Ecclesiastes 9:7

EAT, DRINK, ETC, FOR TOMORROW YOU DIE

"Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God hath already accepted thy works. Let thy garments be always white; and let not thy head lack oil. Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of thy life of vanity, which he (God) hath given thee under the sun, all thy days of vanity; for that is thy portion in life, and in thy labor wherein thou laborest under the sun. Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, that do with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in Sheol, whither thou goest."

This, of course, is Epicureanism. "Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die." This philosophy is absolutely worthless, unless death is the end of everything. As Paul stated it, "If the dead are not raised up, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die" (1 Corinthians 15:32). Solomon has repeatedly advocated this doctrine, not only here, but in Ecclesiastes 1:9; 1:15; 3:1-9; and in Ecclesiastes 3:14-15. This was evidently the position that he accepted during the days of his apostasy. One question that arises from this interpretation is that of whether or not Solomon ever repented and turned to God as the Jews allege that he did. We find no Biblical support of that idea anywhere. Nevertheless, that is a necessary corollary of our interpretation of Ecclesiastes.

"God hath already accepted thy works" (Ecclesiastes 9:7) "... Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest ... which he (God) hath given thee" (Ecclesiastes 9:9). Here we have a glimpse of the penitent and restored Solomon honoring God for his marvelous gifts and praising him for the blessings given to the sons of men, even while he is still relating the stubborn and rebellious things that he had once believed. Note that he referred twice in these few verses to life as "vanity." There is also here a favorable mention of marriage and the loving of one wife "all the days of thy vanity" (Ecclesiastes 9:9), which is surprising enough from an author like Solomon.

The great value of Ecclesiastes is that it elaborates fully the absolute worthlessness and vanity of life on earth by any man who lives without the fear of God and submission to the divine authority of our Creator.