pan·a·ce·a (pān’ə-sē’ə) n. A remedy for all diseases, evils, or difficulties; a cure-all
I found it. The solution for everything. It’s right here in Ecclesiastes:
“A feast is made for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything.” (Ecclesiastes 10:19)
That’s right. Money is the answer for everything. Life is that simple. Seek money. Get money. All problems will be gone.
Or do you think that maybe, just maybe, wisdom literature needs to be read in a special way? Yes, that includes Ecclesiastes.
Wisdom literature needs to be read as such. We can’t merely take everything literally and think that we’re going to hear the message it has for us. We saw that when discussing alcohol. The misreading of Proverbs has led to many misconceptions about Christians and alcohol. In the same way, many yank verses out of context from Ecclesiastes to try and say, “Here’s what the Bible says.” It’s not enough to say, “The Bible says…” We need to get to “The Bible teaches…”
[Nick Gill wrote this week about difficulties in reading Proverbs, touching on some of these same ideas.]
As I continue to present some thoughts on Ecclesiastes, we’ll need to keep these ideas in mind. Wisdom literature needs to be read as the special literature that it is.
Good post, I jealous of your time at Summit. I missed it due to other obligations. This post reminds me of the BCV
(book, ch. and verse) mentality many in our heritage have. Context is so very important to our understanding and proper use of the Bible as you said, we should be careful on how literal we take things in various contexts. Thanx Bro!
Trent
I think you’re right. Money is in fact the answer to all problems. Except lice. And sin. And rashes. And good health. But it’s good for all the others. :)