Memory Text: Ecclesiastes 12:13 KJV “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”

Sunday, March 25 Remember Your Creator
Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 KJ21 “9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth, and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth. And walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes; but know thou that for all these things, God will bring thee into judgment. 10 Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh, for childhood and youth are vanity.”
Ecclesiastes 12:1 KJ21 “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say, "I have no pleasure in them";”
Ecclesiastes 12:1 SDA BIBLE COMMENTARY When the desires, incentives, and hopes of abounding youth have gone, there is then little of enthusiasm in a man’s life.
What are the advantages of coming to God when young?
Deuteronomy 10:13 NKJV “"[and] to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?”
Luke 13:4-5 NKJV “4 "Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all [other] men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 "I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."”
Philippines 3:13-14 NKJV “13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Monday, March 26 When Grinders Cease (Aging)
Ecclesiastes 12:1-7 NRSV “1 ¶ Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years draw near when you will say, "I have no pleasure in them"; 2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return with the rain; 3 in the day when the guards of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the women who grind cease working because they are few, and those who look through the windows see dimly; 4 when the doors on the street are shut, and the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low; 5 when one is afraid of heights, and terrors are in the road; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along and desire fails; because all must go to their eternal home, and the mourners will go about the streets; 6 before the silver cord is snapped, and the golden bowl is broken, and the pitcher is broken at the fountain, and the wheel broken at the cistern, 7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it.”
Revelation 21:1-5 KJV “1 ¶ And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God [is] with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, [and be] their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.”

Tuesday, March 27 The Making of Many Books
Ecclesiastes 12:9-12 MKJV “9 And more than that, the preacher [was] wise; he still taught the people knowledge. Yes, he listened, and looked, and set in order many proverbs. 10 The preacher sought to find out pleasing words; and words of truth written by the upright. 11 The words of the wise [are] like goads; yes, their collected words are like nails driven home; they [are] given from one Shepherd. 12 And further, by these, my son, be warned: The making of many books has no end, and much study [is] a weariness of the flesh.”
Ecclesiastes 12:11 SDA BIBLE COMMENTARY Goads. Used to prod, to stimulate to action, to get results. It may be painful to be prodded, but prodding often secures results that would not otherwise be achieved. Nails fastened. Nails or stakes well driven are hard to pull out. Points well made, ideas thoroughly taught, remain in the mind and are not easily lost. The word translated “fastened” commonly means “to plant,” figuratively, “to establish.”
Ecclesiastes 12:12 SDA BIBLE COMMENTARY Solomon may have been thinking of books made to glorify their authors or those concerning whom they were written rather than with the purpose of transmitting practical wisdom. How little of what has been written is truly worth reading! Solomon had no doubt read all the “books” he could find…Study entered into for its own sake, as an end in itself, study of the kind Solomon devoted so much of his life to, proved futile. It was impractical and therefore “vanity.” Only when study becomes a means to an end greater than itself can it avoid becoming a “weariness of the flesh.” When the Author of all truth is recognized as “the beginning of wisdom” (Ps. 111:10), and study becomes a means of seeking to think His thoughts after Him, in order that our lives may conform to the divine purpose that gave us being, then study becomes a thrilling pleasure. The philosophical speculations of pagan writers have nothing to contribute to Christian thinking [to me personally this means much of the so-called great literature, such as Shakespeare, which the world avidly studies and which I have personally read at the request of some Christian teachers].

Wednesday, March 28 Faith, Law, Judgment
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 NKJV “13 ¶ Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all. 14 For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.”
Ecclesiastes 12:13 COMMENTARY BY MATTHEW HENRY it is the main matter, it is all in all to a man, to fear God and do as he bids him.
Ecclesiastes 12:14 SDA BIBLE COMMENTARY Men may think to conceal their words and deeds from other men, but “all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Heb. 4:13). Even the thoughts of our hearts are subject to His scrutiny.
Ecclesiastes 12:14 COMMENTARY BY ADAM CLARKE “This is the reason why we should "fear God and keep his commandments." 1. Because there will be a day of judgment. 2. Every soul of man shall stand at that bar. 3. God, the infinitely wise, the heart-searching God, will be judge. 4. He will bring to light every secret thing-all that has been done since the creation, by all men; whether forgotten or registered; whether done in secret or in public. 5. All the works of the godly, as well as all the works of the wicked, shall be judged in that day; the good which the godly strove to conceal, as well as the evil which the wicked endeavoured to hide.”
Revelation 14:6-12 KJ21 “6 ¶ And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation and kindred, and tongue and people, 7 saying with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His Judgment has come. Worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea and the fountains of waters." 8 And there followed another angel, saying, "Babylon is fallen! Fallen is that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." 9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, "If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out unmixed into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name." 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”

Thursday, March 29 The Conclusion of the Matter
Ecclesiastes 1:1 Summary of the Book by Matthew Henry “Now the scope of this book is to show …that our happiness consists not in being as gods to ourselves, to have what we will and do what we will, but in having Him that made us to be a God to us.”
Ecclesiastes 1:1 Summary of the Book in the John Wesley Notes “The design of it; which is, to describe man's true happiness, and the way leading to it. This he does both negatively, proving, that it is not to be found either in secular wisdom, or in sensual pleasures, or in worldly greatness and glory, or in abundance of riches, or in a vain profession of religion: and positively, shewing, that it is to be had only in the fear of God and obedience to his laws, which alone can give a man a chearful enjoyment of his present comforts, and an assurance of his everlasting happiness.”
Ecclesiastes 1:1 Summary of the Book in the Geneva Notes (John Calvin) “Solomon as a preacher and one that desired to instruct all in the way of salvation, describes the deceivable vanities of this world: that man should not be addicted to anything under the sun, but rather inflamed with the desire of the heavenly life: therefore he confutes their opinions, which set their happiness either in knowledge or in pleasures, or in dignity and riches, wishing that man's true happiness consists in that he is united with God and will enjoy his presence: so that all other things must be rejected, save in as much as they further us to attain to this heavenly treasure, which is sure and permanent, and cannot be found in any other save in God alone.”
Ecclesiastes – Theme of the Book – SDA Bible Commentary:
1. “Though Solomon was pre-eminent among Hebrew kings, both in wisdom and in temporal prosperity, he relates how all of these advantages failed to provide true and lasting happiness. And how was man to acquire happiness? By cooperating with his Creator and thus realizing the divine purpose that brought him into existence.”
2. “Having considered the uncertainty of human happiness, the Preacher turns to contemplate the actual misery with which the world is filled…As the Preacher draws his survey to a close, he sets forth a series of practical suggestions. Individually, we should give such help as we can to the poor and to those who suffer. But the most important thing is to give our hearts and our affections to God, to yield obedience to Him, and so be ready for the final judgment.”
3. “He recounts the tyranny in the world, the injustices, the disappointments that might undermine man’s faith in his Creator. But the day of retribution cannot be ignored or postponed indefinitely. Even though inequalities persist for a time, these are often essentially disciplinary measures; therefore man’s duty and final happiness consist in meeting life with the determination to seize its opportunities and to make the most of them. God will take care of the future.”