Wisdom in a Meaningless World

Ecclesiastes 7–11

Main Idea: Wisdom does not always work out immediately in this cursed world, but because of the gospel, wisdom does work out ultimately.

1. God Has a Design for Everything.
2. Sin Leads to Brokenness and Meaninglessness.
3. The Gospel Is the Answer to Our Brokenness and Meaninglessness.
4. The Gospel Allows Us to Recover and Pursue God’s Wise Design.

I had an acquaintance in ministry—let’s call him “Bob”—and he grew up much like me. He was born into a Christian home, he prayed to receive Christ as Savior at a young age, and he even felt called into ministry, so he pursued training in seminary. He got married to a Christian girl, had several kids with her, and pastored a couple of churches. However, through his time in seminary and then as a pastor of small churches, he became an aggressive atheist. The reasons he gives for his conversion to atheism are complex, but two of the reasons he gave for walking away from the faith are intriguing.

First, Bob became an atheist because he basically thinks Christianity “doesn’t work.” He gives evidence for this analysis starting with his childhood, years before he would abandon the faith. It started out with a really small thing before it progressed to bigger things. For example, when he was a boy, there was a girl he really liked, but she did not like him back. He prayed and prayed for God to help him win her over, but it never happened. Later on in life, when he began to pastor, he concluded that Christianity did not work because his churches did not grow. He observed that churches that rely on God for growth inevitably decline, while churches that rely on flashy methods and business models grow. Consider these statements.

Looking back from my current perspective as an atheist, it is easy to spot a rather glaring problem within Christianity. Churches that relied on God for growth—sharing the gospel, being witnesses, trying to reach communities, but nonetheless trusting that God would bring salvation—these churches were invariably declining churches. They relied on God, and were dying. On the other hand, growing churches were those which relied on flash teams or the latest business models or charismatic leadership. I am left with the clear conclusion that church growth has everything to do with the human component. Rely on magic methods and glittery gimmicks and people will come—just like they come to carnival rides and new restaurants. Rely on God to bring new fruit to a church and that church will soon wither away. People, not God, grow a church. . . .

I am still convinced of that last point. There is perhaps no greater evidence for atheism than the growth practices of today’s large churches. Consider this dichotomy: churches that are growing do so through human efforts and human means, while churches trusting in God to bring revival and growth are in various stages of decline. Growing churches are very much centered on human effort and demonstrate clearly the power of charisma and community—the same characteristics one can find in any successful business endeavor without any need for the hand of God. Trust in God, and a church dies. Rely on the work of man, and a church just might make it. (Roberts, “My Journey”)

Second, besides thinking that Christianity does not work, Bob’s conversion to atheism was aided by the problem of evil and suffering in the world. He watched news reports of chemical attacks in the Middle East that killed hundreds of people at a time—most of whom went immediately to hell. He concluded there could not be a loving and just God in the world with hundreds of people being poisoned while they slept in their beds and then waking up in an eternal hell.

Sadly, while his wife is still a Christian trying to raise their children to know and love Jesus, Bob has become a convinced atheist, an evangelist for atheism, who attempts to convince others to walk away from a God whom he contends is not there anyway. Bob’s story is not atypical. Many people struggle with the facts—the reality—that Christianity often does not seem to work and that there is much evil and suffering in the world. This reality drives some away from God, or at least it causes doubt. You get a cancer diagnosis, you get passed over for the promotion, you see that cheaters got an A in the class while you studied hard and got a B, or your kids have issues that unbelievers’ kids do not, and these hardships can cause one to become skeptical and teeter on the edge of unbelief.

Solomon has the same problem in Ecclesiastes. He is teetering on the edge of unbelief because of the mess he sees in the world. He observes that living by God’s wisdom does not always work out. The faithful often suffer and the wicked often prosper. This situation is futile! Therefore, Solomon takes on the role of a skeptic in order to observe the world and ask the question, Is there meaning in this cursed world? His experiment causes him to conclude that everything is meaningless. In Ecclesiastes 7–11 he observes the unjust nature of things, and he concludes again that everything is absurd. However, instead of this driving him away from God, it actually drives him to God in faith. Let’s examine what he says so that during our struggles we can run to God instead of away from Him. Let’s be instructed in wisdom in this meaningless world, a world that is not meaningless when God gets involved.

