Resources for studying the Book of Ecclesiastes

Here you'll find a collection of resources which I hope will help anyone who wants to do some serious work on the Book of Ecclesiastes, perhaps the strangest book in the Bible. It has often been ignored by Christians who felt uncomfortable with it, and not enough work has been done on it, but in the last few years we've been fortunate to see a revival of interest in the book, and a number of excellent studies and commentaries. This page isn't for professional theologians, but for the ordinary Bible reader who wants to get to grips with Ecclesiastes. In particular I hope it will help the students from Tauernhof, Bodenseehof and Capernwray who have suffered through my lectures on the subject and still somehow retain both the will to live and the desire to study further. Greetings, guys.

Ecclesiastes: the basic facts

The essentials you need to know before you begin

Although traditionally it was believed that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes (as deopicted in the Geneva Bible, opposite), the language of the book suggests a much later date, and the way the author talks (after chapter 2) suggests that he was a subject of the king's, not the king himself. "Ecclesiastes" is just a Latin version of "Qoheleth", which isn't the writer's name, but a title which is translated "the Teacher" or "the Professor". All we know about him is what we gain from 12:9-10. (Iain Provan - p 29 - even raises the startling possibility that "he" may have been a she...)

Five times in the book the author comes back to the same conclusion "Enjoy life; and remember it's God's gift" (2:24-26, 3:12-14, 5:128-20, 9:7-10, 11:9-12:8). Each of these conclusions says the same thing, but in a slightly different way. So one method of understanding the book is to see it as five cycles of material, each looping back to the same general conclusion, but each time illustrating it from a different standpoint.

Another way of looking at the book is to see it as two halves. The phrases which appear again and again in the first half ("under the sun", "gain", chasing the wind", etc.) are much less common in the second half, where "who can tell" and "who can know" are repeated several times. So that suggests a way of looking at the book which groups it around 6:10-12 - the central verses. Certainly those verses sum up the central question which the book is trying to find answers to.

When was it written? We haven't a clue. Generally liberal scholars tend to assign a late date (maybe 3rd century BCE) while conservatives point out that the language isn't decisive one way or another, and the conditions described in the book could apply to a fair number of centuries. If there are Persian words in it (and we aren't sure), it's later than fifth century. That's all we can say.

Was it always accepted enthusiastically? Er, no. Its seeming bleak pessimism, and its enthusiastic encouragement to go out and have fun, made people doubt its biblical quality for many years. Even in Jesus' day, the followers of rabbis Hillel and Shammai used it as one more thing to have a fight about. (Liberal Hillel thought it was Scripture, but the dour, stern Shammai didn't.)

In fact the period of the book matters very little. Its message isn't for one century, but for the human condition in any age of history.

Things to study in Ecclesiastes

Ways of getting into Qohelet's thinking

The major practical themes: work and idleness, marriage and unfaithfulness, labour and rest, law and punishment... List the verses dealing with one of these topics and read them together to get a general grasp of what Qohelet is saying overall about it.
The big theological themes: the greatness of God, his incomprehensibility, his reliability, the brevity of life, the certainty of judgment, the gifts God gives, the contrasts of humans and animals... Again, collect all the relevant verses and look at the passages together.
The key words and phrases. Ecclesiastes has a limited vocabulary with some vital terms appearing again and again. Which are they? (Your starter for ten: "meaninglessness", "gain", "under the sun", "chasing the wind"...) Look at a good commentary to work out what they mean (e.g. "meaningless" really means "transitory", "passing", not "absurd").
The five "loops" of material. I've suggested in lectures that their theme is: (1) the basic human problem, and three experiments that don't solve it (2) the first reason for the problem: the pressure of time upon us (3) the second reason for the problem: the pressure of our own evil natures (4) the nature and limitations of wisdom (5) the stupidity of folly. Do you agree? How do individual verses fit in with this scheme?
The poems. Qoheleth breaks into poetry every so often - not at random, but for carefully considered purposes. Can you see why? What do the poems achieve that prose wouldn't?
The proverbs. What do these short, pithy sayings do to take the argument forward? Are they just bundled together in a random, higgledy-piggledy heap, or does each one lead on carefully to the next? Can you see the connections?

