“There is a
grievous evil that I saw under the sun; riches kept by their owner for his harm.
And those riches are lost through an evil design, and he will beget a son who
will have nothing in his hand.” (Ecclesiastes 5:12-13)
We have to identify what harms us and what
protects us, and what are the real riches we must pursue in life. Once we fully
assimilate that goodness is the cause and purpose of God’s creation, it becomes our most valuable asset; instead of the other things we believe or feel are
better to us based on ego’s fantasies and illusions.
“As he left his
mother’s womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and he will carry
nothing with his toil that he will take in his hand. And this too is a grievous
evil that just as it came so shall it go, and what advantage does he have that
he toil for the wind? Also all his days he eats in the dark and he has much
vexation, and sickness and wrath.” (5:14-16)
Materialistic desires derived from ego’s
fantasies and illusions are destined to be lost by the futility of their
nature. This compels us to appreciate, value and cherish goodness as the true
inheritance for our children and generations to come.
Goodness is what we must
toil for and to devote all our efforts so we “eat” in its light for the
greatest fulfillment of all, and separate ourselves from the vexation, sickness
and frustration of having a meaningless life.
“Behold what I
saw; it is good, yea, it is beautiful, to eat and drink and to experience
goodness with all his toil that he toils under the sun, the number of the days
of his life that God gave him, for that is his portion.” (5:17)
Goodness is the portion God has given us to
fully enjoy all His creation. This means that goodness must accompany all
aspects, facets and expressions of life, as we “eat and drink and experience”
it in all we think, create and do in the material world.
This verse tells us
that goodness must encompass all the days of our life, making it a complete
part of the existence that God has granted us.
“Also every man to
whom God has given riches and property, and has given him power to eat thereof,
and to take his portion, and to rejoice with his toil, that is a gift of God.
For let him remember that the days of his life are not many, for God is
testimony of the joy of his heart.” (5:18-19)
We are reminded again that the joy of our life
(“heart”) is goodness as God’s ruling principle of His Creation. Goodness is
God’s testimony in us, and we are commanded to be it and have it as the essence
of all the possessions and power that we may acquire while toiling under the sun,
for it is God’s gift to enjoy constantly regardless of the numbers of days we
may live.
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