‘Do not say, “Why is it that the former days were better than these?”For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this”’ (Ecclesiastes 7:10).
The ‘good old days’ can get better with the telling, given the right audience and the right conditions.If anyone could look back on a life of privilege and excess, it was King Solomon. He had it all, at all times, and in all ways. If anyone knew what ‘better’ was, it was him.Here he is cautioning his readers to refrain from lamenting the present in light of the past. Today’s disadvantages can feel bleak when compared to previous advantages—real or imagined.The Israelites complained during the Exodus. They made up stories of the glories of the food they left behind in Egypt. They had quickly forgotten the oppression and privation imposed upon them by their slave masters.Solomon knew nothing of want. Unless you consider that he actually did without that which really mattered—walking in the presence of the Lord all his days.All he had left in the end was to enjoy each day as it came along. To project the glories of yesteryear upon the new day, was not wisdom.There is a lot to be said about waking up in the morning, thanking God for a new day, and doing the good that is in front of you. Solomon put it this way:“Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat, to drink and enjoy oneself in all one’s labour in which he toils under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him; for this is his reward” (Eccl.5:18).John StaigerIf you have been blessed by this message, please feel free to: Like, Comment or Share it with your friends.
0 Comments