Websites that can help

On Ecclesiastes or Wisdom Literature in general

Twenty of the best resources I've been able to track down online

Barry Bandstra, Reading the Old Testament: Ecclesiastes: An example of the kind of commentary which sees two voices in the book: one slightly heretical (Qohelet himself), one trying desperately to make it all more orthodox (a later editor). To me this is unconvincing. I personally don't detect two conflicting voices in the book - I think it has one consistent message - but this is a good example of another way of looking at it.
New Advent: Ecclesiastes: The text is taken from The Catholic Encyclopedia (1909), so it's all a bit dated. The writer believes that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes, and advances some solid arguments for his view (though more recent scholars wouldn't accept many of them). He also argues stronmgly against nineteenth century views (which were current at the time he wrote) that Ecclesiastes is self-contradictory, or has interpolations by different writers who disagreed with one another. Here his arguments are solid and convincing.
Biblaridion: Ecclesiastes: Rather unusual view that Ecclesiastes was written not by Solomon, but by another king, Uzziah. This is not a view that anyone else holds, and seems unlikely - why did nobody in Jewish tradition ever suspect Uzziah was the real author? The reason given for Uzziah's authorship is that "it records the struggle of a troubled mind coming to terms not only with disease, but also with his impotence to prevent his legacy being eroded and ultimately destroyed " - which would fit Uzziah's story. Biblaridion is a "theological magazine dedicated to prophetic witnessing".
Hebrew Wisdom Literature: A lecture by Dr Tom Kerns in his "Introduction to Philosophy" series which makes some helpful (if simple) points and relates Wisdom writing tothings people have said and thought in other ages.
William MacDonald: An Overview of Ecclesiastes: William MacDonald, famous for his booklet True Discipleship which has been promoted worlwide by Operation Mobilisation, takes the standard old-fashioned view that Solomon wrote it out of bitter experience, and the book respresents the bleakness of a burnt-out mind. "Mingled with some words of wisdom are many other expressions of pessimism. The struggle of life simply is not worth it." So we're to take the book as an awful warning, rather than an expression of truth we must believe.
Gregory of Nyssa: I've included this for the sake of completeness, but you'll almost certainly find it quite difficult. It's a commentary by Gregory of Nyssa (who died some time after 385-56 AD), one of the great Cappadocian Fathers, and so it's an example of how the book was read by earlier generations of Christians. Gregory sopiritualizes most of the details, and sees the book as arguiing that heavenly joys are much more important than anything we can gain on this earth. "This book aims to elevate our minds above the senses, to abandon great, brilliant, and noble appearances, to transcend the senses and to attain what transcends them." I think he's missed th earthy, practical common sense of Qohelet, and his insistence on living life joyfully and enthusiastically in the here and now.
Christian Classics Ethereal Library: Metaphrase of Ecclesiastes: This will be difficult too. It's a "metaphrase" of Ecclesiastes - putting the book's ideas into other words - written a hundred years before Gregory of Nyssa by another great preacher, Gregory Thaumaturgus, although some think it was written by another thinker, Gregory of Nazianzus. One thing is clear: to be a commentator on Ecclesiastes in those days, you had to be called Gregory...
Ecclesiastes: The Inspired Book of Error: Ray Stedman, famed Bible teacher and pastor of Peninsula Bible Church, Palo Alto , left behind this sermon on Ecclesiastes. He broadly shares MacDonald's view: "what it records is not divine truth. It presents only the human view of life".
Wikipedia: Ecclesiastes: Internet collaborative encyclopedia Wikipedia doesn't always get it right, but this article on Ecclesiastes is pretty authoritative and well-judged.Background to the book and debates about it.
Constable's Notes on Ecclesiastes: A very useful and careful, scholarly examination of Ecclesiastes, charting the way the argument develops from section to section. Constable remains convinced that Solomon wrote it. Fair enough. His treatment of individual passages is excellent and based on wide reading.
Executable Outlines (Mark Copeland): Eleven little sermon outlines covering Ecclesiastes. Even if you don't preach, you'll benefit from this clever and memorable way of carving up the text into understandable chunks.
Commentary on Ecclesiastes: A verse-by-verse commentary by Dr. Peter Pett which is occasionally quite interesting and original. He believes the author was literally a king, though whether it was Solomon, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah or Josiah, he isn't sure.
The Theology of Ecclesiastes: James Sawyer is Professor of Theology and Church History at Western Seminary, San Jose. His approach to Ecclesiastes studies the real meaning of the Hebrew words with great care in order to arrive at the meaning of the book. Careful stuff.
An Argument of the Book of Ecclesiastes: and
The Book of Ecclesiastes: David Malick's two articles at bible.org are complementary. The first tries to explain how Ecclesiastes is constructed (he sees broadly the same five divisions as Michael Eaton does, the ones I've used in my Ecclesiastes lecture, except that he collapses parts 4 and 5 into one). The second article gives some background to Wisdom literature and the sort of book Ecclesiastes is trying to be. You may find it slightly frustrating because it's all written in note form, which can make some of it a bit cryptic, but there is valuable material here.
The Jewish Encyclopedia: Ecclesiastes: Ecclesiastes is a Jewish book, ultimately, so it's interesting to see what well-read Jewish scholars make of it. The conclusion here is that Qohelet's message is self-contradictory. "The morals that he draws... appear to be inconsistent; since, while some verses encourage the theory that pleasure is the summum bonum, others seem to warn youth against any such view.
Exploring Ecclesiastes: A short but perceptive introduction from the Worldwide Church of God. The writer sees Ecclesiastes as falling into two halves, based around Eccl 6:10-12 (a view which students may remember I mentioned briefly in my lectures: it does make sense). There's a link to a commentary on the book, but the link doesn't seem to work.
The Character of Wisdom: By Dennis Bratcher,a sensible description of wisdom literature (he says it's "an approach to life, a way of looking at the world and, for Israelites, a way of living out in very deliberate, rational ways their commitment to God"). Useful thoughts.
Interpreting the Biblical Wisdom Literature: Much more detailed (but equally helpful) introduction by Robert I Bradshaw, with a discussion of how individual Bible books fit in to the tradition. Disappointingly, he's much more interested in discussing Job and Proverbs than Ecclesiastes, but the brief paragraph he writes is full of good points.
The Message of the Hebrew Wisdom Literature: A good introduction by Southern Baptist teacher Christi Goeser, especially worthwhile for its discussion of how Wisdom writing handles the question of evil and suffering. He (she?) makes careful and helpful distinctions about the different approach of each of the books involved

