Read Ecclesiastes 8:1–14
Questions from the Scripture text: What sort of man does Ecclesiastes 8:1 commend? What effect does his wisdom have upon him? Whom does Ecclesiastes 8:2 say to obey? Why? Against what two things does Ecclesiastes 8:3 warn? What does the king’s word have (Ecclesiastes 8:4)? How great is his power? What happens to whom in Ecclesiastes 8:5a? What does the wise man’s heart understand (Ecclesiastes 8:5-6a)? Against what does this timing and judgment mitigate (Ecclesiastes 8:6b)? What limitations are there to the king’s timing and judgment in Ecclesiastes 8:7? What other limitations are there upon the king, and all men (Ecclesiastes 8:8a–b)? Who else are unable to overcome this (verse 8c–d)? What sometimes happens to those in authority (Ecclesiastes 8:9)? What sometimes happen with the wicked (Ecclesiastes 8:10)? What is the effect, when they are not made into a warning for others (Ecclesiastes 8:11)? But with whom will it actually be well (Ecclesiastes 8:12)? Why won’t it be well with the wicked (Ecclesiastes 8:13)? What is sometimes the case on the earth (Ecclesiastes 8:14)?
How are earthly authorities a solution to some of the challenges of a fallen world? Ecclesiastes 8:1–14 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word read in the public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these fourteen verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that God has given earthly authorities to restrain some of the effects of sin, and to remind us that He ultimately answers all sin.
In the last portion of chapter 7, Solomon was wrestling with the doctrine of total depravity. In this world, there is a limited but beneficial solution to the sinfulness of man in the godly authority of a king (Ecclesiastes 8:1-6). The problem is the king is not God (Ecclesiastes 8:7). He cannot rule over matters of the spirit (Ecclesiastes 8:8). He does not have in his hand the ultimate power of death and judgment. So even the wise and godly kings, even the solution of having a wise or godly king is very limited. And it's not only limited by the finitude of an earthly king. But the other limitation is that kings are often wicked (Ecclesiastes 8:10--14).
God is the one who has established authority. He's the one who's set kings over you (Ecclesiastes 8:2), and especially if he's given you this wise king who the sternness of his face is changed by genuine wisdom, by the fear of God (Ecclesiastes 8:1). What a blessing that is. And so you submit in the first place because you have an oath to God in your submission. Whether or not you swore an oath to God, it's implied because he's the one who has set the king over you. And so you have to keep the king's commandment because God set him over you.
Secondly, all authority is beneficial to some extent. Our wickedness and the chaos of every man ruling himself is so bad that even hard and wicked authority does have some benefits. But if God gives you a wise king, how much better even! He said, do not be hasty to go from his presence. Ecclesiastes 8:3 is still talking about the wise king. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him. And if it's a wise king, what pleases him is going to be to punish you. Especially if the “Him” in this case (as may likely be) is not the earthly king, but God.
So you have the wise king, he's doing what pleases God (Ecclesiastes 8:3); he's maintaining his authority (Ecclesiastes 8:4-5); he is discerning about the right timing of things and the right way to do them (Ecclesiastes 8:6). He understands from God that there's appropriate times for particular things and appropriate decisions to be made according to the wisdom of God and the righteousness of God, which are especially opened to us, of course, in the word of God. Having a wise king, wise authority is a great blessing. And whether we're talking about over a nation or over a household, having governing authority in which the authority is maintained, and God is pleased, and His word governs the right timing of things and the right judgments or decisions of things. This significantly mitigates the experience of misery in a fallen world, in a sinful world. Even as sinfulness and misery increase (Ecclesiastes 8:6b), yet God in His mercy by this gracious gift of authority and especially wise authority, godly authority, mitigates against sin and misery. What a blessing that is.
