Ecclesiastes 11 (GNB) (2024)

FAQs

What does Ecclesiastes 11 teach us? ›

Only God truly knows what is to come. A key to making the most of our opportunities is in letting go of our compulsion to control. Rather than hoard, invest our resources wisely—in diverse ways—and give generously. In many of life's instances, the best way to retain something is to release it, to let it go.

Ecclesiastes 11 (GNB) - Bible Society. 1Invest your money in foreign trade, and one of these days you will make a profit. 2Put your investments in several places — many places, in fact — because you never know what kind of bad luck you are going to have in this world.

Verse Summary: What Ecclesiastes 11:2 Has to Say About Money

“Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight; you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.” In other words: Avoid risk, avoid disaster, by diversifying your income!

Ecclesiastes 11:4-6 ICB

If a person waits for perfect weather, he will never plant his seeds. And if he is afraid that every cloud will bring rain, he will never harvest his crops. You don't know where the wind will blow. And you don't know how a baby grows in its mother's body.

Ecclesiastes shows us in stunning ways that the key to life is not in life itself. Pleasure, materialism, wisdom, and money are all futile and folly. True happiness comes from centering our lives on God, not ourselves.

So the message of Ecclesiastes11:3 is this: If you are in rebellion when you die and fall to the south, you will remain in rebellion and will be punished through eternity for your rebellion when you fall, meaning when you die. The converse is also true as well.

Although the Bible never actually calls gambling a sin, it does give us principles that guide the humble into wisdom on this topic. For example, Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

Trading, even when done in ignorance (which is the way that over 90% of traders approach it) is still not sin. Trading is wrong only when the person doing it is behaving foolishly instead of wisely. Foolishness is not immorality, nor is it sin. You must look at trading for what it is — a business.

However, the Bible does not forbid borrowing or legal financial transactions that involve interest. What the Bible does forbid is the charging of high interest, robbing the brethren, and failing to pay honest debts indicates that banking and investing for gain are not wrong.

Bible Gateway Ecclesiastes 11 :: NIV. Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land. If clouds are full of water, they pour rain upon the earth.

What does Ecclesiastes say about wealth? ›

If God gives some people wealth, property, and the power to enjoy those things, they should enjoy them. They should accept the things they have and enjoy their work—that is a gift from God.

The Bible has a realistic perspective about money, Ecclesiastes10:19 says, “Money answers all things”. Of course, money is important. It is our time, our toil, our sweat, our food, our shelter, our clothing, our agent of exchange and bargaining.

I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing.

We find snow in the Bible 24 times with three times describing the white appearance of leprosy (Ex 4:6; Num 12:10; and 2 Ki 5:27). II Samuel 23:20 describes how Benaiah, the son of Johoiada slew a lion in the time of snow.

In the Bible, rain is seen as a symbol of God's blessings and provision. Additionally, in many spiritual belief systems, rain is viewed as a symbol of cleansing and purification, as it is believed to wash away impurities and bring about a new beginning.

This petition of the Lord's Prayer, then, teaches us to come to God in a spirit of humble dependence, asking Him to provide what we need and to sustain us from day to day. We are not given license to ask for great riches, but we are encouraged to make our needs known to Him, trusting that He will provide.

The phrase we have in English that conveys the heart of this passage is “what goes around, comes around.” In other words, be generous to others — give a share of your possessions to seven or even to eight people because you do not know when you will be in a position that you will need others to share with you.

Don't just invest in one or two ventures, because they could fail, and if they fail you lose everything. Invest in seven or eight ventures. Some of them are bound to fail, but some of them may do well, and may be more than enough to make up for what you could lose. Take risks, but take them wisely.

Second, Ecclesiastes 11:9–11 teach us how to maintain God-conscious joy. We choose to rejoice in God and his gifts, we live wisely in the fear of God, we cast our burdens on God, knowing that he cares, and we remember our Creator.