Ecclesiastes 8: 1-8 (The Message)
There’s nothing better than being wise,
Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life.
Wisdom puts light in the eyes,
And gives gentleness to words and manners.
2-7 Do what your king commands; you gave a sacred oath of obedience. Don’t worryingly second-guess your orders or try to back out when the task is unpleasant. You’re serving his pleasure, not yours. The king has the last word. Who dares say to him, “What are you doing?” Carrying out orders won’t hurt you a bit; the wise person obeys promptly and accurately. Yes, there’s a right time and way for everything, even though, unfortunately, we miss it for the most part. It’s true that no one knows what’s going to happen, or when. Who’s around to tell us?
8 No one can control the wind or lock it in a box.
No one has any say-so regarding the day of death.
No one can stop a battle in its tracks.
No one who does evil can be saved by evil.
Chapter 8 of Ecclesiastes, supposedly written by King Solomon, the Teacher, suddenly shifts topics in his investigation of wisdom. He talks about our response to government. Hmmm, these words are a bit challenging in our culture. We live in a culture where we have social media that continually has commentaries on how government is governing. The text feels “old fashioned,” and definitely on the side of the establishment. I do not think that it is that we want riots in our streets and demonstrators protesting every government decision but we love our freedom of speech and our right to disagree. The USA has a deep record of government protest back to “not taxation without representation.” We could sidestep these verses by saying they were written to people who like the Jews live under a kingship or a more totalitarian government. Let’s not dismiss this though without thinking. We stand with some of the greats like Dietrich Bonhoffer, a Lutheran pacifist who had to grapple with his response to Hilter and a government that was doing wrong. But before we get our feathers all kerfuffled, let us set up a little distance from a volatile topic of government protest by changing the question to asking ourselves about our responses to authority.
The Teacher’s first words of advice is to remember that our relationship to the authority we struggle with. When we accept a job we know there will be bosses. When we become parents we step into an authority position that someday will involve a tug of war with the wills between parents and children. When we buy a car and take the driver’s test, we know there are laws. There are stop lights and speed signs and we choose how to respond. Obedience by it’s very nature does not depend on me liking what is asked of me but it is a confrontation with my will. He sagely reminds us that “the man,” “the boss” has the power and the last word. I remember the advice given to “pick your fights carefully. Don’t spend all your social capital on trivia.”
I am watching the Kenyan demonstrations going on over a tax bill passed this week that triggered massive demonstrations over the whole country. Today the President “conceded” and said he will not pass the bill into law. Wow. He is picking his battles. People were shot, though, demonstrating. Authority is not always just nor fair but open confrontation with authority or government is dangerous and when we choose to resist, we must realize we are potentially facing consequences.
Maintaining relationship so there can be conversation is often a wiser choice. The Teacher reasons that we do not know what tomorrow will bring and so patience and arbitration may be the needed approach. The last verses point out that not only do we not know what tomorrow might bring if we can slow our roll and “count to ten,” or “sleep on it.” The best decisions may not be made in the midst of an argument. The Teacher could also add advice like – don’t jump to conclusions until you hear the other side of the argument, or talk to a wise person who is more neutral and can help you think through a dilemma, or spend time in prayer. I like to get in my car and drive to “my quiet spot” and sit and decompress, perhaps cry, or telephone a friend.
Authority is a reality of life. Let us pray for our court system, our election coming up, for our leaders in churches and places of employment. Let us pray for those places in our world where there is open conflict and innocent people are caught in the cross fire. Lord have mercy! Draw near to the oppressed and the struggling in crisis and conflict. Give us wisdom as we listen to the Presidential debates tonight.
On the Way to Wonder 