Introduction
Are you walking in wisdom, obeying God sincerely, and still finding your week full of madness, setbacks, and unfairness? Here is the central teaching I want you to carry with you from Ecclesiastes 9: God’s wisdom is not a formula for a trouble-free life, wisdom teaches me to trust God’s sovereign hand in a world of mixed results, and to live with hope because I am still alive (and in Christ, spiritually alive). Ecclesiastes is our “under the sun” series, Solomon’s honest look at life from an earthly vantage point. Last time we learned that wisdom “makes the face shine”, practical God-given wisdom that can lift a heavy heart into joy. Now Solomon gives the necessary follow-up: even when wisdom is applied, life can still feel chaotic. So he walks us through the madness of life, the hope we still have, and the redemption God is working even when the outcomes don’t make sense.
Main Points
Are you walking in wisdom, obeying God sincerely, and still finding your week full of madness, setbacks, and unfairness? Here is the central teaching I want you to carry with you from Ecclesiastes 9: God’s wisdom is not a formula for a trouble-free life, wisdom teaches me to trust God’s sovereign hand in a world of mixed results, and to live with hope because I am still alive (and in Christ, spiritually alive).
Ecclesiastes is our “under the sun” series, Solomon’s honest look at life from an earthly vantage point. Last time we learned that wisdom “makes the face shine”, practical God-given wisdom that can lift a heavy heart into joy. Now Solomon gives the necessary follow-up: even when wisdom is applied, life can still feel chaotic. So he walks us through the madness of life, the hope we still have, and the redemption God is working even when the outcomes don’t make sense.
Your Works Are In God’s Hand
Solomon begins with a re-centering truth:
“The righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God…” (Ecclesiastes 9:1)
I need you to hear this gently but clearly: even your best obedience is not a lever that controls outcomes. When you pursue righteousness, practice wisdom, and try to honor God, you are placing your life in His hands, not placing God in your debt.
That means I don’t interpret my circumstances as a scoreboard of God’s approval. It also means I don’t panic when I can’t see what God is doing. Solomon even says, “People know neither love nor hatred by anything they see before them” (v.1). Our vision is limited. We aren’t qualified to read God’s heart based on today’s events.
Life Under The Sun Isn’t Fair
This is one of the hardest truths in Ecclesiastes, but we need it:
“All things come alike to all… one event happens to the righteous and the wicked…” (Ecclesiastes 9:2)
Under the sun, the same kinds of events land on very different kinds of people. The tidy equation we crave, “If I do everything right, nothing painful will happen”, is not promised in Scripture. Solomon is not calling God unjust; he’s exposing how limited our perspective is when we evaluate life only by what we can see.
This is why some people’s faith wobbles over time: “I listened, I applied it, I tried, and something still happened that feels unfair.” Ecclesiastes teaches us not to confuse wisdom with immunity from suffering.
Time And Chance Shape Outcomes
Solomon adds a vivid observation:
“The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong… but time and chance happen to them all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11)
The fastest doesn’t always win. The strongest doesn’t always prevail. The wisest doesn’t always get the bread. The most skilled doesn’t always receive favor.
When I look honestly at life, I can see how much is shaped by providential placement, family lines, geography, economics, historical moment. Even parenting shows these “mixed results.” Sometimes faithful parenting is followed by children who walk with Jesus. Sometimes God raises up leaders from tragic beginnings. Sometimes a child with every advantage becomes a prodigal. Sometimes poverty repeats across generations. Outcomes can be painfully complex.
So I must learn to stop reading life as if it’s a simple merit system. Wisdom is still right and beautiful, but it is not a mechanism to guarantee my preferred results.
Stop Blaming Suffering On A Simple Cause
When tragedy hits, our instinct is to ask, “Who sinned?” That question shows up in Jesus’ ministry:
“Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2)
That’s the ancient version of our modern anxiety: “Is God punishing me? Did I mess up? Is this a generational curse?”
Jesus’ answer is a lifeline:
“Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.” (John 9:3)
I want to disciple you into this mindset: wisdom doesn’t give me a path where life runs perfectly; wisdom gives me a path where I trust God perfectly. Sometimes God allows the “ups and downs” so His works will be revealed, His power, His mercy, His sustaining grace, His glory.