Books on Ecclesiastes

Here's a selection of useful books and commentaries.

Each of these titles has a click-through link to Amazon USA, but European users will find that other sources - such as Amazon UK, or Wesley Owen in Britain - stock most titles if not all.

Word Biblical Commentary Vol. 23a, Ecclesiastes (murphy), 254pp

by: Roland Murphy

Roland Murphy's commentary on Ecclesiastes is a little dry, but extremely careful and judicious on the meaning of individual verses. A great feature of this commentary is the personal translation by Murphy which runs through it. Not only is it supremely well phrased, but also he explains clearly exactly why he has chosen each key word he employs.

Amazon Price: $36.49 (as of 11/14/2009)

The Book of Ecclesiastes (New International Commentary on the Old Testament)

by: Tremper Longman

I think Tremper Longman is entirely wrong about the authorship of Ecclesiastes; Qohelet wasn't the maverick he suggests. I also think, though, that his commentary is incredibly useful, even if it starts with a mistaken premise! He's especially good when he explains the imaginary authorship by Solomon as an example of "Akkadian literary biography".

Amazon Price: $27.01 (as of 11/14/2009)

Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries)

by: Michael A. Eaton

This is the one. If you can afford only one commentary on Ecclesiastes, go for Eaton's tiny but shrewdly packed volume. He gives the only structural analysis of Ecclesiastes I've ever found convincing, and illuminates almost every verse he discusses. Brilliant stuff though unpretentious.

Amazon Price: $11.70 (as of 11/14/2009)

Reason for Being

by: Mr. Jacques Ellul

Great French scholar Jacques Ellul, as independent, poetic and original as only the French can be, makes sense of Ecclesiastes in startlingly original ways. An absolute classic.

Amazon Price: $25.65 (as of 11/14/2009)

Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs

by: Iain Provan

Yes, it costs twenty dollars, but this is the goods. Not just a brilliant commentary on Ecclesiastes with many clever arguments for new readings (it completely changed my view on 7:28,ladies!) but also endlessly suggestive in the way it applies the biblical content to pressing modern-day issues. Plus you get the world's best commentary on Song of Songs thrown in. And as if that weren't enough, the author is a Scotsman. Wow.

