Archive for category: GAMEtime Sharing

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 10:11-20.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 10:11 (NIV)
11  If a snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.

On verse 12: In other words, control your temper.  Save your bite for the right time.  Otherwise, you’ll gain nothing and in fact lose out by snapping too early.

Ecclesiastes 10:12 (NIV)
12  Words from a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but a fool is consumed by his own lips.
 
On verse 12: In other words, wise people use their words in other-centered ways, in ways that bless and encourage others, whereas foolish people can’t stop talking about themselves.

Ecclesiastes 10:13-14 (NIV)
13  At the beginning his words are folly; at the end they are wicked madness–
14  and the fool multiplies words. No one knows what is coming– who can tell him what will happen after him?
 
On verse 13-14: The more you listen to a fool, the worse it gets, from a little bit of folly to a lot of madness (v13) that you can’t predict or make sense of (v14). 

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 9:13-18.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 9:13-18 (NIV)
13  I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me:
14  There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siegeworks against it.
15  Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man.
16  So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded.
17  The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools.
18  Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
 
On verses 13-18:  Qohelet recounts this story of how a poor wise man saved his small town from a powerful king’s invasion.  The lesson here for us is:  Wisdom can beat brute strength.  Likewise, when we were being attacked by a more powerful enemy, in His wisdom Jesus became poor, lived among us in our town, and by His wisdom saved us.  The gospel is the story of how Jesus, the wisdom of God, beat Satan’s brute strength.   

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 8:11-17.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 8:11-14 (NIV)
11  When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.
12  Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God.
13  Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.
14  There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless.
 
On verses 11-14:  Here we see a bit of Qohelet’s struggle.  On one hand, as king of Israel, Qohelet believed that it was important to carry out sentences for crimes quickly; otherwise people will be emboldened to do wrong, thinking, “nothing’s going to happen to me anyway” (v11).  On the other hand, Qohelet noticed that wicked men sometimes live a long time (v12) and life goes well with them (v14) while other more righteous people seem to get what the wicked deserve (v14).  To Qohelet, this is absurd, “meaningless” (v14).  Still, Qohelet hangs onto the belief that it is better to fear God than to be wicked (v12) and that ultimately it will not go well with the wicked, though Qohelet does not clearly describe how or why he believes that.

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 7:15-29. 

Ecclesiastes 7:15-18 (NIV)
15  In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: a righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.
16  Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise– why destroy yourself?
17  Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool– why die before your time?
18  It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. The man who fears God will avoid all [extremes].

On verses 15-18:  It is difficult to know how to take these verses.  What does Solomon mean by “do not be overrighteous” and do not be “overwise” ?  If we want to give Solomon the benefit of the doubt, we could say that what Solomon means by “don’t be overrighteous” is don’t become so obsessed with piety and religion that they become idols that you worship, where your focus is now so much on yourself and your religious performance that you lose sight of the bigger picture, the point of faith, which is to love God and love people. 

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 6:1-12.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, known as the “Teacher” and the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as King Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon. 

Ecclesiastes 6:1-6 (NIV)
1  I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men:
2  God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.
3  A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.
4  It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded.
5  Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man–
6  even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?
 
On verses 1-6:  Here once again Qohelet speaks about how meaningless and sad it is when a person has wealth but is not able to enjoy it.  Likewise, God has given you wealth in many different ways, whether you’re aware of it or not.  The question is: do you realize how wealthy you are and do you actually enjoy your wealth? A life well-lived is one where you take stock of the wealth God has given you, use it for God’s purposes, and are able to enjoy life yourself.