God Has a Design for Everything

God has a design for everything in creation, and the wisdom literature calls living according to that design “wisdom.” God made the world to work a certain way, and you should live your life in that way—you should walk in wisdom (i.e., walk in the right way; Eccl 10:2)—because it will preserve your life. Ecclesiastes 7:12 states that “wisdom is protection . . . and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of its owner.” Living against God’s design is foolishness because it threatens your life, whereas living according to it is wisdom because it leads to an abundant life.

There are many examples of proverbial wisdom in Ecclesiastes 7–11. These chapters often contrast wisdom and foolishness so that we can walk in wisdom. For example, Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 7:5, “It is better to listen to rebuke from a wise person than to listen to the song of fools.” We should not be deceived by flattery, but instead we should appreciate hard truths (Dever, “The Ungodly”). Do not gain counsel from people who simply tell you what you want to hear; listen to those who will tell you the truth even when it is difficult, even when it hurts. Solomon gives much wisdom like this. He says not to be deceived by the love of money in ways that causes you to sin to get it (i.e., bribery or extortion; 7:7). Be patient instead of prideful (7:8). Be kind instead of angry (7:9). He says not to pine away for the good ol’ days (7:10). People, especially Christians, often look back to some supposed golden age in our recent past where the world was as it should be. They observe the songs, the movies, and the sitcoms of yesterday in comparison with the ones today and conclude the world surely has gotten bad. For example, they will compare the Beatles’ song about wanting to hold your hand with the overtly sexual lyrics in songs today and conclude things used to be much more wholesome. The problem is that the same era that gave us the Beatles also gave us songs like “Angel of the Morning,” which is about a one-night stand. That era also gave us James Bond movies in which female characters had inappropriate names and sensual attire. Things have not been messed up only since the Sexual Revolution; things have been jacked up since Eden.

Solomon continues his wise discourse. He says it is wise to submit to authority, like the king’s rule (8:2-7). We should submit to the governing authorities that God has placed in our lives—such as parents, pastors, and government officials—because God put them in place for our good (see 1 Pet 2:13–3:7). Solomon says a nation needs self-controlled rulers instead of rulers that are controlled by their appetites (Eccl 10:16-17). Solomon tells us to control our tongues and use our words wisely. He says not to speak too much (10:12-14). This theme is common in wisdom writings. There is sin in the multiplication of many words! Solomon tells us to avoid laziness (10:18) and to diversify business ventures to gain success (11:1-6) (Garrett, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, 338). Ecclesiastes 7–11 gives much wise counsel on the way we should live life!

This wise counsel helps you navigate your way through life in a way that protects you (7:12). For example, if you only gain counsel from the “yes men” chorus that you gather around you, then you will never be challenged when you are wrong, and that will lead to harmful decisions. Pastor Adrian Rogers said “A” leaders surround themselves with “A” companions. “B” leaders surround themselves with “C” companions! “A” companions will have the courage to speak truth into your life, even when it hurts to hear it.

If you sin to get money, then you may go to jail or pay a hefty fine. If you are angry instead of kind, then you will ruin your relationships. We must walk in wisdom according to God’s design because that is how we will flourish in life.

However, while Solomon observes these wise principles, he also talks much about the limit of man’s knowledge. Ecclesiastes 11:5 says, “Just as you don’t know the path of the wind, or how bones develop in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you don’t know the work of God who makes everything.” Man’s observations are limited to life lived “under the sun” in this cursed world, and even that is too much because we do not know the path the wind will take (11:5; cf. 8:17). Since our observation is limited, we cannot figure everything out. One of the main reasons we cannot figure everything out in this cursed world is because things do not always work out the way they are supposed to work out (8:14-17). Living by wisdom does not always make life go smoothly. Why? What is going on? Why is there suffering? Why do these wisdom principles not work? The problem is that humanity has departed from God’s design. The Bible calls this departure “sin,” and sin leads to brokenness and meaninglessness.

Sin Leads to Brokenness and Meaninglessness

Ecclesiastes has consistently written “meaningless” or “futile” over human existence. We could also describe this as brokenness—something is broken when it does not work right. When it comes to brokenness in this world, we need to realize two things. Sometimes we are broken because of our own sin, and sometimes we are broken because we live in a cursed, broken world.