And Scripture also teaches that God sovereignly places our times and boundaries with purpose:
God determined “their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord…” (Acts 17:26–27)
Your life location, era, and circumstances are not random to God, even when they feel random to you.
The Madness Is Also Inside Us
Solomon doesn’t only say the world is broken; he says we are, too:
“Truly the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; madness is in their hearts while they live…” (Ecclesiastes 9:3)
Part of why wisdom will never create a perfect week is that every human heart, even the heart trying to be wise, still carries sin and instability. The problem isn’t merely “out there.” The line between good and evil runs through every human heart.
Solomon puts it bluntly:
“Wisdom is better than weapons of war; but one sinner destroys much good.” (Ecclesiastes 9:18)
I’ve seen this play out in small ways and heartbreaking ways: it takes hours to build and seconds to smash. A single foolish act can unravel much good, whether in a family, a church, a friendship, a reputation, or a community. This doesn’t make wisdom pointless; it makes watchfulness and humility essential.
So I don’t walk out of worship thinking, “Now I’m the wise one and everyone else is the problem.” I walk out soberly: “Lord, keep me from being the sinner who destroys much good.”
Hope Because You’re Still Alive
Here is Solomon’s turn toward hope:
“For him who is joined to all the living there is hope…” (Ecclesiastes 9:4)
Then he gives an unforgettable picture:
“For a living dog is better than a dead lion.” (Ecclesiastes 9:4)
In Solomon’s world, a lion represents strength and honor; a dog is lowly, more like a street scavenger than a cherished pet. Yet Solomon says: give me the lowly creature with breath over the mighty creature in the grave.
That means this: as long as you are alive, the story is not over. You still have time to repent, to believe, to reconcile, to obey, to worship, to love, to serve, to make wise choices, and to honor God in the very middle of the madness.
And for us who belong to Jesus, this hope goes deeper. We are not only physically alive; we are spiritually alive in Christ. When everything else fluctuates, this is steady: you have breath in your lungs, and, if you are in Christ, you have the power to worship God, seek Him, and walk with Him today.
Conclusion
Ecclesiastes 9 trains me to be both realistic and resilient. Realistic: life under the sun delivers mixed results, because the world is broken, time and chance touch everyone, and the human heart contains madness. Resilient: my works are in God’s hand, suffering is not always traceable to a simple cause, and there is hope as long as I’m alive, especially because in Christ I am spiritually alive.
So I want you to walk out with this: don’t use wisdom to demand a painless life. Use wisdom to trust God in whatever He allows, to stay humble about your own heart, and to make the most of the life He’s given you today.
Father, thank You for Your Word in Ecclesiastes that tells us the truth about life under the sun. Forgive us for the times we treat wisdom like a formula, as if You owe us ease and comfort when we obey. Teach us to trust Your sovereign hand when outcomes feel unfair or confusing. Guard our hearts from the madness and evil that still tempt us, and keep us from being the one who destroys much good.
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your words in John 9, help us not to assume suffering always has a simple explanation, but to believe that You can reveal the works of God even through hardship. By Your Spirit, give us hope today because we are still alive, and if we are in You, thank You that we are spiritually alive. Help us to walk in wisdom with humility, courage, and joy, for Your glory. Amen.
Conclusion
Ecclesiastes 9 trains me to be both realistic and resilient. Realistic: life under the sun delivers mixed results, because the world is broken, time and chance touch everyone, and the human heart contains madness. Resilient: my works are in God’s hand, suffering is not always traceable to a simple cause, and there is hope as long as I’m alive, especially because in Christ I am spiritually alive.
So I want you to walk out with this: don’t use wisdom to demand a painless life. Use wisdom to trust God in whatever He allows, to stay humble about your own heart, and to make the most of the life He’s given you today.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for Your Word in Ecclesiastes that tells us the truth about life under the sun. Forgive us for the times we treat wisdom like a formula, as if You owe us ease and comfort when we obey. Teach us to trust Your sovereign hand when outcomes feel unfair or confusing. Guard our hearts from the madness and evil that still tempt us, and keep us from being the one who destroys much good.
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your words in John 9, help us not to assume suffering always has a simple explanation, but to believe that You can reveal the works of God even through hardship. By Your Spirit, give us hope today because we are still alive, and if we are in You, thank You that we are spiritually alive. Help us to walk in wisdom with humility, courage, and joy, for Your glory. Amen.