The End of the Beginning
The Preacher begins Ecclesiastes 7 with a striking statement:
“(Better is) the day of death than the day of birth.”
Although it may seem abrupt, this introduction leads directly to profound personal reflections. What we think of our latter end is extremely important.
The mind-blowing nature of the Preacher’s claim becomes clearer when we understand that he’s not referring to our own deaths but to the deaths of those we love. He is talking about the deaths of our grandparents, parents, siblings, spouses, children, extended family members, friends, colleagues, and neighbors.
Ponder for a moment: Is the Preacher who represents God—really saying that the day we mourn a loved one’s death is better than the day we celebrate a baby’s birth? Yes, he is! And this statement carries some profound truths.
What Death Reminds us of:
“A good name is better than precious ointment,
and the day of death than the day of birth.
It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will lay it to heart.
Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.” (Ecclesiastes 7:1–4)
We learn more from a person’s death than we do from their birth because death conveys lessons that birth does not. Death reminds us that we will all eventually die—perhaps sooner than we anticipate. The same applies to everyone we love, including those who come to pay their respects to the deceased. Going to the funeral of someone we love dearly reminds us of our own mortality. We, too, shall die!
The Uncomfortable Truth of Wisdom
One of the Bible’s recurring themes is that much of our wisdom is attained through pain, through confronting and embracing what we often prefer to avoid. Accepting the uncomfortable truths and disciplines of life requires courage.
As Proverbs 12:1 states, “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge.”
We may want to sidestep the discomfort that discipline demands, yet we learn that “whoever loves discipline loves knowledge” (Proverbs 12:1). We may prefer to avoid the unpleasant stings of correction. Still, we are reminded that “whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence” (Proverbs 15:32). The unwise often run away from uncomfortable truths, yet a wise person courageously faces them.
“Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head; let my head not refuse it” (Psalm 141:5). Even afflictions, which we would rather evade, can lead to valuable insights, as the Psalmist observed, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes” (Psalm 119:71).
We gain wisdom by paying close attention to and learning to embrace the things we tend to avoid.
The journey to wisdom is often challenging. We must learn from painful experiences, as they provide insights into the true meaning of life. That’s why the Preacher states, “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth” (Ecclesiastes 7:4).
Children do not remain children for long. They soon reach an age of accountability before God. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes does not discourage us from celebrating the birth of a child; it is indeed a beautiful experience. However, children do not remain young for long. The Preacher reminds us that “for everything there is a season,” which includes “a time to be born, and a time to die,” and that God “has made everything beautiful in its time” (Ecclesiastes 3:1–2, 11). There is certainly a time to appreciate the beauty of new life. Nonetheless, the Preacher warns us that we act foolishly if we do not consider our “latter end,” reminding ourselves that one day like all who have gone before us, we, too, shall die.
The End of Life is what Counts.
“Better is the end of a thing than its beginning” (Ecclesiastes 7:8).
It is the end, the conclusion of something that reveals its true purpose. It is not our beginning but the end of life that reveals whether we have lived it in vain.
“What shall it profit a person if they gain the whole world and lose their own soul?”
That person who at the final Judgment Seat of Christ hears the words from the lips of Jesus, ” Well done good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over a few things. I will make you are ruler over many things, Enter into the joy of your Lord.” has not lived their life in vain. (Matthew 25:23).
Jesus said of Judas, “It would have been good for that man if he had never been born” (Matthew 26:240.
Let us so live that our end will be greater than our beginning, that our life will not have been in vain
Dr. Robert Bryant