Like so many, Solomon searched for meaning because he had gotten off course, yet as a young king, Solomon trusted God and was humble enough to ask Him for wisdom. Back then, Solomon desired to govern his people with good judgment, so he asked God for the ability to distinguish between right and wrong.
I will do as you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. 1 Kings 3:12
The wisdom God gave King Solomon surpassed everyone, including all other kings and queens, so he enjoyed worldwide acclaim. But sadly, Solomon disobeyed God’s command not to marry foreigners, and this became his downfall. Yet, following God’s command would protect the Israelites from the idolatry of the surrounding nations.
As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. So, Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely. 1 Kings 11:4, 6
Solomon followed other gods and lived as if the one true God did not exist, just as God forewarned. So, be aware that whatever you love more than God will bring you down. Predictably, when Solomon began to feel the void in his life, he started his search for meaning.
The Search for Meaning in Work
Under the Sun
After Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, creation was cursed and subjected to vanity and futility. Therefore, Solomon’s repeated phrase, “under the sun,” reflects a life lived in a fallen world that does not acknowledge God. And life under the sun will never make sense without a vertical focus.
“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Preacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? Generations come, and generations go, but the earth remains forever.” Ecclesiastes 1:2-4
Have you ever wondered why you do what you do? If not, Solomon’s stark conclusions should startle and challenge you to more profound thought and reflection. Subsequently, then, ask yourself significant questions that could change the trajectory of your life. Such as why do I stay up late and get up early, but I am still unsatisfied?
Then ask, is my job my identity? If so, then who am I should I lose it? And why has every day become a monotonous cycle that leaves me exhausted and unfulfilled? Solomon concluded that there was no meaningful gain from all his hard work without considering the brevity of life. And without realizing what the world offers is like a vapor that quickly evaporates. Thus, only God can give your life purpose and make sense of living in this world.
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Luke 12:15
The Search for Significance
Under the Sun
My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
Do you ever think you would be happy if you only had this or that? Then consider that Solomon had everything he needed for a lifetime of success: Power, popularity, prosperity, and great wisdom. But because Solomon worked hard mainly to please himself, he found temporary satisfaction but no real meaning in what he did.
Likewise, how many people do you know who achieved everything in life but are still not happy? And are you one of them? Or are you someone who thinks that possessions will give you the significance you crave? So, you rack up credit card bills and forget that debt is the price of your momentary pleasure.
And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. Ecclesiastes 4:4
Solomon discovered that motivation is everything because time spent outdoing someone else is nonsensical and a waste of time, like “chasing after the wind.” Thus, Solomon’s pursuits ended in futility because he searched for significance apart from God’s plan for his life. Indeed, only God can satisfy a thirsty, unfulfilled heart.
Where Do You Search for Meaning
Jesus said, what good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Matthew 16:26
God’s Word says there is a spiritual world you cannot see, so what you do on earth matters immensely. Therefore, it is wise to know what motivates you. So, consider the following: Are you driven by jealousy, greed, and a constant desire to outdo someone else? And to gain status, do you work long hours to achieve what others have?
If so, you have failed to look ahead. And you risk losing everything that is truly valuable: Your family, friends, and even your health.
What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief, even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 2:22-23
God’s Word paints an accurate picture of the mental anguish that comes when you ignore God and carry your burdens alone. Furthermore, your labor is truly meaningless if you believe that this life is all there is. So, consider that God provided your job and equipped you with the skills to do it. And when you acknowledge Him, He will give your work value, no matter how menial.
The Search to Understand Wisdom
Under the Sun
Solomon set out to discover whether he could find answers to the emptiness of life through human wisdom. But he concluded that this, too, was pointless.
What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted. For with much wisdom comes much sorrow, the more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes 1:15, 18
Some self-important people think they know everything when actually they don’t know enough to ask the right questions. While others pursue wisdom to make sense of the world, only to find that the more they know, the less they understand. And sadly, when God gives them insights, it is wasted because no one cares to listen.
All this I tested by wisdom, and I said, “I am determined to be wise,” but this was beyond me. Whatever wisdom may be, it is far off and most profound; who can discover it? Ecclesiastes 7:23-24
God is the source of all wisdom and understanding, so people will never know more than their Creator. And this is because only God could lay the earth’s foundations by His knowledge and set the heavens in place by His understanding. Therefore, the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God.
The Search for Meaning Begins with Humility
Then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it. Ecclesiastes 8:17
Humans can only discover what God reveals, and the heavens declare the glory of God! Therefore, every human soul has a God-given awareness that there must be something more than their earthly life. God is real, so get to know Him by reading the Bible, the Word of God. And God promises that when you seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him.
Your Word, O Lord, is eternal; It stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; You establish the earth, and it endures. Psalm 119:89
The Search for Happiness in Pleasure
Under the Sun
Solomon then decides to explore whether pleasure would sustain him.
I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. I tried cheering myself with wine” and embracing folly. I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. Ecclesiastes 2:1, 3, 10
Lives today are fast-paced and stressful, so many look to entertainment, food, sex, or drugs and alcohol to cope. Likewise, Solomon had an abundance of pleasures, yet he concluded that escaping life’s problems through self-indulgence was pointless and a waste of time. To be sure, earthly escapes promise fulfillment but eventually, they leave you disappointed. Yet, hollow laughter continues to disguise the truth.
Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 7:6
God Sees Your Search for Meaning
Many people work to have it all, but Solomon would tell you that it is a dead-end street for fools. So, how do you cope with life? Do you endure the week to live for the weekends? Then, why not take Solomon’s conclusions to heart and look beyond what you can see. Because only your Creator knows what you are searching for and what you truly need. Therefore, turn to God now, repent of your sins, and ask Him to forgive you. Then ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior.
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them.” Ecclesiastes 12:1
Solomon’s Discovery about Money
Under the Sun
Again, I saw something meaningless under the sun: 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. Ecclesiastes 4:7-8
Like Solomon, ask yourself why you work so hard? Consider then, if you lost all your money and possessions, would you have anything of value left? Solomon concluded that work has meaning when you are content and have balance in your life.
Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 5:10
Indeed, money can’t buy you happiness, meaning, or purpose. And to borrow a quote from the movie Forrest Gump, “there is only so much money a man really needs; the rest is just for showing off.” Indeed, you do not want to gain the whole world and lose your soul.
People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 1 Timothy 6:9-10
Death Ends the Search for Meaning
I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? This too is meaningless. For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. Ecclesiastes 2:18-21
Death is the great equalizer because you must leave everything behind when you die. So, don’t waste another minute of your life rising early and staying up late, worrying about earthly concerns. Instead, acknowledge that everything you have comes from God, and trust Him with your life.
A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without Him, who can eat or find enjoyment? Ecclesiastes 2:24-25
Solomon discovers that God is the source of joy, and He satisfies our desires with good things. But without Him, Solomon considered his work to be in vain.
After Death Comes Judgement
Since you cannot take anything with you when you die, invest in eternity.
Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb, and as everyone comes, so they depart. They take nothing from their toil that they can carry in their hands. Ecclesiastes 5:15
Solomon concluded that the certainty of death makes all human pursuits futile because you can’t take it with you. So, much misery lies ahead for those who live as if this world is all there is. But the good thing is that while alive, you still have time to examine the direction of your life and make changes. Therefore, now is the time to seek the Lord!
Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Ecclesiastes 11:9
Everyone will answer their Creator one day, so how you live your life on earth counts for eternity. Thus, those who live by faith in Jesus Christ and make it their goal to please God have eternal life. But those who live for themselves, apart from God, will also live without Him forever. So then, if your funeral were today, what would people say about you? And more importantly, what will God say?
It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart. Ecclesiastes 7:2
Only Jesus Christ Gives Life Purpose
Indeed, the search for meaning ends when you believe in Jesus Christ.
Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” Augustine of Hippo.
All the escape routes humanity conceives to live their life without God has proven to fail. So, are you ready to rethink the direction of your life and change course? Because what you are searching for can only be found in a personal relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. Assuredly, God will give your life purpose and meaning when you trust Him. God’s Plan of Salvation
In the end, Solomon understood that the search for meaning is a search for God. So, once again, he grasped the truth that knowing and doing God’s will is man’s ultimate purpose. Ultimately, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
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Bible study for “The Search for Meaning”
Week 1: Genesis 2:7; 3:17-19; 1 Kings 3:5-15, 4:29-34; 11:1-10; 2 Chronicles 9:1-28; Psalms 1:1-6; 14:1-3; 16:2, 37:3-6, 16, 27-28; 34:8-10; 37:4; 39:4-6; 40:4-5; 42:1-2; 46:10; 49:1-3, 10-20; 62:1-2, 9-12; 63:1; 90:1-6, 10. 12, 17; 103:1-5, 13-19; 104:1-35; 119: 15-16, 89-91, 105, 133, 147-148; 127:1-2
Week 2: Proverbs 1:1-7; 2:1-6, 9-19; 3:1-7, 19-20; 8:12-13, 32-36; 9:10; 11:21, 28; 14:12-13, 16; 15:3, 16-17; 16:2-3, 6, 16-17, 20-21, 25; 21:17, 30; 23:4-5; 30:7-9; Ecclesiastes 1:1-18; 2:1-26; 3:9-22; 4:1-8; 5:8-20; 6:1-12; 7:1-29; 8:7-17; 9:1-18; 11: 5, 7-10; 12:1-14; Isaiah 29:13-16; 40:6-8; 44:24-26; 55:1-2, 6-9
Week 3: Jeremiah 9:23-24; 10:12-13; 17:5-10; 29:11-13; Matthew 5:6; 6:19-34; 10:32-33; 11:28-30; 16:24-27; Luke 11:29-32; 12:13-34; John 3:16-21; 4:13-14, 23-26; 6:26-29, 33-40; 7: 37-39; 14:1, 27; 16:33; Romans 2:5-11; 8:18-25, 28; 11:33-36; 12:1-3; 14:11-12; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; 2:1-16; 3:18-20; 8:1-3; 15:58; 15:4
Week 4: 2 Corinthians 5:15-21; Galatians 1:3-5; Ephesians 5:5-21; Philippians 4:12-13; Colossians 2:2-3, 6, 9; 3:16-17, 23-25; 1 Timothy 6:6-12; Hebrews 3:7-19; 4:12-16; 9:27-28; 11:6; James 1:5-8; 3:13-18; 4:1-10, 13-17; 1 Peter 1:24-25; 1 John 2:15-17; 5:11-13; Revelation 20:11-15; 22:12-14
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I like this one: God alone gives true wisdom and genuine happiness comes from pleasing Him.
‘Whatever you love more than God will bring you down’
Your quote is wise and radical truth.
… no mattter how succeful we may be on what we prioritize over God; the end will be always meaningless.