Ecclesiastes makes something abundantly clear: all of humanity—including you—has sinned and departed from God’s wise design for the world. When we rebel against our design, we end up broken. We know this to be true experientially. After all, anytime you attempt to use something in a way that its designer did not intend for it to be used, it gets broken or does not work. I remember as a teenager watching my younger brother try to cook a Pop-Tart for breakfast one morning. Apparently removing it from the wrapper and placing it in the toaster was too much of a chore, so instead he placed the Pop Tart, aluminum sleeve and all, in the microwave. When he hit start on the microwave, fireworks started going off in our house. Why? The makers of Pop Tarts did not design their wrappers to be heated in the microwave.

I have young daughters and a young son, so we often watch the Disney channel. I remember watching a show called Doc McStuffins, which is about a little girl who plays a doctor for toys, which means she fixes broken toys. In one episode a toy named “Rockin’ Roxy,” a pop star, got broken and could not sing any longer. She was so distraught she wanted to find something else to do with her life. Maybe she should be a police toy, a knight, or a gymnast. However, Doc explained to her that a “toy has to be what it was built to be,” and then Doc fixed her. That may be a silly example, but it is true for humans as well. We must be who we were designed to be, and if we are not, then we will experience brokenness. Plus, we cannot fix our brokenness by trying to be something else. That will just make us more broken.

The problem is that we are all sinful and broken, and that hurts. So like Rockin’ Roxy, we try to find ways out of our brokenness, but we just end up more and more broken. For example, some people think gender reassignment will fix their brokenness, but that only makes suicide 20 times more likely. Some people think intimacy will fix their brokenness so they go from relationship to relationship trying to fill the void, but they end up hurt and unsatisfied each time as they look harder and harder for something they will not find. Others look to success in a job, or making lots of money, or hundreds of other things, but these things never bring lasting satisfaction. So much of our futility and brokenness is due to our own sin and our own idolatry in which we turn good things into ultimate things. We worship money, pleasure, sex, success, power, and much more. Instead of seeing those things as gifts from God to be used as He intended, we see them as ultimate and seek to get from them what they cannot give. So often the things we think we want so badly fail to provide what we think they will, and we end up empty. That is the brokenness of departing from God’s good design. We all sin, and we are all broken.

Ecclesiastes reveals we are broken because of our sin. Ecclesiastes 7:20 states, “There is certainly no righteous man on the earth who does good and never sins.” That sounds like Romans 3:9-20. Ecclesiastes 7:29 says, “Only see this: I have discovered that God made people upright, but they pursued many schemes.” The word translated “people” in the HCSB is literally the word Adam in Hebrew. God made Adam perfect in the beginning, but Adam pursued his own way rather than God’s way. We have all joined our first parent in that rebellion, and thus we have all experienced brokenness!

Not only does Ecclesiastes 7:29 point out that we have all sinned; it also echoes back to the original sin in the fall, which leads to our second observation: Sometimes we are broken because we live in a world broken by the fall. Ecclesiastes talks much of man’s sinfulness and how God has imposed a curse on the world (e.g., 1:13-15). God made the world crooked in response to Adam’s sin (7:13), and man cannot fix it! Solomon says, “Consider the work of God, for who can straighten out what He has made crooked?” All humans experience the meaninglessness and brokenness of this world where things do not work right. Sin and brokenness are equal-opportunity destroyers.

Yes, sometimes we are broken because of our own sin. For example, if you drive drunk and hurt someone, that is on you. If you cheat on your wife and lose your family, that is on you. But sometimes our brokenness is due to the sins done against us. For example, if you are abused, then that is someone sinning against you and breaking you. And yet, sometimes our brokenness is simply due to the sin of Adam and the fact that we live in a broken world.

Ecclesiastes points this out repeatedly in chapters 7–11. Things do not work the way we think they should. The righteous suffer while the wicked prosper (7:15). The wisdom literature honestly recognizes that things do not always work out as they ought immediately in this world. Some scholars want to act like Ecclesiastes is a corrective to the overly optimistic wisdom of Proverbs, but that is simply not the case. Proverbs recognizes these discrepancies and points them out as well, but Ecclesiastes simply dwells on them more. For example, Ecclesiastes 8:10-17 emphasizes this reality.

