Useful Bible Studies > Ecclesiastes Commentary > chapter 1

Who can change the world?

Ecclesiastes 1:4-7

Some of the most noble people who have ever lived have wanted to change the world. They wanted to make the world a better place. So they worked hard, and used every effort to achieve that.

They did many good things, and they helped many people. But still, the results disappointed them. There were very many more things that they could not do. There were very many more people whom they could not help. The improvements that they made were not permanent. They tried so hard to change the world but, in the end, the world remained the same.

There are much more powerful forces in this world than the power of men and women. The sun produces much more light and heat than all our fuels can. The wind is a stronger force than any army is. Water has a greater effect in our world than any king or ruler. These things were operating on our world before any person lived. And they will continue to operate after our deaths.

But even these powerful things cannot change our world. They simply follow the rules that God gave them in the beginning. They repeat the same actions, day after day and year after year. They go round in circles. The sun returns to the same place in the sky. The wind blows back and forward. Clouds rise over the sea to give water to the rivers that flow back to the sea.

Only God can really change the world. He created it, and he can change it (Romans 8:19-21). In the future, he will make a new heaven and a new earth. And only there will this world’s troubles end permanently (Revelation 21:1-4).

Next part: Can our desires ever satisfy us? (Ecclesiastes 1:8-11)

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© 2019, Keith Simons.