[Ecc 7:26-29] God Made Mankind Upright.(Lim)

John C Lim

Ecclesiastes 7:26-29

²⁶ I find more bitter than death
       the woman who is a snare,
       whose heart is a trap
       and whose hands are chains.
       The man who pleases God will escape her,
       but the sinner she will ensnare.

 ²⁷ "Look," says the Teacher, ^[b] "this is what I have discovered:
       "Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things-

 ²⁸ while I was still searching
       but not finding—
       I found one upright man among a thousand,
       but not one upright woman among them all.

 ²⁹ This only have I found:
       God made mankind upright,
       but men have gone in search of many schemes."

             Solomon has a great deal to share with those who are willing to listen to him.  He spoke at length about the futility of material wealth in the previous chapters and now introduces rather abruptly a woman whom he describes in a very negative light.  Look at verse 26.

I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare.

            Solomon describes this woman with vivid word pictures.  Anyone who has accidentally tasted a bitter pill can identify with that concept of bitterness.  Even as we think about the bitter taste in our mouth, we cringe and our faces are probably frowning with pained expression.  Solomon says this particular woman is “more bitter” than death.  We can all agree that death is not something that elicits positive emotion even though we as believers accept the true reality of death.  Indeed death will be a bitter pill for most of us as we would not want to think about it if we didn’t have to.  As unpleasantly bitter death is, there is something even more horrible than that which is a woman who is a snare. 

            Solomon describes this woman as a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains.  This imagery is rather scary.  Snare is used to catch unsuspecting birds.  Not unlike the net used to catch fish, it is placed strategically in the bushes.  Various techniques are used to snare birds.  You can steer a group of birds in particular direction and force them to fly into a snare previously set.  Trap is also another form of catching animals.  We’ve seen in the movies steel traps that clamps to ankles.  We can picture animals being trapped in iron claws howling in pain.  And these traps are chained to immovable objects.  Once animals are trapped, there is no way to escape it.

            So, we would ask, who is this woman?  This is a woman who leads a willing man astray.  We hear of married people having affairs and being found out eventually.  Obviously, shame and guilt are openly displayed by their pained expressions.  Many are quite remorseful and beg for forgiveness from their spouses and children.  Time after time, people have been caught in this snare and pay hefty price.  Marriages are irreparably damaged and children are traumatized perhaps for the rest of their lives. 

            As we look at the aftermath of destroyed marriages, we would ask if people would have done what they have had they known about the consequences.  When people engage themselves in this self-destructive pursuit of extra-marital affairs, do they know what will happen in the end?  I think they do know what will happen but unfortunately, they do not think they will be caught.  Arrogance and invincibility play into this flawed thinking.  Especially those who wield power and are in position of high stature feel they are above the law and therefore think and believe they are held to different rules.  Much to their dismay, when their lives crumble as a result of their unscrupulous foray into immoral lifestyle, they realize they are not above the law.  Man is sinful in his thinking.  No one is exempt from this condition.  Man must cope with a powerful urge to satisfy his sinful desires of the flesh.  No woman forces a man to engage in this sinful activity.  Man is a willing participant.  When a man is looking around for opportunities to engage in extra-marital affairs, he will find a willing woman. 

            Now, why would a woman also set a snare to trap a man?  Woman is just as sinful as man.  Her natural desire is for the attention of man.  She is looking for affection in man.  When she is not satisfied in her present marriage, she is looking for what she deems as man’s love for her.  Obviously, there is a trade in this kind of illicit relationship.  Man receives physical pleasure from this arrangement whereas woman receives what she sees as man’s affection.  They are both gravely mistaken in their perception of imagined gains.  Man does not receive total satisfaction and woman does not receive unconditional affection.

            Both man and woman desire something that is unconditionally satisfying.  In a Christian marriage, both husband and wife understand that they are fallible human beings with sinful natures intact.  They do not hold to worldly fantasy of prince charming and princess kind of romantic love that does not exist in real world.  However they also do not condone a marriage where there is no mutual trust and commitment.  As they build their marriage, they understand that they will never be able to satisfy each other’s needs fully. 