In such circumstances, I saw the wicked buried. They came and went from the holy place, and they were praised in the city where they did so. This too is futile. Because the sentence against a criminal act is not carried out quickly, the heart of people is filled with the desire to commit crime. Although a sinner commits crime a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I also know that it will go well with God-fearing people, for they are reverent before Him. However, it will not go well with the wicked, and they will not lengthen their days like a shadow, for they are not reverent before God.

There is a futility that is done on the earth: there are righteous people who get what the actions of the wicked deserve, and there are wicked people who get what the actions of the righteous deserve. I say that this too is futile. So I commended enjoyment because there is nothing better for man under the sun than to eat, drink, and enjoy himself, for this will accompany him in his labor during the days of his life that God gives him under the sun.

When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe the activity that is done on the earth (even though one’s eyes do not close in sleep day or night), I observed all the work of God and concluded that man is unable to discover the work that is done under the sun. Even though a man labors hard to explore it, he cannot find it; even if the wise man claims to know it, he is unable to discover it.

Solomon observes hypocrites who are praised in the world. These are wicked people who play the religious game—coming and going from the holy place—acting like they are godly when they are not. Yet they are praised in life and honored in death with a proper burial, and because of this, others join them in their wickedness. This reality could describe a lot of nominal Christianity in America and even throughout the world.

Also, Solomon observes that because retribution is not carried out immediately, people increase evil (8:11). Why not join the evil people when they are the ones who prosper? They have a good reputation, get lots of affirmation, and are even seen as religious. Justice deferred is an encouragement to practice evil (Dever, “The Ungodly”). We see this truth with our children. When Judson walks over to take Maddy or Emma’s iPad, if I laugh at him instead of disciplining him, what will happen? He will do it again! Deferred punishments encourage wrongdoing—that is the way of this cursed world on the small scale in our homes and even on a bigger scale in our culture and society. Court systems that do not swiftly and justly sentence criminals remove the deterrent to crime. That is even true when it comes to the ultimate Judge, God. When God in His patience passes over sin to a delayed judgment, yes, His mercy causes some to repent, but it also causes some to become entrenched in their wickedness because there is no immediate accountability. They need to be reminded of the truth of 2 Peter 3:9-10.

The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.

But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief; on that day the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the elements will burn and be dissolved, and the earth and the works on it will be disclosed.

Shockingly, not only is there no justice, but sinners prolong their lives while the righteous receive the retribution the wicked deserve (8:12,14). We see this reality and we say, “That’s not fair!” But that is the world we live in.

The problem is not just the random injustice of things not working out right but also the ultimate mystery that happens to all of us. Death is the ultimate problem, and it comes to all regardless of how we live. You may not experience brokenness until death, but it will come to all of us regardless of how successful we are in this life. Your effort makes no difference. Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 that no matter how well you live this life, you will eventually be caught by time and chance. The Grim Reaper is faster than us all. He never grows weary, and when he shows up, we often never saw him coming!

Again I saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, or the battle to the strong, or bread to the wise, or riches to the discerning, or favor to the skillful; rather, time and chance happen to all of them. For man certainly does not know his time: like fish caught in a cruel net or like birds caught in a trap, so people are trapped in an evil time as it suddenly falls on them.

Therefore, Solomon contemplates a world with suffering, injustice, and death to expose us to the absurdity of life. Tim Keller says that life is a “crapshoot” (“Search for Justice”). He explains that you might see on the news that a terrorist walks onto a bus in the Middle East and blows up dozens of people, so you say, “OK. I’m not gonna ride on buses in the Middle East.” But people die in car crashes here every day. No man has power over the day of his death (8:8). Whether you are a terrorist, a victim, or a child who dies in a car crash, it makes no difference to Death. Thus, life just seems so tragic and meaningless. That is life in this cursed world. It does not work right, and this reality drives many people away from the faith. So what do we make of this brokenness and futility? Is there any hope?