Amazon Price: $24.07 (as of 11/14/2009)

More good books

Not quite so centrally important, but still excellent reading

Bold Purpose

by: Dan B. Allender, Tremper Longman

I have to admit I haven't read this book... but anything by Tremper Longman has got to be intyeresting. He's great at explaining how to read wisdom literature to non-professional people. In fact, I think his simple books are a lot better than his scholarly commentaries. Sorry, Tremper, that's a compliment really.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/14/2009)

Three Philosophies of Life: Ecclesiastes, Life As Vanity Job, Life As Suffering Song of Songs, Life As Love

by: Peter Kreeft

Amazon Price: $9.56 (as of 11/14/2009)

Ecclesiastes (New Century Bible Commentary)

by: Roger Norman Whybray

Whybray's commentary (not a conservative evangelical production, by the way) is one of the great landmarks of Ecclesiastes scholarship of the previous generation. Still sane, lucid and suggestive.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/14/2009)

When all you've ever wanted isn't enough

by: Harold S Kushner

Rabbi Harold Kushner uses Ecclesiastes as the backdrop for his study of futility and vanity in life. The author of When Bad Things Happen To Good People, Kushner's ideas are often wildly unorthodox (not to mention Jewish rather than Christian). I think he's wonderful though. Treat with caution, but prepare for your imagination to be alarmingly expanded.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/14/2009)

TIME TO MOURN AND A TIME TO DANCE: ECCLESIASTES AND THE WAY OF THE WORLD (THE BIBLE SPEAKS TODAY)

by: DEREK KIDNER

Derek Kidner's famous, elegant, lucid introduction to the main themes of Ecclesiastes has helped generations of students to appreciate the book for the first time. Still as popular today, which must mean something. Search for Kidner on Amazon, and you'll find his "Bible Speaks Today" commentary on Ecclesiastes too; plus a scholarly volume on the nature of wisdom literature, which is acute and shrewd.

Amazon Price: (as of 11/14/2009)

Finally, some books on wisdom literature

Ecclesiastes is an example of a literary form which is pretty unfasmiliar to us. Fortunately, there have been several recent studies which can help us understand it much better.

Forms of Old Testament Literature: Wisdom Literature: Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Canticles, Ecclesiastes, and Esther (Forms of the Old Testament Literature)

by: Roland E. Murphy

Roland does it again. The Emeritus Prof from Duke University, who has written one of the best commentaries on Ecclesiastes (see above), has also managed to write a good, thorough account of what wisdom literature is and how it works.

Amazon Price: $22.00 (as of 11/14/2009)

Handbook on the Wisdom Books and Psalms

by: Daniel Estes

Now here's another one I haven't read. But Daniel Estes is a brilliant commentator on Wisdom literature (his brief account of it in Hear O My Son is one of the best I've ever seen, and I pinch his main points shamelessly for use in my lectures) and this book gets brilliant reviews from people who have actually read it. So I'll be buying it as soon as I can scrape the money together. Is that enough of a recommendation for you?

Amazon Price: $24.41 (as of 11/14/2009)

Wisdom in Ancient Israel

What a book. A collection of essays edited by some of the most brilliant minds in Cambridge (including evangelical giants Robert Gordon and Hugh Williamson) and including contributions from an outstanding array of scholars (most of them emeritus professors, so a slightly old-fashioned but very experienced feel to this collection). Expensive and scholarly, so not everyone's cup of tea, but for a serious Bible student, a book to dream about.

Amazon Price: $40.32 (as of 11/14/2009)

Wisdom in Israel

by: Gerhard von Rad

Gerhard von Rad was one of the first people to write cogently about wisdom literature, and here's the book that started the whole modern initiative of exploration. Dated now, but still immensely valuable.

Amazon Price: $31.26 (as of 11/14/2009)

The Goldsworthy Trilogy: (Gospel and Kingdom, Gospel and Wisdom, The Gospel in Revelation)

by: Graeme Goldsworthy

Graeme Goldsworthy is an Anglican scholar from Sydney who was once curate to John Stott at All Souls. Since then he has blossomed into a fine Reformed scholar with a gift for clear and simple explanation of complex issues. His "Gospel and Wisdom" was a wonderful book with a fine chapter on Ecclesiastes, but here it's combined with two of his others, and together they give you a feast of good theology which will keep you reading for ages. Morre importantly, they'll turn you back to Scripture to read it again with greater enthusiasm.

Amazon Price: $16.49 (as of 11/14/2009)