What is the proper order of things? Let’s plunge into the Deeper Waters and find out.
So the final “Under the sun” quotation shows up in Ecclesiastes 10:5-7.
5 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as it were an error proceeding from the ruler: 6 folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place. 7 I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking on the ground like slaves.
I wrote about this that:
The final under the sun comes in Ecclesiastes 10:5. Here, the Teacher describes errors that come from rulers. He describes several political realities such as those who devise schemes and have them backfire on them and people in positions that they ought not. At this point, the book contains several aphorisms on how life works, all of which take place under the sun.
Now some people today would look at this and say “The rich are being lowered and the princes are suffering. The slaves are exalted! Life is good!”
Not so in the ancient world. In the ancient world, this meant that order had been turned upside down and a society thrived on order. If a society has reached this point, it is not a cause for celebration. It is a cause for mourning.
This does not mean that evil rulers should never be cast down. Of course not! Even in Scripture many time an evil ruler was shut down for what he was doing in his society. Scripture regularly celebrates the casting down of the wicked and the lifting up of the righteous.
It does mean that in general, the way it is is that kings and princes should rule and the slaves should be serving them. This does not mean that slavery should be celebrated for all time. It does mean that in the society that the Teacher lived in, this was how order was maintained. Each person knew the role that he was meant to fulfill in society and when he stayed in his lane as it were, society functioned better.
In our day and age, we have the opposite going on. Because someone is of a lesser position, then somehow, they are automatically righteous. If someone is in a higher position, then somehow they are automatically wicked. Of course, there is the exception of whether we like the person who is rich or if we don’t like the person who is poor.
The rich often lead because they have the money to get to such a position. It doesn’t always happen that way as Esther and Joseph became leaders in the Old Testament without being rich first, but then when they got to their positions, they were certainly wealthy people.
In the New Testament, we can see that if someone is a slave, if they can get a chance to obtain their freedom, they should do so. For us, we should do what we can to improve ourselves, but wherever we are in this life, we should strive to find joy and to serve God to the best of our ability.
In Christ,
Nick Peters
(And I affirm the virgin birth)
Support Deeper Waters on Patreon!
