Kohelet

Kohelet

By T. M. Halydean

     The book of Ecclesiastes, called Kohelet (קֹהֶלֶת‬) in the Hebrew Tanakh, is part of the writings that teach that we all have a God-shaped hole in our hearts. Efforts to seek fulfillment with things such as money, power, knowledge, relationships, partying, and everything else in life are all meaningless, nothing more than a whisp of smoke, temporary and incapable of providing fulfillment for the God-shaped hole in our hearts. Solomon concludes the book by stating that we should invest our pursuits in something meaningful and worthwhile: remembering our creator while we are young.

Toward the very end of the book, there is a little instruction on how to live life. I think many people have heard that we are to remember our creator in the days of our youth, but this little mandate from Chapter 9 on how to live life is one I have overlooked. I believe the Message Translation brings it to life in a more significant way. Interpret it in the context of being the preliminary admonishment to telling us to remember our creator in the days our youth, which is the point of the whole book.

But the dead know nothing and get nothing. They’re a minus that no one remembers. Their loves, their hates, yes, even their dreams, are long gone. There’s not a trace of them left in the affairs of this earth.

Seize life! Eat bread with gusto,

Drink wine with a robust heart.

Oh yes– God takes pleasure in your pleasure!

Dress festively every morning.

Don’t skimp on colors and scarves.

Relish life with the spouse you love

Each and every day of your precarious life.

Each day is God’s gift. It’s all you get in exchange

For the hard work of staying alive.

Make the most of each one!

Whatever turns up, grab it and do it. And heartily!

This is your last and only chance at it,

For there’s neither work to do nor thoughts to think

In the company of the dead, where you’re most certainly headed.