And yet, It is limited. Even the wise and good king can only go so far. He does not know what will happen, so who can tell him when it will occur (Ecclesiastes 8:7)? So there are times and judgments that belong to him (Ecclesiastes 8:5-6), but then there are times and judgments that come in God's providence. He doesn't know what will happen, and he doesn't know when it will happen. This is similar to the secret things belong to God, but the revealed things are for us and for our children (cf. Deuteronomy 29:29). In the revealed things, a wise and godly king is a great blessing. But the revealed things are not the only things. There are the secret things. And even a wise and godly king is only a very limited solution.
For instance, no one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit (Ecclesiastes 8:8a). He can't issue a decree that everyone will be righteous. The actual condition of the soul belongs to God. And the king is unable to perpetually extend the life of the righteous. No one has power over the day of death (verse 8b). Thankfully, the wicked do not extend their lives either (verse 8c–d). That power belongs neither to wickedness nor to righteousness; it belongs to God himself.
And a final limitation for the wise king (before we get to the wicked king_ is that a wise king may have a wicked people in which case his reward for his wisdom is grief and pain of his own (Ecclesiastes 8:9), and even sometimes to be assassinated, to be killed. The godly sometimes are killed by the wicked because they're godly.
Beside the other limitations of even the wise king, one of the limitations of earthly authority is that most authority is wicked or has been wicked, even among God's people. They do not sufficiently punish the wicked, so that their name is not made infamous (Ecclesiastes 8:10). What's the first harm of having wickedness and authority? They don't punish the wickedness that is under them. And since they don't execute sentence against an evil work speedily, the beneficial restraining effect of godly authority on the hearts of sinners is not enjoyed (Ecclesiastes 8:11). Evil men are going to do what they can get away with. If God gives godly authority in order to keep them from getting away with it, so that it restrains the wickedness that is coming from the internal heart of the evil man, that's a great benefit. But if the civil magistrate does not execute speedy sentence upon those who do wickedly, then those who have the internal wickedness lose the external restraint and wicked behavior runs rampant.
The solution isn't in the judgment seat of the earthly magistrate. It's in the judgment seat of God (Ecclesiastes 8:12). No one ultimately gets away with their sin. The longest life in this world is but a shadow (Ecclesiastes 8:13), and the judgment seat of God is not going to miss anything. So, do not be lulled into a false sense of being able to get away with sin, just because earthly authorities aren't punishing it, or because God might not kill them for a few more years of this life, which is such a brief and passing shadow. Do not be fooled by the patience of God. The patience and forbearance of God are meant to lead you to repentance (cf. Romans 2:4). Not for you to say, look, you can do sinful things and get away with it. No. The wicked store up wrath against themselves for the day of judgment (cf. Romans 2:5). None of that wrath is lost. It's all stored up and it will all be meted out, executed.
So there is a vanity which occurs on earth that there are just men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked, and there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous (Ecclesiastes 8:14). Earthly results are temporary, and it may seem that it's out of balance, but don't be fooled by it. This also is vanity. It's mist that's going to be burned off in a moment
So, in a world full of depraved sinners, authority is a gift from God for the restraint of sin. Godly authority is a very good gift from God. But it is a limited gift from God. It cannot govern the spirit. It cannot determine or change or overrule divine providence and the secret things that belong to the decree of God. Even the godly authority may govern to his own hurt. And the greatest limitation is how harmful ungodly authority is, particularly in failing to restrain our sin—perpetuating the illusion that you can get away with sin.
How might your view of authority need to be improved? How are your specific earthly authorities being used by God to mitigate the effects of sin? What are you tempted to trust earthly authority to do, that really belongs only to God? What do you need to remember, when it seems like the wicked are “getting away with it”?
Sample prayer: Lord, forgive us for how we have not made proper use of the gift of authority. We have not submitted to those whom You have set over us. And, at other times, we have trusted in the government as if it were God. Forgive us for thinking and acting as if the wicked could get away with their sin. Make us to see Your kindness and patience, and grant that we would respond with repentance, we ask through Christ, AMEN!
Suggested songs: ARP72 “God, Give Your Judgments to the King” or TPH72A “O God, Your Judgments Give the King”
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