Devotion: Ecclesiastes 8:13

Ecclesiastes 8:13 Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.

In today’s verse we see that fearing God is how to live a long and fruitful life. The wicked do not fear God and instead live lives for themselves. In previous chapters of Ecclesiastes we are told that the wicked live long lives, which seemingly contradicts itself with today’s verse. Let’s take a deeper look into both.

Ecclesiastes is not the only book to speak of sinners living long lives. We also see it in Isaiah 65:20 where we see an elderly man living out his days blissfully as a sinner. Why should sinners and the wicked be allowed to live long and fruitful lives? It is truly a mystery for us who have the limited minds of humans rather than the mind of God.

But it is interesting to note the teacher in Ecclesiastes (often assumed to be Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived) points out that their days will not lengthen like a shadow, which is where the contradiction lies. Readers could interpret this to mean the days of the wicked, although they be long in number, are meaningless since a shadow has no tangible, solid form. A shadow is simply a projection of something real, not something that is itself substantial. And a shadow is fleeting. It is quickly gone.

Don’t be a fleeting shadow. Instead be a rock before the Lord, living life with a healthy dose of fear of the Lord. Don’t let yourself get caught up in sin, but fear God and obey His commands. In doing so may you enjoy a prolonged existence full of reward.

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