The Gospel Is the Answer to Our Brokenness and Meaninglessness

Ecclesiastes 12 says Solomon’s intention in this book is to shepherd us with these words (12:11). Thus, Solomon exposes us to the brokenness of the world—a brokenness that really hurts and brings emptiness—for the positive outcome of causing us not to build our lives on things or people other than God. Ecclesiastes is God’s goodness to us because He refuses to allow us to wallow in our broken futility. In His love He frustrates us (Dever, “The Ungodly”). Our frustration over the absurdity of life drives us to God and His gospel. That is the answer to brokenness and meaninglessness.

Ecclesiastes encourages faith in God and His gospel in two ways here in Ecclesiastes 7–11. First, it reveals that God is in control and working things out according to His timing and plan. Therefore, Ecclesiastes 7:14-18 exhorts us to fear God.

In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man cannot discover anything that will come after him.

In my futile life I have seen everything: there is a righteous man who perishes in spite of his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who lives long in spite of his evil. Don’t be excessively righteous, and don’t be overly wise. Why should you destroy yourself? Don’t be excessively wicked, and don’t be foolish. Why should you die before your time? It is good that you grasp the one and do not let the other slip from your hand. For the one who fears God will end up with both of them.

There is much we could dig into in this passage, but let’s focus on the big points. As we saw in Ecclesiastes 3, God’s plan for our lives includes both our prosperity and our adversity. He mixes both together to bring about something beautiful, even though we cannot see what that is right now from our small vantage point (cf. 3:11-15). Our wisdom is limited (cf. 8:14-17), so we need to trust God. That is the point of the book. After all, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov 1:7). As Ecclesiastes 7:14-18 points out, the one who fears God will avoid both self-righteousness and foolishness. That is the way we are to live life—trusting in Almighty God.

Tim Keller explains that this approach is helpful for people who deal with the problem of evil and injustice at an intellectual level. If, theoretically, evil and suffering are a problem for you, then there has to be a big God out there with a plan for everything that happens (“Search for Justice”). If there is a God, then evil is a problem. But if there is no God, then evil is not a problem because if there is no God, then there is no such thing as evil. The idea of justice is a cruel mirage. Solomon gets at this reality inEcclesiastes 9:4 when he says it is better to be a scoundrel like a dog and save your skin than noble like a lion and dead. If this life is all there is and if there is no God, then there is no right and wrong. There is no reason to work for justice or fair treatment of others. Better to be a utilitarian and save your own hide than risk it to save others and be dead.

Bob the atheist is concerned with the survival of the human species and with humans being good to one another. He writes of the importance of his atheism:

I came to realize that the stakes are terribly high, as high as the very survival of our species. Pascal’s wager says that if there is no God, the worst possible consequence is that I won’t go to heaven when I die. The real world says that if there is no God, but we act as if there is, then we as a species might well drive ourselves to extinction. This is not a remote hypothetical, this is a definite, looming threat. (Roberts, “Journey”)

My question for him is, Why do you care? What does it matter? Why is it good that we survive as a species? Why should we be nice to one another? Should we not let the strong survive and the weak die off? If evil and suffering are a problem for you, then you must believe in God. There at least has to be a God out there big enough for you to get mad at. However, that answer to the problem of evil and suffering is a kind of intellectual answer that does little for people who actually suffer.

The good news is that Solomon does address injustice at the personal level. He tells a story in Ecclesiastes 9:13-16.

I have observed that this also is wisdom under the sun, and it is significant to me: There was a small city with few men in it. A great king came against it, surrounded it, and built large siege works against it. Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he delivered the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man. And I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.”

These verses tell the story of a poor, wise man who saves the city but is rejected. The passage is deeply puzzling because the people were indifferent to the hero who saved them. Sinclair Ferguson calls this passage a prophecy. He writes, “Whose name most naturally comes to mind when we hear of a poor man, full of wisdom, who became a savior but whose life and teaching have been rejected?” (Pundit’s Folly, 51). The answer is obviously “Jesus!” Jesus is the Wisdom of God (1 Cor 1:24,30) and the Savior we scorn.

