UBF Daily Bread

GOD HAS MADE THE ONE AS WELL AS THE OTHER

Passage: Ecclesiastes 7:1~14

Key verse: 14

Wisdom

7 A good name is better than fine perfume,^(A)
    and the day of death better than the day of birth.^(B)
²It is better to go to a house of mourning
    than to go to a house of feasting,
for death^(C) is the destiny^(D) of everyone;
    the living should take this to heart.
³Frustration is better than laughter,^(E)
    because a sad face is good for the heart.
⁴The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
    but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.^(F)
⁵It is better to heed the rebuke^(G) of a wise person
    than to listen to the song of fools.
⁶Like the crackling of thorns^(H) under the pot,
    so is the laughter^(I) of fools.
    This too is meaningless.

⁷Extortion turns a wise person into a fool,
and a bribe^(J) corrupts the heart.

⁸The end of a matter is better than its beginning,
and patience^(K) is better than pride.
⁹Do not be quickly provoked^(L) in your spirit,
for anger resides in the lap of fools.^(M)

¹⁰Do not say, “Why were the old days^(N) better than these?”
For it is not wise to ask such questions.

¹¹Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing^(O)
    and benefits those who see the sun.^(P)
¹²Wisdom is a shelter
    as money is a shelter,
but the advantage of knowledge is this:
    Wisdom preserves those who have it.

¹³Consider what God has done:^(Q)

Who can straighten
    what he has made crooked?^(R)
¹⁴When times are good, be happy;
    but when times are bad, consider this:
God has made the one
    as well as the other.^(S)
Therefore, no one can discover
    anything about their future.

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Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

1. Death is our destiny (1-12)

Through a series of A is better than B statements, the Teacher urges his readers to examine their lives in view of the fact that they are mortal. Death, mourning, frustration and rebuke are better than birth, feasting, laughter and the song of fools because death is the destiny of us all. The Teacher encourages us to examine our lives in this truth. Do we live like we are going to live forever? Or do we live knowing one day we will go back to our Creator God?

2. Consider what God has done (13,14)

As we examine our lives, the Teacher reminds us to consider what God has done in us through us and to us. We may not be able to understand what God is doing all the time. God has made our paths crooked, and we cannot see far down that path. Whether in good times or bad, we should know both come from God.

Prayer: Lord, help me to know that I and everything are in your hands.

One Word: Consider what God has done