- Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. -
If you live a middle-class life in America, it’s hard to argue that you don’t have wealth and possessions. I mean, some kings didn’t have plumbing.
You’re doing great, practically royalty.
We need to think about this verse though in the context of verse 18. What is Solomon talking about here?
He showed us what makes a good and fitting life. One that has food, drink, and enjoyment in one’s labor.
Verse 19 is an expansion on this idea. What else is good? To have wealth, possessions, and the power to enjoy them.
Why do these matter? Beyond the obvious, they allow you to have security. You have no fear in securing future food and water if you also possess the wealth to obtain them.
Even better if you enjoy what you do, because this means securing your future is gratifying in addition to being necessary.
Okay, but hold on. I thought the whole thing about Solomon saying the best part of life was having food, drink, and a good time working.
Doesn’t that imply wealth and possessions? Is food just supposed to magically appear? Do I work for no money?
I get it. Let’s slow down. What is difference about this scenario that Solomon is trying to teach us?
Remember the man who held onto riches to his own hurt? That occurred in this chapter, and it’s really good context for verse 19.
That guy had no power to enjoy his possessions. Why? Because his greed caused him to hold onto them so tightly that they slipped through his fingers.
Who has it better than him? The man who is not greedy yet manages to be wealthy. Who doesn’t want to be that guy?
So, the difference? You don’t need extravagance to eat every day. A good life might mean a decent paycheck and whistling while you work.
The yacht isn’t necessary.
Funny thing is this actually maps onto human happiness as compared to income. Once you can pay your bills, your happiness levels off per every dollar earned.
You’ve probably heard that before. What you probably didn’t know is that while one dollar doesn’t make a huge change, large differences in income do.
What do I mean? The guy who makes $250,000 a year is significantly happier than the guy who makes $80,000.
That’s pretty intuitive. It’s hard to be upset when nobody is picking up the phone to collect on your bills. It’s even harder when you can have that thought at your second beach house.
That brings us to the part of the verse that I think is the most interesting. “To accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift from God.”
Man, I don’t know about you, but that phrase is hard! What if you aren’t the guy with the beach houses and yacht? How fair is that?
Even if you are the beach house yacht guy, what if you never have the ability to enjoy it? What if you are always running to keep it all?
The reasons why someone can be in any of these situations are myriad, and its hard to address them all one by one.
You may have been lazy in school, you may be a work alcoholic, or you could be well down the path of losing everything you own.
Perhaps, no matter where you are, you could pray and praise God for what you have.
Share this post