Not only is Jesus the designer behind creation, but He is also the one who enters creation and lives out that design. He took on flesh (John 1:14), and He grew in wisdom and stature (Luke 2:52). He is greater than Solomon because he never faltered from His wisdom (Matt 12:42). He is the answer to the limited knowledge of mankind. Since we could not go up to God to get wisdom, God sent His Son to us with His wisdom (Prov 30:1-4). Wisdom is ultimately not a thing, not an idea, and not a concept; wisdom is a Person. We are sinful fools who will never be wise apart from Jesus Christ.

The gospel teaches that Jesus took on our sin, our folly, and our death to save us from them. In a world filled with suffering and injustice, He suffered the greatest injustice the world has ever seen—the murder of God the Creator! God did not remain distant from the problem of evil and suffering. He became part of it so that He could one day do away with it. We can hold on to our faith in times of pain because we serve a God—a Savior—who has experienced rejection and pain. This is so beautifully seen in Edward Shillito’s poem “Jesus of the Scars.”

If we have never sought, we seek Thee now;

Thine eyes burn through the dark, our only stars;

We must have sight of thorn-pricks on Thy brow,

We must have Thee, O Jesus of the Scars.

The heavens frighten us; they are too calm;

In all the universe we have no place.

Our wounds are hurting us; where is the balm?

Lord Jesus, by Thy Scars, we claim Thy grace.

If, when the doors are shut, Thou drawest near,

Only reveal those hands, that side of Thine;

We know to-day what wounds are, have no fear,

Show us Thy Scars, we know the countersign.

The other gods were strong; but Thou wast weak;

They rode, but Thou didst stumble to a throne;

But to our wounds only God’s wounds can speak,

And not a god has wounds, but Thou alone.

Jesus is the Savior who rescues us from brokenness. Jesus is the wise man who makes us wise. Jesus is the poor man who makes us rich. And yet He was rejected too! Mark Dever points out that Isaiah 53 explains the wisdom and foolishness of Ecclesiastes 7–11. The righteous man got what the wicked deserved, so the wicked could get what the righteous deserve (Dever, “The Ungodly”). The poor, wise Savior who rescued the world is rejected and despised because the wisdom of God is foolishness to the world and the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God (1 Cor 1:18-25). It pleased God to save through a cross that looked like foolishness. Turn to Jesus, and He can free you from your brokenness and meaninglessness. Let Him turn your foolishness into wisdom.

The Gospel Allows Us to Recover and Pursue God’s Wise Design

In Christ we get to recover and pursue God’s design for our lives. That means living out the wisdom of Ecclesiastes, which looks like contentment with what you have, kindness toward others instead of anger, the ability to control your tongue, a good work ethic, patience rather than arrogantly demanding what you want, and rightly submitting to authority. When you follow God’s design in this fallen world, things may not always work out immediately, but they will work out ultimately. God will make all things new in the end, and He will set all things right to His original design. Ecclesiastes 8:12-13 and 12:13-14, among other texts, say there will be a final reckoning where all is set right and made new. The wicked will not prosper forever, and the righteous who are in Christ will not suffer forever.

We can trust these things are true not simply because we fear a ­sovereign God who is in control, but we can trust these things because we also trust in a God who suffered in order to end the suffering and chaos of this cursed world one day, a God who was treated unjustly to end injustice one day, a God with scars! So repent and believe the gospel. Allow God to empower you to live out His wise design for the world by the power of His Spirit!

Reflect and Discuss

1. What are some things that can cause you or those you know to doubt the truth claims of Christianity?
2. What have you observed that causes you to think the world does not work right?
3. Growing up, what did you think of the “rules” in the Bible? Did you see them as freeing or constricting? How does viewing them as God’s design for your flourishing alter your view?
4. What are some examples of wise counsel in Ecclesiastes 7–11? How can we live them out practically?
5. What are some things you would love to know the answer to, but you know you will not get the answer? What does this lack of knowledge tell you about the human condition?
6. What are some practical ways going against God’s design hurts us?
7. What are some ways we try to get out of brokenness but make things worse?
8. Many people think they suffer because of some unknown sin they committed that God is mad about and wants to punish. How does the teaching in Ecclesiastes 7–11 alter that view?
9. In what ways does the meaninglessness of life show us the goodness of God?
10. How does knowing you serve a God who has suffered in your place and on your behalf aid you in dealing with suffering in your life?