            Christ is the head of the household and both submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  Every day, man in spite of his flaws with the help of the Holy Spirit endeavors to do all he can to meet the needs of his wife.  He loves her as Christ loved the church.  He not only provides for her needs but showers her with deep affection that nourishes and nurtures his wife.  He is wholly devoted to his wife and is actively seeking ways to make her happy and loved.  Woman on the other hand also with the help of the Holy Spirit endeavors to meet her husband’s needs.  She showers him with constant encouragement and affirmation.  Even in tough times, they look to each other for comfort and strength.  They have made a vow that they will stand by each other through both good times and bad times.

            Marriage falters when husband and wife withhold from each other full commitment.  Anything but full devotion to each other in a marriage may eventually lead to potential problems.  When a man begins to look elsewhere for affirmation and encouragement, he will find it in a woman who sets a trap for him.  When a woman also looks elsewhere for affection and devotion, she will find it in a man who also sets a trap for her.  Those who set trap may initially get what they were seeking but what they were seeking were nothing more than their sinful desires to begin with.  Therefore, what they get in the end is the fruit of their sinful desires.  This is a losing proposition in the end. 

            Solomon says “The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare.”  We want to analyze what Solomon says here.  It seems there are woman with ill intents out there in this world.  They are setting up traps and snares.  Apparently, there are many women whose needs are not being met in their own marriages so they are seeking in all the wrong places for this elusive satisfaction.  These women are in need of true satisfaction that can never be found in extra marital relationships but continue to seek it.

            Man who pleases God will however escape her.  Man who is mindful of God in his life is a devoted husband to his wife and a loving father to his children.  He knows he is inadequate to meet all their needs but earnestly and valiantly attempts to do so with help from God.  He seeks God’s strength everyday as he keeps his wife and his children in his heart.  He remembers how precious they are to him.  The Scriptures however simply mentions that a man who pleases God will escape her.  Who is this man that pleases God?  This is a man who believes in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.  He is a believer who lives in God’s grace.  As he walks by faith, he avoids such a woman whose feet lead to destruction. 

            However, Solomon says, “but the sinner she will ensnare.”  When a man seeks to do that which is evil, he will find willing participant in a woman who seeks what she thinks can be found in a wayward man.  Woman’s natural desire is to seek man’s affection.  And she wrongly believes she can find it in a sinful man who is willing to be a partner in this sinful relationship.  She will find out that the hard way that what she is seeking so desperately cannot be found.  Together, both the willing man and ensnaring woman ultimately find nothing but misery.  Ultimately, they are both perpetrators and victims of their own creation.  This is the sad result when people allow their sinfulness to reach its final destination.  Irreversible harm has been inflicted on both families.  Look at verse 27-29.

"Look," says the Teacher, "this is what I have discovered: "Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things- while I was still searching but not finding.  I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all. This only have I found: God made mankind upright, but men have gone in search of many schemes."

            Based on what he has observed, he concludes simply that an upright person is a rare find.  Among many, there are only few who are truly upright.  That is a sad statistics based on his observation.  As we look around our world today, how often do we encounter an upright person?  From politicians to celebrities, we see too many who are immoral and unethical in their personal dealings with people.  As much as we would lament that such is reality, we have to also remind ourselves that we are sinners and that we have sinful inclinations in all that we do.  We depend on God’s grace to walk in the path that we should go.  Unless God enables us to walk in His path through the working of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, we are incapable to live that upright life.  If we have to depend on our own strength, we would fail miserably.

           Solomon ends this section by saying that God made mankind upright but men have gone in search of many schemes.  This is indeed true.  God would have us live upright life but we have constantly chosen to go astray.  We have gone in search of many schemes.

            In context of marriage, God would have us live our life happily with our life’s mate but instead of finding satisfaction and happiness, we let our eyes roam around and hunt for willing wayward person.  And when we search that wayward person, usually we will find that person much to our own harm. 

            When we live as Christians who have been redeemed through the blood of Christ, we have Holy Spirit who dwells within us.  When we yield our heart to Holy Spirit, He watches over us and allows us to overcome temptations. 

            Our life here on earth is full of mines.  We must open our spiritual eyes and ears to perceive dangerous snares set before us.  And then we must avoid stepping into these snares and traps by our willingness to be led by Holy Spirit. 

            When we desire to live life before God to honor Him, we will be spared from unnecessary distractions.  But when we begin to scheme, we will pay the price.  And the price we pay hurts us as well as our Christian testimony.  Let us remind ourselves that when God enables us, we can live upright life.